Chapter 2
Becoming a Conduit of Serendipity?
In earlier editions of the SAL Life Leadership textbook, less was said about the topic of Serendipity. Greater coverage of this vital subject has been granted gradually over time. As you may have noticed, it is postured prominently throughout the pages of this, the SEVENTH Edition. This increase has evolved naturally and organically as a direct reflection of my clearer understanding and growing experiences with this fascinating phenomenon.
The purpose of this chapter is to expand upon this important matter in an effort to further empower YOU to increasingly
become a capable and confident conduit of this free, yet incredible, mysterious, and unpredictable GIFT that some call God and other call Karma, the Universe, fortune, luck, coincidence, et cetera.
My purpose in granting so much coverage to the subject of Serendipity has been two-fold. First, I seek to clearly recognize and acknowledge its reality and presence in our lives as human beings. And second, I want to recognize and acknowledge that Self-Action Leadership alone is not enough to obtain the existential growth and other results we so deeply seek as self-action leaders.
In other words, self-action leaders are much more than just powerful and wise leaders of self. They are also discerning and humble about reality, which includes the recognition and acknowledgement that there are some things that they cannot accomplish all by themselves, and will therefore need the assistance of other people and forces to realize their full potential.
At Freedom Focused, we believe that everyone's life is touched by Serendipity in various ways—regardless whether an individual recognizes and acknowledges this fact, or not. Moreover, there are times when all of us seek, or at least need, the favors and blessings of Serendipity.
No matter how great a self-action leader YOU may be, your life will always be better with the aid of Serendipity. Simply stated, we cannot live a full or complete life without Serendipity. Yet, even the greatest human efforts cannot control or replace its seemingly magical aid and assistance.
I personally believe that Serendipity can come whether we ask for it and seek it out—or not.
On the other hand, I further believe that those who seek out an active relationship with whomever or whatever they believe Serendipity to be, tend to invite a far greater portion of its metaphysical presence, power, and influence into their lives.
According to our pal, M. Scott Peck, the blessings of Serendipity—or grace, as he refers to it—are paradoxical. In one sense, "Grace is earned," (1) yet human beings cannot capriciously command it, nor can they manipulate its favors. On the other hand, "whether or not we become blessed by grace is a matter of our choice." (2)
To a certain extent, the entrance of grace (or Serendipity) into our lives is contingent upon our personal effort. On the other hand, it acts independently of our conscious designs for or against it. In other words, "we do not come to grace; grace comes to us." (3)
Peck then elaborates thusly:
"Try as we might to obtain grace, it may elude us. We may seek it not, yet it will find us. Consciously we may avidly desire the spiritual life but then discover all manner of stumbling blocks in our way. Or we may have seemingly little taste for the spiritual life and yet find ourselves vigorously called to it in spit of ourselves." (4)
I have observed this often frustrating—yet ultimately holy and prescient—paradoxical quality of Serendipity in my own life on countless occasions. For me, Serendipity often appears to be precariously capricious, and sometimes even unfair in its operations in the short-run. This is perhaps especially true when it comes to its preferred timing (which is almost never timed to my initial liking). Yet, given a sufficient passage of time, the clever machinations and remarkable orchestrations of Serendipity never fail to bring about the best possible results in my life and career—if I am willing to be sufficiently patient to allow its full force to hold sway over my heart, mind, and will. Disciplining my will, mind, and heart is not always easy. It requires as much submission and surrender as it does determination and persistence.
It demands that I know when to put up a fight, and when to lay down my sword.
And both actions are indispensably important in their own place and time.
One of the biggest errors that amateur self-action leaders are prone to make is to mistakenly believe that you must fight, fight, fight, and never give up. And in truth, there are times when that is exactly what you need to do.
But, that is not the answer in every situation. As Dale Carnegie—the father of the self-help field—once wrote: When you fight you can never get enough; but, when you yield you get more than you expected.
"When you fight, you can never get enough;
but, when you yield you get more than you expected."
—Dale Carnegie
I am reminded here of the timeless and poetic words of Ecclesiastes from the Good Book: To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven."
—Ecclesiastes 3:1
When it comes to Serendipity's role in my own life, there have probably been as many dark moments (when it seemed absent and inactive) as light moments (when it was obviously present and vigorously proactive). And yet, upon further reflection over time, it becomes increasingly evident that the invisible hand of Serendipity was there all along—through thick and thin and through dark times and light—ever guiding me toward the best possible result in the end.
Sometimes, when I was not seeking it at all, it would land squarely in my lap. Other times, when I thought I needed it the most—and most earnestly sought it out—it was nowhere to be found.
Given this seeming mismatch, it appears that Serendipity is mostly unconcerned with our personal opinions about how it should operate and what roles it should play in our lives and careers—and when. It also appears to be far wiser than we are in that its primary concerns are more focused on our Existential Growth and long-term happiness, success, and inner peace than it is on our mercurial personal whims or desires for temporary pleasure or satisfaction.
My personal conviction of Serendipity in my life comes from its providential power, proactive presence, and undeniable impact in my life and career. This intangible, but obviously very real, metaphysical presence and power has dramatically assisted me in my struggles with OCD, anxiety, and depression; my academic and career path; the 24-year writing of this comprehensive Life Leadership textbook; and every other area of my life.
Indeed, Serendipitous forces have touched and blessed my life so often and so profoundly that denying its reality, influence, and power would be ignorant, unobservant, dishonest, and ungrateful on my part.
In a few more years (2029) I will turn 50 years old. As I reflect back over my fifty years of life experiences, it is clear and undeniable that the mysterious workings of Serendipity have always been both continually active and far wiser than I would have been if left to my own devices.
The silver linings of Serendipity were not always what I expected to receive, or even what I thought I wanted in the moment. But, the trials I faced were always what I needed most in the short-run in order to eventually obtain what I ultimately wanted most in the long-run. While the choicest of my blessings almost never arrived when I wanted them to, the passage of time has consistently corroborated its capacity for perfect and precise timing in the end. As a result, I wouldn't change any of its interventions in my life—no matter how temporarily disappointing, frustrating, and irritating—even if I had the power to do so.
Whatever YOU may choose to call this remarkable metaphysical force, it is a profoundly beautiful and endlessly mysterious phenomenon of life that self-action leaders are inexplicably blessed to have access to in our lives and careers.
I know that I have been so blessed.
To illustrate these blessings, consider the following FIVE (5) memorable anecdotes from my personal life where I believe Serendipity played an obvious, albeit unseen, role that greatly benefitted me.
Finding My Wallet
Years ago, when I was living in Texas, I lost my wallet. After searching through my apartment at least three times, it was nowhere to be found. After dropping to my knees and humbly supplicating the Almighty for assistance in my plight, I remembered I had purchased breakfast at a drive-up window that morning.
"Perhaps I had inadvertently thrown my wallet away with my sack of breakfast trash," I thought to myself.
Then, I recalled my having already taken out the trash and pressed the "compact" button on our apartment complex's garbage compactor.
Yikes!
Rushing out to the garbage bin, I was relieved to find that the dumpster had not yet been emptied. But, I had already compacted the garbage! Despite this fact, after a very short search, I discovered—to my enormous joy, gratitude, and relief—my wallet had serendipitously landed in the perfect spot right on the very edge of where the garbage had been compacted—making it readily accessible by merely reaching my hand a few feet inside the dumpster.
I was not only able to retrieve my lost wallet, but was able to do so without having to dive into the dumpster and physically rummage through the filthy trash. What time, mental anguish, and physical, nasal, and bacterial misery Serendipity saved me from that day!
I recognize that I cannot prove that God answered my prayer and led me to my lost wallet. This simple, but highly fortunate series of events may have just been a lucky coincidence. I, of course, believe something much higher and holier was at play. But, regardless of my personal spiritual beliefs in the matter, no one can argue that I was very fortunate to have so many different variables fall into place at just the right time and location to empower my quick and relatively easy retrieval of my lost wallet.
That is a classic example of Serendipity!
Building Shelves for Dr. Jackson
In college, I worked as a part-time hourly wage earner in my brothers' shelving business. We distributed fliers door-to-door advertising our services, and then built shelves in the garages and basements of interested homeowners throughout the community.
One such job was in the home of Dr. Bruce H. Jackson, who was currently working on his doctoral dissertation on the topic of FLOW (2) at Fielding Graduate University (FGU). I had never heard of FLOW or FGU before I met Bruce; but, it was evident from our brief conversation that day that Dr. Jackson and I shared many common interests and passions.
A few years later, after I had graduated from college, I got back in touch with Bruce and eventually became one of his personal assistants at The Center for the Advancement of Leadership at Utah Valley University (my alma mater). Dr. Jackson became an important mentor for me at a pivotal point in my life.
Influenced and inspired by his example, I chose to follow in his footsteps several years later by enrolling at Fielding Graduate University myself, where I eventually graduated with a Doctoral degree in Education. This Life Leadership textbook that you currently hold in your hands is a revised edition of the dissertation research I completed for my Doctoral program at FGU.
My chance meeting with Bruce—building shelves in his garage and home as a young college student—may sound like a coincidence, and many would call it luck. Whatever it actually was—and I, of course, have spiritual beliefs regarding its ontology—it was undoubtedly a serendipitous occurrence that led to many additional blessings in my life and career.
So many different variables existed that could have altered this meeting and conversation. For example, I only helped my brothers with the jobs that fit into my busy collegiate schedule. what if I had not been there on the day we built shelves for Bruce?
Or, what if Bruce's wife had been there at the end of our job to pay us instead of Bruce and the two of us had never met and struck up that initial conversation?
Or, what if we had not delivered our advertisement fliers to Bruce's neighborhood? Or, if a neighbor had referred him, what if that neighborly conversation about Jensen Brothers' Shelving had never taken place?
What if I had chosen a different part-time job and not chosen to help my brothers with their shelving business?
There are always lots of mystifying "what-if" questions in these sorts of serendipitous situations. And in most cases, there is no way to precisely answer such questions. But, the reality remains that all of these things did happen. All the right variables did align in just the right way to ensure I did meet Bruce, which, in-turn created a domino effect that led to everything that happened afterward.
Consequently, that one shelf job, which was so ordinary and like most other jobs—except for the one fact that I crossed paths with Dr. Jackson for the first time—proved to be one of the more catalytic and consequential events of my young life. This event led to many important future developments and opportunities in my life and career, including the composition of these very words that YOU are presently reading!
Some, and perhaps many, would suggest that all of those interconnected and mutually fortuitous variables are merely the result of a lucky coincidence. And some would attribute it to the workings of a Higher Power.
Regardless who is right about their beliefs in the matter, the reality is that it all actually occurred.
And that is the miracle of Serendipity!
The Bitter-Sweetness of Failure
 |
JJ in his college track singlet.
Weber State University
Spring 2003 |
During my second and final year in college at
Utah Valley State College (6), I walked on to the school's cross-country team, where I made the varsity team and competed as one of the Top Seven (7) runners throughout the season, including at the National Junior College Athletic Association's (NJCAA) Cross-Country Championships in Levelland, Texas, in 2002.
Later that school year, in early 2003, my coach surprised me when he rewarded me a half-tuition scholarship for the 2003 season.
This achievement was extremely fulfilling, meaningful, and satisfying to me because of the value I had placed on athletics—and the extent to which I had identified myself as an athlete—since I was just a little boy.
That track season (indoor & outdoor), I specialized in the 800-meter run.
In the second meet of the indoor season in January, I surprised myself when I clocked a speedy personal best time of one minute and 56 seconds (1:56) in the 800 meters. To my shock, I had run a mere one second slower than the qualifying time (1:55) for the National Outdoor Championships scheduled to be held in Texas later that spring.
It was most encouraging to run so near the qualifying time so early in the season because I still had many chances left to qualify. From that time onward, I figured that qualifying was a foregone conclusion—just a matter of time.
In the months that followed, I worked hard and trained diligently as a dedicated member of the UVSC track team. I also ran some fast times in races. Unfortunately, however—and to my great surprise—I did not run fast enough to qualify for the indoor or outdoor national championships in the open 800-meters event, as I had set out to do at the beginning of the year.
Despite having come within a mere second of the qualifying time in the second meet of the season, I continued to finish just shy of the qualifying time, which was 1:55.7 seconds.
In the Indoor National Championships at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, I had qualified to run in two different relays. In both of these events my leg of the relay was 800 meters, wherein I clocked 1:55.7 and 1:55.3. However, because my times were clocked in relays rather than open 800-meter races, they were not allowed to stand as qualifying times.
After the outdoor track season had begun, I ran 1:56 and 1:59 in the first two meets of the season at Glendale Community College and Weber State University, respectively. Then, in my next meet held at Utah State University, I was on track to run a 1:54 or 1:55, and almost certainly would have done so, but was accidentally tripped by another runner just 10-15 meters short of the finish line.
I could hardly believe my bad luck!
Frantic at such a terrible turn of events outside of my control, I got up as quickly as I could and surged across the finish line, but it was not enough; I had lost several seconds in the fall and finished with another time of 1:59.
I was very disappointed, and felt robbed!
Following this calamitous finish at Utah State, I had only two (2) chances left to qualify, both of which would be at Brigham Young University, which had a world class, mondo track which was sleek and fast.
However, the first of these opportunities just happened to fall on the day after I had spent eight (8) hours moving to a new apartment (not the best pre-race activity). As a result, I overworked my muscles and did not get to bed until 3:15 a.m. the morning before the race. Then, after a truncated night's sleep, I walked in my undergraduate college graduation ceremony.
I was tired and my body was feeling the effects of all the heavy lifting (I owned lots of books) I had done during the move the night before.
A few hours after my graduation, I put on my track uniform and went over to the meet at BYU where I ran a disappointing time of 1:57. There was no doubt in my mind that my move and lack of sleep had hindered my potential that day.
My last opportunity to qualify came one week later, again at BYU. This time I was well rested and gave the race my very best effort; but, I still came up short by approximately three-tenths (3/10s ~ .30) of a second, finishing in a personal best (outdoor) time of 1:55.97.
I came so close!
But I ultimately failed once again to accomplish my season-long quest.
I was heartbroken to have come so close, only to fail yet again.
The next day—day two of the track meet—I was scheduled to compete in the open 1500 meters. It was my second best event, but not one I had been focusing on. Indeed, I had been specifically doing 800-meter workouts all season long, not 1500 meter workouts. The qualifying time in the 1500 meters was a high 3:57. I had only competed in the 1500 a couple of times all season and my best time was a distant 4:16—not even close to qualifying for nationals.
No one—not my coach or teammates, much less myself—expected me to qualify for Nationals in the 1500 meters. Thus, with these low expectations in tow, I entered the race much calmer and more relaxed than usual. While the disappointment of my 800-meter failure still stung, I felt very little pressure since no one—including myself—expected me to qualify in the 1500.
I started the race wisely by not going out too fast. As I continued into the second lap, my stride was smooth, my turnover was efficient, and I was feeling both strong and relaxed. As I crossed the line for the final "bell lap" I glanced up at the scoreboard where the running clock was displayed. After seeing the time, I quickly did the math in my head whereupon I realized, to my utter amazement, that if I could run my final 400-meters in 60-61 seconds, I might do the unthinkable—I might just qualify for Nationals in the open 1500-meters.
Spurred on by this brilliant ray of completely unexpected hope, I kicked it into high gear and gave it everything I had left around the final two curves and then down the homestretch. After lunging across the finish line with all of my might, my eyes immediately shot up toward the scoreboard to see my time.
It was a low 4:02.
The qualifying time was a high 3:57.
However, because my race had been run in Provo Utah, which is 4,500 feet above sea level, runners were allowed to subtract 4.5 seconds off of 1500 meter times to adjust for the thinner air conditions extant at altitude.
This meant that my official time was actually a mid-3:57.
I had done the seemingly impossible: I had run the best 1500 meter race of my life—the equivalent of a 4:16.5 mile-time—scored a huge PR (personal record), and qualified for the outdoor National Championships in the open 1500 all at the same time!
And I had accomplished it by only a couple tenths of a second (0.20).
Overjoyed, I leaped into the air as high as I could jump and pumped my arms in an exuberant display of exhilarating triumph. I then ran to and embraced my excited and, no doubt, surprised Coach.
Amazingly, and ironically, I had qualified for the 1500 meters by the same fraction of a second that I had missed qualifying in the 800 meters the day before.
Was that just an uncanny coincidence?
Or perhaps just dumb luck?
Was it merely the scientific or mathematical result of an intelligent, relaxed, and well-run race backed up by a good night's rest the previous evening?
There is no doubt that such variables helped my cause, and maybe these physical, mental, and emotional variables do tell the entire story. However, I choose to believe there was something more at play that day. For me, the precision of the timed results was too exact to be mere coincidence or good luck.
Whatever the source of this Serendipity, there is no doubt about the serendipitous nature of this specially-tailored GIFT to me. As I reflected back on how badly I wanted to qualify for the open 800 meters, and how I had been unfairly denied a qualifying time in a previous race where I had been tripped up in the last seconds, it seemed clear to me that serendipitous forces were pulling a few extra strings on my behalf to invoke whatever laws of compensation exist in the Universe.
This gift filled my mind, heart, and soul with unspeakable gratitude and joy to have accomplished my goal—albeit in a different way than I had originally expected and set out to do—and to this day, this experience and memory ranks among the sweetest of my life.
Conditions were windy at the NJCAA Outdoor National Track Championships in Levelland, Texas later that month. I ran more slowly (4:10) than I had at my qualifying race and finished in second-to-last place (11th out of 12 runners) in that semi-elite field of runners. But, I'll never forget the thrill of being part of an open national championship final (7)—the first and only time I would ever do so (8)—and I'll forever be grateful to the serendipitous aid I believe helped make it possible.
It was the closest I would ever come to racing at the Olympics (a childhood dream of mine).
Merciful Professors
After my struggles with math and science in high school, I was thrilled to be able to choose what my college major would be—and I chose ENGLISH!
Nevertheless, as part of my general education (GE) requirements to obtain my bachelor's degree, it was mandated that I take at least one (1) math and three (3) science classes. I was irritated by this fact; nevertheless, I was resolved to my fate and began to strategize how I might take the easiest possible pathway through what was—for me—a four (4) course gauntlet of subjects that did not come easily to me.
STEP ONE: avoid chemistry like the plague!
Check!
Despite avoiding chemistry, four (4) of the five (5) hardest classes I took in my entire undergraduate program were either math or science: astronomy, biology, geology, and statistics; and the one class that wasn't technically math or science was linguistics, which is basically the math and science of language!
I experienced an extra measure of anxiety and stress over astronomy, linguistics, and statistics. Yet, in every single case, the stars always aligned more-or-less perfectly to allow me to squeak by with B and C-grades. Whether it was a professor who made things extra easy for me/us on assignments or tests, or an extra friendly and helpful classmate, I received an enormous amount of grace in all three of these subjects, which, quite frankly, I never really came to understand very well; yet somehow I still managed to pass each class—without which I would not have graduated.
Suffice it to say, my own personal experiences with Serendipity have been many, varied, colorful, and comprehensive. It has generously touched every area of my life with more benefits and blessings than I can keep track of.
Miracle Weight Loss
For the first 33 years of my life, I was blessed with an unusually efficient and speedy metabolism. This genetic blessing was further favored and positively magnified by my active participation in sports, including long-distance, endurance running.
After age 33, however, my metabolism began to naturally slow down, and I began to gain weight. When I got married in 2008, I weighed #153 pounds. By my mid-late thirties—the mid-late 2010s—I had gained approximately 50 pounds to reach the #200 mark. As a 6-foot, 1-inch (6'1"), small-boned ectomorph, my ideal weight is #165-#175 pounds, placing a #200-pound JJ in a category of mild obesity.
Despite this weight gain, I continued distance running and also took up long-distance biking and swimming (triathlon) for the next dozen (12) years, up until the age of 45. This healthy and vigorous exercise helped me to maintain excellent cardiovascular fitness and keep my weight in check. However, during this same time period, I continued to yo-yo in between #180 and #207 pounds.
It was frustrating!
Over time, I discovered that no matter how much I exercised, fitness alone was insufficient in helping me achieve my desired weight goals.
Then, in the fall of 2025, I had surgery on my left knee. Between my inability to exercise and my continued overeating, I ballooned up to an unprecedented #216 pounds.
It was a painful reality check to see the numbers 2-1-6 staring back at me from the scales.
It scared me.
At this exact point in time, a dear friend of mine suggested I begin taking a GLP-1 type appetite suppression medication. This particular friend was richly endowed with a lifetime worth of knowledge about the fields of fitness, health, nutrition, and medicine. A Ph.D., my friend is an experienced and seasoned sage of life and a medical savant to boot. He is essentially a fitness and nutrition expert and an M.D., albeit without the official diploma.
After sharing with me some research—and his personal experiences—highlighting the many pros of GLP-1 drugs with regard to weight loss and other collateral health benefits, it seemed like a no-brainer for me to give it a try.
After all, my biggest challenge was my diet—eating healthy and controlling my meal portions. This part of my life had always felt like a seemingly insurmountable challenge for me. While I had enjoyed some success in the past through exercise and intermittent fasting, I had never been able to gather up the gumption and gusto to do much else. As such, if a safe medication with limited negative side effects existed that could help me overcome my profound weaknesses in this life arena, I was entirely willing to give it a shot.
Over the course of the next four months, I was astounded at the drug's effectiveness at suppressing my appetite and diminishing my desire for unhealthy foods like candy, dessert, and soft drinks.
It was a MIRACLE!
And the results speak for themselves; I have lost 30 pounds and counting. I am back to #185 pounds for the first time since 2020 and aim to continue my journey until I weigh #175 pounds (or less).
During the course of this journey, I have learned a lot about myself and the many negative habits I had spent a lifetime forming. While the medication has not magically changed all of those bad habits, it has dramatically increased my self-awareness of them. Moreover, the natural appetite suppression I have enjoyed has empowered me to make dramatic alterations in the meal portions I serve myself and the amounts of junk food I consume.
All of my life, I have prided myself on my ability to set high goals and then achieve them, and in many instances, I have been successful in doing so. However, in the arenas of nutrition and weight management, I have been consistently humbled by the realities of life—and my own personal weaknesses.
And it was indeed humbling to have to admit to myself that I had consistently failed to accomplish my weight loss goals, despite running marathons and competing in IRONMAN triathlons as an athlete. Nevertheless, I eventually got to the point where I was willing to fully admit this fact to myself and seek out help from the outside.
Once I arrived at that place—call it "Rock Bottom" if you will—my friend and his GLP-1 suggestion seemingly magically appeared with exactly the solution I needed at just the right time to help compensate for my shortcomings and weaknesses.
That is a classic example of SERENDIPITY blessing my life after I had already given my best efforts to succeed—and still continued to fail.
I will forever be grateful to my friend and the medication.
The combination of the two have literally changed my life!
Author's Caveat: Readers should NOT assume that GLP-1—or any other kind of drugs—are appropriate to take simply because of the positive results I have enjoyed, as explained in the section above. Rather, YOU should consult carefully with accredited and qualified healthcare professionals before making any serious decisions regarding your fitness, health, nutrition, or the use of any kind of medication. —Dr. JJ
Serendipity Alone is Not Enough
There is a saying that goes something like this: You create your own luck.
Benjamin Franklin echoed this idea when he published his timeless proverb in Poor Richard's Almanack: God helps those who help themselves.
Similar things could be said of Serendipity.
The late and great business philosopher—Jim Rohn—once illustrated this point in a lighthearted way when he told the story of a man who'd worked hard to cultivate a colorful and well-groomed garden. One day, a neighbor passed by and called out to the man, saying: "Wow, you and the good Lord have sure made a beautiful garden here." The gardener smiled back and replied: "I see what you mean; but, you should have seen it back when the good Lord had it all to Himself!" (9)
Rohn's point in sharing this story was not to diminish the role that Serendipity (rain, water, soil, seeds, sunshine, fertilizer, etc.) obviously plays in making the garden possible. His point was to emphasize that YOU and I do play a part—and a vital one at that—in terms of our careful cultivation and organization of any serendipitous variables at hand.
It has been my ongoing experience that Serendipity is usually about as active as YOU are. In other words, aid and assistance from unseen forces tend to show up more-or-less commensurately to your own commitment to unleash your personal best efforts over time.
If you go back and read the preceding three sections (stories), you will notice that I was always actively engaged in the process. In other words, I was doing my best—however imperfectly—to complete the work on my own when Serendipity appeared to make up the difference.
Serendipity rarely shows up when you are just moping around being lazy on your bed or couch—or whining about how hard things are.
In almost all cases, it waits for YOU to take the initiative. It then proceeds to follow your lead to continually enable and empower your efforts to the degree (or beyond) that you remain committed, determined, persistent, and resilient.
Thus, you will never rise to your full potential with Self-Action Leadership alone.
Nor will you realize the full measure of your creation with Serendipity alone.
It takes SAL and Serendipity—working harmoniously and continually together to reach the highest levels of the SAL Hierarchy. Therefore, the twofold question is always as follows:
- Are you willing to consistently and continually give your best effort as a self-action leader?
- Are you willing to consistently and continually accept the free gifts of Serendipity?
Question TWO may sound like an easy no-brainer; and sometimes, it will be.
However, there are times when Serendipity may be difficult to accept because it is not what you think you want in the moment. It takes vision and wisdom to recognize an opportunity when it doesn't feel or seem related to what you want most in the end. At such moments—of which there will be many in your life and career—you must exercise some of the most difficult and painful SAL qualities of all, such as: humility, longsuffering, patience, resilience, and endurance.
In BOOK the SIXTH, Chapters Four (4) and Five (5), I wrote at length about my romantic rejections and "Career Crucibles." Much of the difficulty I have faced in my relationships and career have involved rejection and temporary failure. These challenges have not been fun; but, they have made me who I am—and led me to where I am at and what I have today. Just as importantly, the very things that stung so bitterly in the moment—such as rejection and temporary failure—were the very events that became educational and experiential stepping stones to getting to where I really wanted to be most in the long run.
In these cases, Serendipity came not in the form of good news: finding my wallet, qualifying for nationals, or passing all my hard classes. Rather, Serendipity came in the form of bad news: temporary failures and setbacks, rejections, dead-ends, stallings, painful lessons learned, etc.
At times like these, it is so important to recognize that a temporary negative may very well be laying the groundwork for a long-term positive—the latter success of which would not be possible without the former failure.
In other words, things are not always what they seem in the moment; and you really do have to take the good with the bad in life. Life in this world is ever a two-edged sword and double-sided coin.
Always REMEMBER that...
And learn to live peacefully and prosperously amidst paradox.
Dream Big, Work Hard, and Be Patient
Let us, then, be up and doing,
With a heart for any fate;
Still achieving, still pursuing,
Learn to labour and to wait. (10)
—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Since nothing worth having comes fast or easy in life, you should
not expect your SAL journey to be fast or easy.
Rewarding, YES!
But fast and easy?
Definitely not!
I've been working on my own SAL for four decades now, and I've still got a long way to go before I reach my final destination in the highest level of the SAL Hierarchy.
No matter what I have attempted in my own life and career, I have discovered that there is no substitute for HARD WORK. On the other hand, I have concurrently discovered that when it comes to acquiring anything truly meaningful, actively WAITING—also known as productive patience—can be just as important. The hard knocks of life—and I have endured many of them—have underscored the veracity of these simple truisms time and again.
As we read in scripture, we must: Be not weary in well doing. (11)
But, at the same time we must remember that: In your patience possess ye your souls. (12)
Thus it is that we see the SAL / Serendipity paradox everywhere we look.
In the midst of YOUR unending journey toward Self-Transcendence and beyond, remember to work hard and give it all you've got. At the same time, do not forget to be patient with your personal progress and the endless host of people and things you cannot control along the way.
Strive to always do your best, but do not try to force Serendipity or hurry time. Believe me: it does not work! I know it doesn't work because I've tried my darndest to make it work in the past, and I've always failed in my many attempts to do so—no matter how intentional and spirited my efforts.
The good news is that in the midst of our many "waiting periods," some of which will be painfully prolonged, there are still plenty of obligations to meet, duties to fulfil, positive and productive work to be done, and good character to forge in the process.
That is what is meant by actively waiting.
Life—and Existential Growth—is a process, and successful living requires commensurate amounts of hard work and patience. As YOU undertake this often painful, yet incredibly fulfilling journey through your life, I hope that you might take instruction, inspiration, and hope from the words of one of my favorite poems.
Gradatim
HEAVEN is not reached at a single bound; But we build the ladder by which we rise
From the lowly earth to the vaulted skies,
And we mount to its summit round by round.
I count this thing to be grandly true:
That a noble deed is a step toward God,—
Lifting the soul from the common clod
To a purer air and a broader view.
We rise by the things that are under our feet;
By what we have mastered of good and gain;
By the pride deposed and the passion slain,
And the vanquished ills that we hourly meet.
We hope, we aspire, we resolve, we trust,
When the morning calls us to life and light,
But our hearts grow weary, and, ere the night,
Our lives are trailing the sordid dust.
We hope, we resolve, we aspire, we pray,
And we think that we mount the air on wings
Beyond the call of sensual things,
While our feet still cling to the heavy clay.
Wings for the angels, but feet for men!
We may borrow the wings to find the way—
We may hope, and resolve, and aspire, and pray;
But our feet must rise, or we fall again.
Only in dreams is a ladder thrown
From the weary earth to the sapphire walls;
But the dreams depart, and the vision falls,
And the sleeper wakes on his pillow of stone.
Heaven is not reached at a single bound;
But we build the ladder by which we rise
From the lowly earth to the vaulted skies,
And we mount to its summit, round by round. (13)
—Josiah Gilbert Holland
In Your Journal
- In what ways has Serendipity benefitted, blessed, favored, or prospered your life or career in the past?
- Country music legend, Garth Brooks, often repeats the following quote: Grace is when God gives you something you don't deserve; and mercy is when God doesn't give you something that you do deserve. In what ways has your life been touched by Brooks' version of Grace and Mercy?
- Some people seem to experience Serendipity a lot more frequently, and in greater qualities and quantities, than others. Why do you think this is?
- While humans clearly cannot control Serendipity, it may be possible for us to invite it more completely and fully into our lives. Assuming that this is indeed possible, how do you think it might be best accomplished?
- In what ways might YOU be putting up walls between yourself and Serendipity? What is something you could do to begin to tear down those walls?
- In what ways might YOU be inviting bad Karma to negatively visit and impact you in the future? What is something you could do to reverse this trend in your life or career?
—Dr. JJ
Wednesday, February 11, 2026
Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA
Author's Note: This is the 505th Blog Post Published by Freedom Focused LLC since November 2013 and the 291st consecutive weekly blog published since August 31, 2020.
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Chapter 2 Notes
1. Peck, M.S. (1978). The Road Less Traveled and Beyond: A New Psychology of
Love, Traditional Values, and Spiritual Growth. New York, NY: Touchstone. Page
307.
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid.
4. Ibid.
5. FLOW refers to a state of optimal performance accompanied by positive
emotions and a sense of personal fulfillment. It can also lead to high levels of
productivity and achievement. For more information on FLOW, see the following
resources:
Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990) Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience. New
York, NY: HarperPerennial.
Jackson, B.H. (2011) Finding Your Flow: How to Identify Your Flow Assets and
Liabilities—the Keys to Peak Performance Every Day. College Station, TX:
Virtualbookworm.com Publishing.
6. Utah Valley State College, or UVSC, is now Utah Valley University, or UVU. Because I went to school year round at UVSC and BYU (as a visiting student during spring and summer terms), I completed my 4-year degree in just over 2-years time (27 months). Hence, my second year in college was also my last year.
7. Because there were only 12 runners who had qualified for the open 1500 meters, so they cancelled the semifinal heats and only ran the FINAL. This was especially fortunate for me because, given my finals finish, I almost certainly would have been eliminated in a semi-final heat if it had been run.
8. I competed in two relays (indoor) and one relay (outdoor) at the National Junior College Championships. The 1500 meters was the only open race I ever qualified for.
9. Rohn, J. (2000). Building Your Network Marketing Business. Compact Disc Recording: VideoPlus.
10. Longfellow, H. W. (1912). The Poetical Works of
Longfellow. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. Page 3. Italics added.
11. 2 Thessalonians 3:13. New Testament
12. Luke 21:19. New Testament.
13. Holland, J.G. (1917) The Complete Poetical Writings of J.G. Holland. Google
Books version. New York, NY: Charles Scribner’s Sons. Pages 487-488.
