Synchronicities go down as one of my favourite things. They’re exciting, inspiring, meaningful, rewarding and even mystical. Well, the positive ones are anyway.

But what are they, exactly?

Some people might say synchronicities are the same as coincidences. They seem quite similar – a parallel between events, right? Sort of. The difference is that a synchronicity is linked with intention, according to Deepak Chopra, which has more to do with your inner world, whereas a coincidence is more random or not really intended and is associated to your outer world.

For example, when you’re focused on faith (the kind where you believe that things can be okay and even great) in the midst of challenges having piled up, and hold steadfast to it, and put your energy on elevated emotions versus a struggle mindset, and the car that you think wasn’t running and had three issues to be fixed (resulting in what could be a huge bill from the mechanic), only had one issue to repair, which was also cheaper than you thought it would be, and the mechanic also fixed your hood for free so that it would close properly… Synchronicity or coincidence? Synchronicity all the way! This actually happened to me!

During this crazy time where there were many challenges at once, I knew that the alternative to maintaining faith and a positive mindset and emotions would be struggle – stress, feeling discouraged, overwhelmed, and a lack of motivation…all toxic to the body and outcomes. So, I pushed through determined to check things off my list one by one in a positive frame of mind and what I call “a peaceful resistance” (what others might refer to as “keeping your head about you”), and I did that and then some! My focus was linked directly to my outcomes.

I can clearly see positive and negative synchronicities at different points in my life, based on the challenges I was having and where my mindset and emotions were at the time.

During times I felt struggle, I got more of that, where things kept getting worse and I felt at odds and stressed about it. And during times where I kept my focus on faith and maintained a positive state (i.e., maintaining gratitude for things that WERE going well, remembering the love I felt for the people and meaningful things in my life, meditated and did other little things that helped keep me in a state of inspiration), things changed for the better.

It seems mystical, which is a whole other article on quantum physics, but there’s also a simplicity to it available to everyone.

The most important thing to remember about synchronicities is your inner world. What’s going on inside you is directly linked to your outer world. When things are in sync in your life, you’ll see it, in your relationships, financially, socially, etc.

For instance, let’s look at relationships… Have you ever had or heard of when people are content with their lives, feeling fulfilled, happy and positive (not desperately looking for a relationship) and poof…opportunities for dates or meeting the right person seems to come out of nowhere? To the contrary, ever actively try and find the right person, especially in a state of loneliness or desperation? It doesn’t seem to work, right?

How about money? Ever notice that the times where you’re penny pinching, filled with worry, fear and lack that your synchronicities are in line with more of that? I’ve had that happen. I recall times of doing it while grocery shopping, which only seemed to instill a sense of lack, compared to times where I had a more free and relaxed way about it. Less worry seemed to create an easier time.

What’s your outer world telling you?

Negative synchronicities can be a clue to areas you can improve upon or what I like to call “growth” areas. Do bad things keep happening in a specific area? What’s your mindset or belief about that thing? Is there a link between your feelings and the experience (i.e., filled with worry, doubt, fear, insecurity about it)? This struggle mindset is not the state for creating positive outcomes. Remember the old adage, “Garbage in, garbage out”?

On the other hand, positive synchronicities can be linked with the areas that are clicking for you. What are you doing, thinking and feeling that’s creating positive experiences here (i.e., feeling peaceful, secure or confident)?

Let your synchronicities be your guide and something you can learn from.

Pay attention to the synchronicities in your life. Change your attitude, efforts, mindset about the negative experiences you’re having.

Think about what’s going well, and about your frame of mind and emotions surrounding that area and apply it to the ones that aren’t going so well.

Do things differently to get different results. Remember the definition of insanity? Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. This usually has to do with changing your focus.

My favourite teacher, Dr. Joe Dispenza often says, “What you pay attention to grows.” What area could use more positive synchronicities in your life to let you know you’re on the right track?

Need a little help? For setting goals, the Personal Success resource can be a great tool to help you to get clear and stay on track. Learn more.