Debate: Is it really a "chance encounter" if you engineered it on purpose?

I keep seeing people post stories where they admit they joined a club or went to a specific event hoping to meet someone, and then they call it a chance encounter when it works out. To me, that kind of defeats the whole idea of chance. Last month I was at a coffee shop in Portland and my phone died, so I had to ask the guy next to me for the time. We ended up talking for an hour and he gave me a tip that saved me $200 on a car repair. That felt like real luck, not a planned meetup. But then I see these posts where someone says they deliberately sat at a crowded bar on a Friday night and met their future business partner, and they call that chance. Does the setting matter, or is any unexpected positive meeting considered chance, even if you put yourself in the spot on purpose? I am curious where others draw the line on this.

3 comments

3 Comments

wells.karen28d ago

Your coffee shop story really hits home. I once left my wallet at a diner and the waitress tracked me down using my library card inside it. That felt like a true random blessing. But seeing people map out where to be and when and then call it chance feels like they are missing the point of what makes those moments special. You can stack the odds but luck is when you dont even know the deck exists.

the_paul28d ago

Mapping out luck is like planning which puddle you're gonna step in for a splash.

lucasjackson28d ago

See I get what you're saying @wells.karen but I don't think it's that deep... people who try to "manufacture" luck are just being practical, not missing some magical point. They're playing the odds, same as buying a lottery ticket just with more steps. You can still appreciate a random blessing while also trying to put yourself in positions where good things are more likely to happen. It's not either/or, you know?