--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Pure coincidence, of course, but a…" description: "\"“Pure coincidence, of course, but a sensible man makes coincidences work for him.”\" — Arthur C. Clarke" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/15a/arthur-c-clarke-640_coincidence_pure-coincidence-of-course-but-a-sensibl_124525.jpg" --- # Pure coincidence, of course, but a sensible man makes… ![“Pure coincidence, of course, but a sensible man makes coincidences work for him.” quote by Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/15a/arthur-c-clarke-640_coincidence_pure-coincidence-of-course-but-a-sensibl_124525.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/15a/arthur-c-clarke-640_coincidence_pure-coincidence-of-course-but-a-sensibl_124525.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/15a/arthur-c-clarke-640_coincidence_pure-coincidence-of-course-but-a-sensibl_124525.jpg) > ““Pure coincidence, of course, but a sensible man makes coincidences work for him.”” [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A clever person can turn random events into opportunities by recognizing patterns and acting strategically. **In simple terms:** Use chance to your advantage. Key Takeaway Opportunity lies in perception and action. Themes strategy perception agency chance Mood optimistic resourceful Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - business negotiations - scientific research - personal networking Key Concepts pattern recognition intentionality Practical Applications - Identify hidden benefits in unexpected events - Plan actions that align with observed coincidences Questions to Reflect On - How can you distinguish meaningful coincidences from random noise? - When might acting on a coincidence be risky? A Different Perspective Not all coincidences are useful; over‑interpretation can lead to false conclusions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Coincidence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coincidence/) [Coincidences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coincidences/) [Luck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/luck/) ## Related quotes > [All coincidences are Odd. That's what makes them coincidences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-lee-martinez/all-coincidences-are-odd-that-s-what-makes-them-coincidences/) [A. Lee Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-lee-martinez/) > [Just think of all the billions of coincidences that don't happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-cavett/just-think-of-all-the-billions-of-coincidences-that-don-t-happen/) [Dick Cavett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-cavett/) > [In a world that operates largely at random, coincidences are to be expected, but any one of them must always be mistrusted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/in-a-world-that-operates-largely-at-random-coincidences-are-to-be/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [Sometimes life coughs up coincidences no writer of fiction would dare copy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/sometimes-life-coughs-up-coincidences-no-writer-of-fiction-would-dare/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Don’t dismiss the synchronicity of what is happening right now finding its way to your life at just this moment. There are no coincidences…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/don-t-dismiss-the-synchronicity-of-what-is-happening-right-now/) [Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/) > [“There are no coincidences in life. What person that wandered in and out of your life was there for some purpose, even if they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-alder/there-are-no-coincidences-in-life-what-person-that-wandered-in-and/) [Shannon Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-alder/) > [“To believe in coincidences, to believe in fate— it ties into the spiritual realm, to the idea that there is something universal out there,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-mildon/to-believe-in-coincidences-to-believe-in-fate-it-ties-into-the/) [Emma Mildon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-mildon/) > [“They say numbers are just ordinary figures. It is, but not so when it gets to the point where they begin to synchronize and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/they-say-numbers-are-just-ordinary-figures-it-is-but-not-so-when-it/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [Everything in this life has a purpose, there are no mistakes, no coincidences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/everything-in-this-life-has-a-purpose-there-are-no-mistakes-no/) [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [A scientist ought to have a healthy disregard for coincidences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fritz-leiber/a-scientist-ought-to-have-a-healthy-disregard-for-coincidences/) [Fritz Leiber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fritz-leiber/) > [“There are no coincidences in God's providence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cindy-woodsmall/there-are-no-coincidences-in-god-s-providence/) [Cindy Woodsmall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cindy-woodsmall/) > [“Premonitions are coincidences waiting to happen,” he said, without looking up. “I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-ozeki/premonitions-are-coincidences-waiting-to-happen-he-said-without/) [Ruth Ozeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-ozeki/) > [It’s amazing how many coincidences occur when one begins to pray.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hybels/it-s-amazing-how-many-coincidences-occur-when-one-begins-to-pray/) [Bill Hybels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hybels/) > [When you live your life with an appreciation of coincidences and their meanings, you connect with the underlying field of infinite possibilities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-live-your-life-with-an-appreciation-of-coincidences-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Coincidence is the exception, not the rule.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soheir-khashoggi/coincidence-is-the-exception-not-the-rule/) [Soheir Khashoggi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soheir-khashoggi/) ## More by Arthur C. Clarke > [Science can destroy religion by ignoring it as well as by disproving its tenets. No one ever demonstrated, so far as I am aware,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/science-can-destroy-religion-by-ignoring-it-as-well-as-by-disproving/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [We cannot predict the new forces, powers, and discoveries that will be disclosed to us when we reach the other planets and set up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/we-cannot-predict-the-new-forces-powers-and-discoveries-that-will-be/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [I am unable to distinguish clearly between your religious ceremonies and apparently identical behavior at the sporting and cultural functions you have transmitted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/i-am-unable-to-distinguish-clearly-between-your-religious-ceremonies/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [I don't believe in astrology; I'm a Sagittarius and we're skeptical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/i-don-t-believe-in-astrology-i-m-a-sagittarius-and-we-re-skeptical/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [You can't have it both ways. You can't have both free will and a benevolent higher power who protects you from yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/you-can-t-have-it-both-ways-you-can-t-have-both-free-will-and-a/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [Astronomy, as nothing else can do, teaches men humility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/astronomy-as-nothing-else-can-do-teaches-men-humility/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [Nowhere in space will we rest our eyes upon the familiar shapes of trees and plants, or any of the animals that share our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/nowhere-in-space-will-we-rest-our-eyes-upon-the-familiar-shapes-of/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [“The universe is full of energy, but much of it is at equilibrium. At equilibrium no energy can flow, and therefore it cannot be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/the-universe-is-full-of-energy-but-much-of-it-is-at-equilibrium-at/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [“Here the trees surrounded them with an invisible, anechoic blanket, so that every word seemed sucked into silence the moment it was uttered.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/here-the-trees-surrounded-them-with-an-invisible-anechoic-blanket-so/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [“I’m a scientific expert; that means I know nothing about absolutely everything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/i-m-a-scientific-expert-that-means-i-know-nothing-about-absolutely/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [There were some things that only time could cure. Evil men could be destroyed, but nothing could be done with good men who were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/there-were-some-things-that-only-time-could-cure-evil-men-could-be/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [They will have time enough, in those endless aeons, to attempt all things, and to gather all knowledge no Gods imagined by our minds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/they-will-have-time-enough-in-those-endless-aeons-to-attempt-all/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [“One thing seems certain. Our galaxy is now in the brief springtime of its life—a springtime made glorious by such brilliant blue-white stars as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/one-thing-seems-certain-our-galaxy-is-now-in-the-brief-springtime-of/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [Now I understand,” said the last man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/now-i-understand-said-the-last-man/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [It is really quite amazing by what margins competent but conservative scientists and engineers can miss the mark, when they start with the preconceived…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/it-is-really-quite-amazing-by-what-margins-competent-but-conservative/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) [Explore all 415 Arthur C. Clarke quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) ## More Coincidence quotes > [“Symbols are miracles we have recorded into language.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-kelley-harrell/symbols-are-miracles-we-have-recorded-into-language/) [S. Kelley Harrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-kelley-harrell/) > [It was no accident, no coincidence, that the seasons came round and round year after year. It was the Lord speaking to us all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francine-rivers/it-was-no-accident-no-coincidence-that-the-seasons-came-round-and/) [Francine Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francine-rivers/) > [“Coincidence is the exception, not the rule.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soheir-khashoggi/coincidence-is-the-exception-not-the-rule/) [Soheir Khashoggi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soheir-khashoggi/) > [Is it a coincidence that stories from the private life became more popular just as the grand hope for public redemption through revolution was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-griffin/is-it-a-coincidence-that-stories-from-the-private-life-became-more/) [Susan Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-griffin/) > [It was an odd coincidence that my career took off the same decade as having babies. I often wished it had been different, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-kaczmarek/it-was-an-odd-coincidence-that-my-career-took-off-the-same-decade-as/) [Jane Kaczmarek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-kaczmarek/) > [“Every emotion in the world wishes to be expressed, every task desires to be done. Coincidence is the perfect texture.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-geary/every-emotion-in-the-world-wishes-to-be-expressed-every-task-desires/) [Patricia Geary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-geary/) > [It's not coincidence that these attacks come at the exact same moment, and all together at the same time as WikiLeaks releases documents exposing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/it-s-not-coincidence-that-these-attacks-come-at-the-exact-same-moment/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [“You wonder if that really constitutes being ‘a coincidence’ but don’t press her on the issue, instead sticking your hand down your pocket to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-kerkhoven/you-wonder-if-that-really-constitutes-being-a-coincidence-but-don-t/) Rudolf Kerkhoven > [A thrumming of piano-strings beyond the gardens and through the elms. At length the melody steals into my being. I know not when it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/a-thrumming-of-piano-strings-beyond-the-gardens-and-through-the-elms/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“We cannot see how our lives will unfold. What is destiny and What is accident? And how can one ever be certain?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathy-ostlere/we-cannot-see-how-our-lives-will-unfold-what-is-destiny-and-what-is/) [Cathy Ostlere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathy-ostlere/) > [When you live your life with an appreciation of coincidences and their meanings, you connect with the underlying field of infinite possibilities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-live-your-life-with-an-appreciation-of-coincidences-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It’s amazing how many coincidences occur when one begins to pray.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hybels/it-s-amazing-how-many-coincidences-occur-when-one-begins-to-pray/) [Bill Hybels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hybels/) > [“Premonitions are coincidences waiting to happen,” he said, without looking up. “I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-ozeki/premonitions-are-coincidences-waiting-to-happen-he-said-without/) [Ruth Ozeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-ozeki/) > [“A friend of mine once said that she didn't believe in coincidence, that it was God working in her life, not a coincidence every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-cameron/a-friend-of-mine-once-said-that-she-didn-t-believe-in-coincidence/) [Barbara Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-cameron/) > [Some people suggested that I should try something else. It was a lot of things, but nothing really stood out for me. Nothing felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claudia-kim/some-people-suggested-that-i-should-try-something-else-it-was-a-lot/) [Claudia Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claudia-kim/) [Browse all 823 Coincidence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coincidence/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Pure coincidence, of course, but a sensible man makes coincidences work for him.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Arthur C. 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