Serendip is an independent site partnering with faculty at multiple colleges and universities around the world. Happy exploring!

Reply to comment

kdlz's picture

 Using the little dictionary

 Using the little dictionary on my mac, serendipity is defined as the occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way. I somewhat agree with his statement that to increase satisfaction we must allow for serendipity, however, I don't think that we can only rely on 'chance'. I think that we can achieve happiness through a mixture of both chance and planned 'things' (events?) . One example that i can think of right off the top of my head is choosing to come to Bryn Mawr. I think that all the work and effort to apply & get into Bryn Mawr wasn't 'lucky chance' -- everyone got in because they worked hard and made academics a priority. However, for me at least, I think it was 'serendipitous' that I ended up applying to Bryn Mawr. I was talking to my friend (who is a fellow mawrter :D) about college apps, and she raved about bmc and so I looked it up and sort of, on a whim, decided to apply.  I'm sooooo glad that I did because I really really love it here, and I can't really imagine how it would be going somewhere else. So in this case, the lucky chance of talking to my friend and her raving about bmc led me to apply and eventually come here. 

So i somewhat agree that to increase satisfaction is to 'allow for serendipity', however, I don't think that you can only rely on serendipity. If i hadn't worked hard in high school, then the lucky conversation i had with my friend wouldn't have mattered because I wouldn't have gotten in and had the option of coming here. I think that you are mostly in control of your own happiness, and luck plays a very small roll. 

Reply

To prevent automated spam submissions leave this field empty.
11 + 4 =
Solve this simple math problem and enter the result. E.g. for 1+3, enter 4.