Ruth Kalinka Designs

Tonight, I am 99% sure I know where I am moving. While the process has been all-consuming and exhausting on every level, my housing search has actually only lasted 12 days.

On this journey, I have made new friends, met potential clients, practiced Chinese, connected with a spiritual community, and walked all over Philadelphia to see the insides of about 40 properties – and to hunt for phone numbers to many more.

This winding path has provided new experiences and clarified the answer. Remarkably, though, I discovered today that one phone call 12 days ago probably would have revealed the same destination! For many reasons, it was clearly necessary to take the journey and to go deeper within myself, rather than to know immediately. I needed to immerse myself fully in the uncertainty and reach out to anyone and everyone for leads every day. That may be one of the biggest lessons of the past 12 days.

Two years ago, I had the pleasure of meeting Lisa Haneberg, author of Two Weeks to a Breakthrough. One of the techniques she talked about in her presentation, and encouraged me personally to practice, was to zero in on your goal and share it with two new people each day.

I shared this goal with dozens more than two people each day and received helpful suggestions and introductions from strangers all over town. It got easier all the time to strike up conversations about my goal anywhere – on street corners, in shops, at a festival, etc. – and the adventure unfolded in unexpected directions as new clues were revealed.

I haven’t thought about my conversation with Lisa or her book in a long time, but as I watched myself pounding the pavement and talking to anyone and everyone about my quest, I grinned as I suddenly remembered her advice. Thanks, Lisa, you were right!

It’s easy to find excuses not to reach out and ask, but unless we put ourselves out there, how can we get what we want?

How important it is to appreciate the journey and serendipity, even when we just want answers and certainty!

At the moment, I am pursuing a specific deadlined goal of finding a new home. The search is exhausting, with many twists and turns, hopes and disappointments, and miles of walking neighborhoods I didn’t even know existed.

Along the way, surprising new opportunities and friendships have appeared, revealing meaning in the journey itself. By being present to meet this goal, I am in exactly the right place for serendipitous encounters… a big blinking sign that I’m on the right path!

How often do we allow the journey itself to be meaningful? How often do we talk to strangers, striking up new friendships in unfamiliar spaces? How often do we focus on what isn’t done, while missing the beauty and opportunity of what would never have been discovered if we had already accomplished the goal?

If this housing search had been resolved with the first place I visited, I would have missed so many amazing connections and discoveries that have appeared since. While there have been frustrations, my life is richer for the journey. My community and inspirations have grown.

These moments (and encouraging friends!) help me continue taking steps forward with optimism, trusting that things will work out – which they always do, when I allow myself to embrace synchronicity.

Sometimes I just need to be reminded of that simple truth. Don’t we all?