You're listening to TED Talks Daily, where we bring you new ideas to spark your curiosity every day.

I'm your host, Elise Hume.

Can you imagine if your worst day ever became the case study for your life's work?

On that day, I was about to submit a paper to a major conference, and like a rookie, I had left it to the last hour and was stuck in the uploading queue.

That's when the evacuation order came in for the LA wildfires and Pacific Pallisades where we lived.

I found myself outside, hosing down the house with one hand and holding the laptop with the other,

desperately trying

to get that document to upload. At that point, I thought that was my biggest problem.

That was Christian Bush, a researcher and management scientist who has spent his professional

life studying serendipity, luck, and innovation. It all felt like really bad luck.

But when I reflected on it, I realized it was more than that.

He argues that while we can't control unexpected events,

we can train ourselves to spot hidden opportunities in them and develop the skill and awareness to turn chaos into connection, discovery,

or even a door to a whole new chapter.

That's coming up right after a short break.

And now our TED Talk of the day.

On January 7th, 2025, our house, my wife's parents' house, and most of our neighborhood

burned down to the ground. On that day, I was about to submit a paper to a major management

conference, and like a rookie, I had left it to the last hour and was stuck in the uploading queue.

That's when the evacuation order came in for the LA wildfires and Pacific Pallisades where we lived.

I found myself outside, hosing down the house with one hand and holding the laptop with the other,

desperately trying to get that document to upload.

...