Week 5 / Synchronicity

          I immediately connected to the reading because several years ago I purchased a book that contained a collection of writings by Jung that focused on synchronicity. My initial interest in the subject came from a discussion with my father who described a dream where he was driving in downtown Philadelphia and his car ran out of gas. Two days later this exact situation occurred in real life even down to minute details. In the book, Jung defines synchronicity as “the simultaneous occurrence of two meaningfully but not causally connected events” (Jung 1960).

          The presence of this phenomenon, especially in connection to the field of career development, indicates that the typical straight-forward and logical approach to counseling might not always be the most effective. There is certainly a reliance on formulas and assessments in this field, which are oftentimes useful; however, there appears to be some other force at work which cannot be utilized through these conventional methods (Guindon 2002).

          It was interesting to note the Buddhist and Hindu influences on the idea of synchronicity (Guindon 2002). These religions promote concepts of a universal truth and attaining enlightenment through mindfulness and meditation, which is different from the Judeo-Christian practices in the West. This brings to mind the differences between individualist and collectivist societies and how the way one looks at life can greatly influence the decisions one makes. Two words that were used multiple times throughout the article were “meaningful” and “transcendence.” The outcome of the case studies involved the client transcending any prior restrictions and finding meaning in their new profession. These concepts are central to Eastern religions and should be focused on in regards to counseling approaches in the West.

          I am reminded of something a professor told me as an undergraduate in regards to counseling. He said your clients will experience greater change if they can figure the problem out for themselves. The trick is to lead them down the path without giving away the answer. I think this can be applied to career development where in some cases it might not be as effective to simply tell the client what they need to do. Rather, if you guide them and let them figure it out, their newly forged identity will be significantly stronger than had they been given the answer.

          The takeaway message is that there may be forces beyond our control that lead people to certain decisions or seem to guide people in a certain direction. The fact that they are not in our control should be embraced instead of discounted for lack of empirical evidence. Sometimes in order to provide the best counseling for a client you need to take an unconventional route and explore the unexplainable (Guindon 2002).

References

Guindon, M. H., & Hanna, F. J. (2002). Coincidence, happenstance, serendipity, fate, or the hand of God: Case studies in synchronicity. The Career Development Quarterly, 50(3), 195-208.

  Jung, C. G. (1960). Synchronicity: An acausal connecting principle. New York: Bollingen Foundation.