The book, Synchronicity: Empower your life with the gift of coincidence, has just been released in German, after earlier release of the English edition in the US, UK and Australia. The book is about drawing on the power of uncanny and meaningful coincidences. It is largely based on my observations as a clinical psychologist over the past 35 years.
Synchronicity is remarkable in its nature, and is therefore often experienced as a numinous, awe-inspiring phenomenon. It grabs our attention and disrupts our usual stream of thought, paving the way for fresh perspectives. It may make us wonder about the nature of the universe, suggesting an underlying order behind the unfolding of events.
The book contends that recognizing and reflecting on synchronicity is an accessible and helpful way for people to tap into a spiritual dimension in life, but in a secular way. It can enhance our sense of purpose, and prompt us to reflect on what is most personally meaningful in our lives. It promotes deeper connections with others, including those with whom we share a striking coincidence. It can help point us to our optimal life path, or destiny.
It is intriguing how the phenomenon of synchronicity overlaps with principles of quantum physics, and especially entanglement. It is therefore no surprise that Jung first wrote about synchronicity after active encouragement by Wolfgang Pauli, a father of quantum mechanics.
Many of the above observations are supported in the book by detailed stories from my clients’, as well as my own, personal experience. I was a committed skeptic about any form of transpersonal phenomena when I began my career as a clinical psychologist. That changed when I encountered a remarkable burst of synchronicity in my own life as well as having it repeatedly reported to me by my psychotherapy clients and others.
I now find that drawing on synchronicity is an extremely helpful adjunct in the therapy setting. Simply being open to it leads to a range of deeper conversations in a therapy situation. Some striking examples of this are included in this conference article which describes the potential of synchronicity to elicit transformative change in a therapy setting.
The book is designed to illustrate the phenomenon of synchronicity in all its guises, and to highlight the potential personal relevance of such experiences in our lives. It relates synchronicity to principles of modern science. It also describes strategies to help encourage, identify and interpret synchronistic experiences in ways that enhance our mental health and wellbeing.