John Hagel III and John Seely Brown have a nice, readable piece on HBR today about how to actively increase serendipity in your life.  Their five tips are:

1. Audit and re-shape your social network.

2. Revise your conference calendar.

3. Get more out of your social gatherings.

4. Act out diverse facets of yourself.

5. Share an experience in an unfamiliar situation

My favourite tip is number one:

Scan the periphery of your social network and explore those “weak ties” — the people you may have met briefly and who come from very different environments. Who are some of the most diverse people on the periphery of your network that you might benefit from getting to know better? How could you use online social networks to reach out to people you have never even met but who are engaged in arenas adjacent to your own interests? Each week, resolve to introduce yourself to a friend of a friend on an online network who seems to be the most interesting and most different from you.

via Five Tips to Break Through Your Filter(s) – John Hagel III and John Seely Brown – John Hagel III and John Seely Brown – Harvard Business Review.