Serendipity Quotes - Page 5

• Only now I'm learning to enjoy not being in charge of what the next stroke will do to the whole painting. I'm still learning that there are no mistakes, only discoveries.

  Fernando Araujo Perdomo

  Mistake, Discovery, Next

  Biography/Personal Quotes, www.imdb.com.

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• Unlucky people are stuck in routines. When they see something new, they want no part of it. Lucky people always want something new. They're prepared to take risks and relaxed enough to see the opportunities in the first place.

  Richard Wiseman

  Success, Opportunity, Want Something

  "How To Make Your Own Luck". Interview with Daniel H. Pink, www.fastcompany.com. June 30, 2003.

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• The most important thing about art is to work. Nothing else matters except sitting
  down every day and trying. Why is this important? Because when we sit down day after
  day and keep grinding, something mysterious starts to happen. A process is set in
  motion by which, inevitably and infallibly, heaven comes to our aid. Unseen forces enlist
  in our cause; serendipity reinforces our purpose.

  Steven Pressfield

  Art, Heaven, Trying

  Steven Pressfield (2002). “The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles”, p.108, Black Irish Entertainment LLC

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• There is very little that is accidental in my work. I believe in serendipity for developments of plot, but the actual writing is arrived at by very hard work. The joy of writing doesn't mean that you don't get the backaches and headaches and the days when it's not coming.

  Robert Cormier

  Believe, Writing, Mean

  Source: www.teachingbooks.net

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• Surrender is a positive, healthy state. Being a surrendered person does not mean one is beaten down and so hopeless he or she has "given up." It's quite the contrary. Surrender is a state of living in the flow, trusting what is, and being open to serendipity and surprises.

  Judith Orloff

  Mean, Healthy, Hopeless

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• My mother thought my inclinations would do well in Law, but I was too shy and deliberative - slowfooted - for that, so I determined to be an English and German high school teacher. In my first year of university I had one subject to "fill in" and chose philosophy against the advice of my counselor. My university teachers in English and German were totally uninspiring; philosophy was wonderful and my results showed it. I chose it and basically backed into a situation in which only a philosophy career seemed a viable option. I've never regretted it, but there was a lot of serendipity.

  John Kleinig

  Mother, Teacher, Philosophy

  Source: www.3ammagazine.com

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• I think it's often easier to theorize in the official codes of theory rather than to theorize lightly through scene, object, story, and incident in ways that keeps alive the sensual serendipities of language. This is not a question of being for or against theory, but rather of being suspicious of orthodoxies that concede, in advance, that what passes for theory must be signaled by a narrowing of diction, sentence rhythms, and sensual awareness. I'm in favor of surprise.

  Rob Nixon

  Thinking, Sensual, Language

  Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

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• A novel takes the courage of a marathon runner, and as long as you have to run, you might as well be a winning marathon runner. Serendipity and blind faith faith in yourself won't hurt a thing. All the bastards in the world will snicker and sneer because they haven't the talent to zip up their flies by themselves. To hell with them, particularly the critics. Stand in there, son, no matter how badly you are battered and hurt.

  Leon Uris

  Running, Hurt, Son

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• Most discoveries even today are a combination of serendipity and of searching.

  Siddhartha Mukherjee

  Discovery, Today, Combination

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• The history of discovery is full of creative serendipity.

  Tom Kelley

  Discovery, Creative

  Tom Kelley, David Kelley (2013). “Creative Confidence: Unleashing the Creative Potential Within Us All”, p.123, Crown Business

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• I always leave room for serendipity and chance.

  Ken Stott

  Rooms, Chance

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• Serendipity is nice, but hoping for luck and the magic of happenstance shouldn't be an excuse for a lack of proactivity. I had to learn for myself that waiting isn't a life plan.

  Karen Finerman

  Nice, Waiting, Magic

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• I admit that I am hopelessly hooked on the printed newspaper. I love turning the pages and the serendipity of stumbling across a piece of irresistible information or a photograph that I wasnt necessarily intending to read.

  Jill Abramson

  Pieces, Pages, Information

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• To live fully your well-read life -at any age- it is essential to take your selection of books seriously. When you drift from book to book, you're lulled into thinking that this lack of focus is right and natural - but it's as wrong as can be. Some serendipity in your reading is delightful, but if you wanted to build a house, would you wait for the materials to assemble themselves? - Steve Leveen

  Pat Williams

  Book, Reading, Thinking

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• Like all photographers, I depend on serendipity, and when you're photographing children there's often an abundance of it. I would have an idea of what a photograph would look like and then something would happen - a dog might lumber in and become a critical element. I pray for what might be referred to as the angel of chance.

  Sally Mann

  Dog, Children, Angel

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• Jen came first, and then they wanted to cast somebody that would... Kevin liked the idea of having a kind of The Ghost of That Character kind of haunt the movie in a way throughout, by having Raquel look so much like her. And also, it was sort of serendipity. I mean, she was also the best actress. I mean, as you can see Raquel has a pretty appealing, engaging kind of precocious, sparkly quality that's... it was just luck really that she happened to the film.

  Ben Affleck

  Character, Mean, Ideas

  "Talking with the guy who gets Jersey Girl". Interview with Steve Head, ca.ign.com. March 24, 2004.

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• While traveling, I've found that spontaneity keeps things fresh, while serendipity guides me through it all. There have been a lot of rough moments along the way, but they often bear the best memories.

  Joseph Pisani

  Memories, Bears, Way

  "Oh Sweet Serendipity". Inside Switzerland magazine, Winter 2007.

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• I am proud that for the first time in the history of Afghanistan, I am raising the flag of such a people, who are producing all material and immaterial equipment necessary for the life in this country and who make all efforts for prosperity and serendipity of the society. This glorious and magnificent red flag is the symbol of the greatness and pride of these people.

  Nur Muhammad Taraki

  Country, Pride, Greatness

  Speech during the presentation of the new national symbols, October 19, 1978.

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• The internet has made it possible to meet more people, make more connections and do more interesting work than would ever have been possible . It enables serendipity at an entirely new scale.

  Suw Charman-Anderson

  People, Interesting, Connections

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• Hard work will get you a professorship or a BMW. You need both work and luck for a Booker, a Nobel or a private jet.

  Nassim Nicholas Taleb

  Work, Bmw, Luck

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• If something is going on, I hear about it. I like to talk to people, I socialise. Television is a waste of time. Human contact is what matters.

  Nassim Nicholas Taleb

  What Matters, People, Television

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• When we sit down day after day and keep grinding, something mysterious starts to happen... Unseen forces enlist in our cause; serendipity reinforces our purpose.

  Steven Pressfield

  Unseen, Purpose, Causes

  Steven Pressfield (2002). “The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles”, p.108, Black Irish Entertainment LLC

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• Some of the greatest things, as I understand, they have come about by serendipity, the greatest discoveries

  Alan Alda

  Discovery

  "Alan Alda's Human Spark, Part 2". Interview with Steve Mirsky, www.scientificamerican.com. January 08, 2010.

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• Politics is so much about serendipity that we've got to have a bigger pool of women, so that when people drop out of the process, you've got others to turn to.

  Eleanor Clift

  People, Pool, Process

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• I had aspirations to do different things with my life. I wanted to play soccer. I wanted to be a lawyer. Serendipity.

  Pete Wentz

  Soccer, Play, Different

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