Objective Meaning vs. Subjective Meaning: The Road to Understanding Synchronicity

Have you ever encountered a situation that seems confusing, but later you discover an underlying meaning? 🔍💭📚 This is related to understanding synchronicity, as explained in my book "Living in Flow" using the concepts of objective and subjective meaning.

Subjective and Objective meaning

Subjective meaning is a personal interpretation influenced by our experiences, emotions, and beliefs. Objective meaning, however, is independent of personal interpretation, focusing on action outcomes and their relevance to experiences.

I realized the value of objective meaning when trying to understand the link between choice and synchronicity. For instance, taking care of one's health might open up synchronistic opportunities for wellbeing.

I've experienced this kind of synchronicity recently. I've been dealing with tension in my body in conversations, making it hard to speak loud enough to be heard. I sought help from my doctor, as well as my coach, and exercised more to loosen up.

In a seemingly unrelated chain of events, Dana was working on improving her sleep. She found a neighbor giving away a new CPAP device. Interestingly, two identical machines were delivered to our doorstep. Initially perplexed, I realized this could also help my situation. I tried using one of the machines and experienced deeper breathing and great relief in my tension, marking a moment of synchronicity!

Our choices are symbolic

The feeling of ease I was seeking is a qualitative experience.

Consider life as a tree, choices leading us along branches. My hands-on efforts to achieve ease (e.g. consulting my doctor, and my coach, and exercising more) were symbolic of the qualities I wanted to experience, adding weight to the branches in which I had more ease, and thus creating a synchronistic moment with the two CPAP machines.

You and I could argue subjectively about whether this is a good solution for the specific problem. But in looking at the possibilities as a tree, I see an objective, traceable connection between my symbolic actions and the synchronicity that emerged for me. 

We're all familiar with our own subjective views, our opinions and evaluations, our likes and dislikes, our beliefs and judgments. Yet in this case there seemed to be something objectively valuable about the unexpected gift from the universe. 

A gentle self-reflection

Objective meaning in actions can lead to specific outcomes, like improved health, showcasing the power of objective meaning to bring surprising synchronicity into your life.

Exercise: Gently and without judgment, reflect on what you've given attention to this week. What objective meaning are you choosing? Is there any small adjustment you want to make for the remainder of the week?