Stay Afloat in Uncertainty
What is taking up your mental space these days? Believe it or not, I’m thinking about you, a lot.
I wonder whether you have someone to talk to, and whether you’d feel comfortable to reach out if you want to talk…
I wonder at what cost you’re keeping things together, and how you manage to stay afloat with everything going on.
Over the years, we’ve discussed getting through uncertainty – A way through uncertainty, Time of uncertainty, Sensing the unknown, as well as happiness – Happiness not included, Why “are you happy?” is a wrong question to ask, “I should be happy” syndrome, and importantly, How to not go crazy this winter (my favorite).
There seems to be a significant connection between staying afloat in uncertainty and happiness.
Getting deeper into my PhD studies on wayfinding under uncertainty, it becomes more and more clear that the end game for dealing with uncertainty is not certainty, and not a destination on the other side of uncertainty.
Uncertainty is our air, land, and water. Uncertainty is inevitable and ever-present, much like gravity, unless we fly off the Earth. No, wait, flying off the Earth will only get rid of gravity, but not uncertainty.
If uncertainty is a necessary leitmotif, we cannot get through or past it in principle, although we can create occasional, limited, temporary islands of the ‘known’ – private conversations, relationships, events, and organizations in which things supposedly operate under agreed-upon rules. In this case, when we talk about wayfinding through uncertainty, where exactly are we trying to get to?
I think we are wayfinding towards knowing how to stay afloat in uncertainty, and maintain our happiness and wellbeing in the process. Because we are not getting out of uncertainty.
I’d love to know what helps you stay afloat, if you’re open to sharing, Alina@AlinaBas.com. Be well, and please, stay in touch.
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ON A MORE PERSONAL NOTE:
Are you a mid-career engineer, a software engineer, a financial analyst, an actuary, an attorney, or another type of analytically educated practitioner working in a technical field? Do you also work as a part of a team (vs. as an individual contributor)? If you said “yes” to both, would you be open to an interview (via zoom) for my doctoral dissertation? There are no wrong answers – I just want to understand how you think and decide. The interview will remain anonymous and confidential, and will take an hour tops, and I’ll tell you the dissertation findings before the rest of the world. Are you in? PLEASE SEND ME A QUICK NOTE, and we will set it up. I look forward to our conversation! Thank you.
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While much of my work time is now dedicated to completing the PhD, I still love making time for coaching and consulting. If you would like to connect about working together, let’s do it.
