I trust that everything happens for a reason, even when we’re not wise enough to see it.
Oprah Winfrey
I believe this quote has an important truth we should remember. Life would be difficult if we think that things just happen at random. If we have such mindset, when something goes wrong we may lose heart and do not know what to do. It won’t be easy either to stay grateful and positive when something bad happens. Things will be much easier if we believe that there is a reason behind it and that it’s a part of our life’s picture.
Steve Jobs talked about this very topic in his famous commencement address at Stanford. He called it “connecting the dots”:
If I had never dropped out, I would have never dropped in on this calligraphy class, and personal computers might not have the wonderful typography that they do. Of course it was impossible to connect the dots looking forward when I was in college. But it was very, very clear looking backwards ten years later.
Again, you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.
Are you having difficult time? Are you at an intersection in your life? Whatever it is, trust that the dots will connect in the future. It will take the pressure off yourself and enable you to walk your life with confidence.
Regarding bad circumstances, here is an important thing to remember: without the bad dots, the whole dots won’t connect as they should.
Bad dots are important. We like to think that only the good dots are important. But the truth is, bad dots are also essential. Our life picture simply can not be completed without them. Dropping out from college might seem like a bad thing for Steve Jobs, but it eventually allows him to bring good typography into personal computers. Similarly, something bad may happen to us, but it will make the picture of our life complete and wonderful.
So, if bad things happen, don’t think that they just happen without a reason. There is a clear reason: without them, the dots in your life won’t connect as they should.
