Butterfly Effect (Not the movie)

friendface

I was lying in bed last-night thinking about how seemingly minor events can have a dramatic effect on your life. (I couldn't sleep )

For example, when I first started college I was late applying for accomodation. For whatever reason, I left it 'til the last minute. As a result, I didn't get the accommodation I had applied for and had to make a trip to the campus to make alternative arrangements. This obviously influenced where I eventually decided to stay and, in turn, influenced my circle of friends for the duration of my college life which also influenced where I worked as well as my current career path. I can safely say, I would be doing something completely different now, maybe in another country, had I applied for accommodation earlier when I started college.

A mechanic I was once talking to said he ended up in his job because when he was cycling to his school to sit his leaving cert exams, he hit a stone on the road, fell off his bike and broke his arm causing him to miss his exam and fail his leaving cert. Maybe that's a pretty extreme example

The butterfly effect is a metaphor that encapsulates the concept of sensitive dependence on initial conditions in chaos theory; namely that small differences in the initial condition of a dynamical system may produce large variations in the long term behavior of the system.

Do you ever wonder what effect your day-to-day seemingly minor decisions have on your life. I'm always intrigued by stories of peoples lives being changed by minor occurrences. Any interesting stories?

emma6606

Hi Friendface!
Thats a cool question... I hadnt thought about it before... but im thinking now!!! :eek:
Slightly worried ha ha

adamski8

"What if." Well, what if I get out of the shower tomorrow, and step on a bar of soap? Oh my God, I'd be killed!

.

Davidius

I love a bit of the old chaos theory myself.
Now I'm reminded of this though.

brianthebard

metaphors aren't real op.

Mark200

Yeah it's really interesting to think about. I've been thinking about it ever since I read the book Yes Man a few months ago, which is a true story about a guy who decided to say yes to everything for a few months (the movie Yes Man is loosely based on the book).

For example, a lot of people meet most of their girlfriends/boyfriends at parties or at other events through friends of friends... so what seemed like a little 'yes' by saying you'd go to the party or event, actually ends up making a huge difference.

Gummy Panda

Mark200 wrote: »

For example, a lot of people meet most of their girlfriends/boyfriends at parties or at other events through friends of friends... so what seemed like a little 'yes' by saying you'd go to the party or event, actually ends up making a huge difference.

So by saying no, I might have stifled my life.

I haz a sad now

GAAman

I think about this kinda stuff all the time.

I left school when i was 15 to do an apprenticeship in printing, i got sick and had to quit work got tired of being sick so went back to education and did a fetac in computers. After this i was applying to the university of ulster's jordanstown campus i had my heart set on it and wouldnt consider any other campus.

Anyway my ex at the time nagged and bitched at me that much about putting other choices down i did it just to shut her up

Jordanstown said no a few weeks later but magee said yes, so i came to magee and met alot of good friends, got my own place, got a cat (wanted one for many years) and now instead of doing computers and being miserable i changed to psychology due to the suicide of one of my close friends who i made by coming here and am on my way to becoming a doctor (Please God) instead of something in the tech field

All cos i ticked a box i didnt wanna tick

bluto63

I can trace my circle of friends and where and who I live with back to one question. If I had said no to whether I think Sophie Ellis Bextor was hot, then my life would be completely different

Biggins

Did a training course once that was ok but one part of it was an introduction to a very more specialist field alone.
As it turned out I was able to do stuff in five minutes, that was taking others 30 minutes or more to do, constantly.
Just pure lucky for me that though I never kopped it - I jut got on with the job, the instructor did.
He recommended me to others, diverging me then from what was originally only a small introduction as part of a large course, took me into an area that widened hugely so many doors in the future.

...And all from a basic course and the keen eye of someone that changed my life in ways he will never know.
Had he not seen the potential in me, I might never have travelled, seen and done some things in other places outside of Ireland.

Kasabian

i was suppose to sign up as an alter boy the morning that Pope JP2 arrived in Ireland , I got caught up in the TV coverage and forgot to attend thus missing enrollment. Phew !

kwestfan08

Missed out on my first choice CAO place by five points. Honestly think if I had of got it I wouldn't be half as happy as I am now. Kinda funny how life works itself out like that

Glowing

I'm always thinking about stuff like this!!!

Me randomly picking a company for my college placement off a notice board has lead to me meeting my (now) fiance, travelling all over the world and getting into a career I love!

Remember reading a thread on here about some poster not having enough money to pay for a bag of chips, but some random chick paid the difference and he ended up getting engaged to them or something. Made me smile, anyway.

OutlawPete

Deleted User wrote: »

Remember reading a thread on here about some poster not having enough money to pay for a bag of chips, but some random chick paid the difference and he ended up getting engaged to them or something. Made me smile, anyway.

Sounds like my post but he was a guy and we didn't get engaged, unfortunately ..

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=63429411&postcount=51

Duggy747

I passed my 3rd year exams but didn't have enough to do 4th year (I didn't want to do it, anyways). I thought since my college mates were going back for a 4th year I wouldn't see them again.

One day, I get a phone call off one of the guys about a job he heard about in an IT hardware shop. I apply for it, get the job and move back into my gaff to spend another year with the lads.

When I was laid off that job I moved back home and went into my local that same night where one of the bar staff heard I was laid off. He comes up to me and says he needs someone to help him with his tiling business.

Cue me working as a tiler for 6 months!

I love how even the smallest things can have the biggest effects, no matter how long it might be before you see the outcome (days, weeks, months)

OutlawPete

OutlawPete wrote: »

Sounds like my post but he was a guy and we didn't get engaged, unfortunately ..

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=63429411&postcount=51

Whoops, thats the one alright. Thought it was a lot longer than 5 months ago though.

OutlawPete

Deleted User wrote: »

Whoops, thats the one alright. Thought it was a lot longer than 5 months ago though.

And you had me marring my mate ..

I hope I never have to depend on you as a witness