A simple truth is that all new possibilities and creative thinking come from the field of uncertainty (the unknown).
If you know exactly what lies ahead of you then you think and behave the way you’ve always done. If you don’t know what’s ahead, then to the extent that you can remain comfortable with uncertainty, you’re able to merge with the natural unfolding of life’s purpose for you.
In this day and age what’s there to be certain about anyway? These are times of rapid change and transformation – very frightening for those who insist on knowing what tomorrow will bring. And so it will remain until we learn to become familiar with the unknown and in so doing tap our creative ability to mold and shape our destinies more fluidly. Stress and anxiety arises when what we think we need is threatened by the possibility that we might not get it or lose it. A sense of freedom, inner peace and resourcefulness is the experience of those who are able to embrace the fact that every experience is a changing one.
Many of my coaching clients get their breakthroughs the moment they give up trying to have things a certain way. This is not giving in to a situation, it’s the realisation that we don’t need to have all the answers and we don’t have to try to control how things turn out, and that’s okay. This moment of acceptance leads to new perceptions and possibilities arising in awareness that had previously been blocked by rigid thinking.
Sometimes we need to get out of our own way so that we can see where we are and where we’re going more clearly.
The next time you face uncertainty, if you want to move through it more quickly and gracefully, then try approaching your situation as follows:
Realise that in the context of your whole life, what you know is always going to be a tiny island in the infinite ocean of what you don’t know. It’s from what you don’t know that new ideas, opportunities and solutions to problems arise. Therefore allow yourself to feel the feelings associated with not knowing, as this is how you embrace uncertainty. Giving yourself permission to feel those feelings is how you release them from your body and free your mind to identify the best way forward.
I’m not suggesting that you stop planning and organising things in your life. However we want to bring your awareness to the fact that no matter what your experience is, it’s always a passing one, and therefore you never have to feel stuck or helpless.
Embracing uncertainty means embracing life, and in so doing becoming more agile and experiencing more aliveness, which is generally a good thing.
Written by Jevon Dangeli – MSc Transpersonal Psychology, Coach & Trainer
