We are certainly in uncertain times. I enjoyed Mauldin’s recent essay, “Who Took My Easy Button?” He shares some insightful information on the difficult and unyielding choices we face as a nation that have already played out in other countries like Greece and likely Italy.
Another great capture can be found in Hugh MacLeod’s cartoon and post, The Era of Prosperity-on-Autopilot is over. The people that feel threatened are the ones on the middle. The rule followers, managers and good girls and boys are finding dry wells in their pursuits.
If you are talented and know what you are doing, these are exciting times. Uncertainty leads to remarkable opportunities. If you know how to do a good job someone else tells you, well, it’s going to be a hard time. You are looking for certainty and the world is not going to that place of predictability and comfort any time soon. Old paradigms and structures are changing continually. We don’t do things like we did five years ago, much less a year ago.
Creating Opportunity
If you want to become irrelevant, simply stay still. The world around you will help you quickly towards this end. If you want to find opportunity and grow in the midst of uncertainty, here a few ways to make it happen:
- Dream. Now is the time to imagine how things could be better. Envision what is possible. Your dreams pull you.
- Move. You cannot discover by standing still and overanalyzing. Try things. Fail forward. Be bold. Iteration is a great strategy for tuning into possibilities.
- Aim. When you find things don’t work, repoint. Change where you are pointing. Keep aiming and re-aiming to find the target.
- Embrace. When you find things that work, incorporate them into your life and work. Build around it. Create a foundation and build. This may mean letting go of something old.
The goal is not to create certainty. It is to be comfortable in the uncertainty of reality. The alternative is to live in denial and fear. That is not living. It’s hiding.
The world is looking for new answers. Perhaps your uncertainty will catalyze you to new opportunities.
What do you think?
Wow, Don. The thing i like the most about your post is that it applies to everyone – from those living in poverty to those who run companies. Move and shake or lay down. It’s your choice. Thanks for another great inspiring article.
Thanks, Betsy. You are indeed one person that is comfortable with uncertainty and know how to push through to get to what you want. The world needs more Betsy’s!