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July 2023
Today, we're diving headfirst into the thrilling world of uncertainty. Yes, you heard it right, thrilling! Now, I know what you're thinking, "Uncertainty? Thrilling? Are you out of your mind?" Well, stick around, and you might just change your tune.
The great mathematician, Nassim Nicholas Taleb, once said that the greatest human pursuit is to move forward with incomplete information. He called us the empirical decision-makers who hold uncertainty as our discipline. Sounds fancy, right? But what does it mean?
In simpler terms, it means we're all just winging it. We're like explorers in an unknown land, armed with nothing but a compass and a sense of adventure. We make decisions based on what we know, but the truth is, we never have the full picture. And that's okay. In fact, it's more than okay; it's exciting!
Burger Travel puts it beautifully: "When nothing is sure, everything is possible." Think about it. If you knew exactly how your life would pan out, where's the fun in that? It's like reading a book when you already know the ending. Sure, it's comfortable, but it's also kind of boring.
Christopher Reeve, the man who made us believe a man could fly, said that at first, things seem impossible, then improbable, then inevitable. It's a journey, you see. From "I can't do this" to "Maybe I can" to "I was born to do this."
In my own life, I've had plenty of moments where I didn't know what the next steps were. Finding a job, moving to a new city, making new friends - these were all leaps into the unknown. And let me tell you, it was scary. But it was also exhilarating. It was like being on a roller coaster ride with no idea of what's coming next. A steep drop? A sharp turn? A loop-de-loop? Who knows! And that's the beauty of it.
Embracing uncertainty is a practice. It's about trusting that our future is created by us as we step. Abraham Lincoln said that the best way to predict the future is to create it. So, instead of trying to control the future, why not embrace it and create what you can in the present moment?
So, my challenge for you this month is to let go a little bit. Play with the idea that things might turn out differently from what you have in mind. It might even be better than what you imagined. Start looking at uncertainty as a grand adventure, an embarkation into the unknown. Instead of avoiding uncertainty, love it. Instead of running from it, run toward it.
Remember, there's a blessing in blindness. If I had known all the steps I would have had to take to create the tribe of Giants, wake up with Giants TV, the book, and everything else that we've created in this journey, I probably wouldn't have taken a single step. But I stepped one step at a time, feeling into the darkness, and emerged in the light of our creations.
So, here's to the unknown, the uncertain, the unpredictable. Here's to the thrill of possibility, the joy of discovery, and the freedom of letting go. Here's to us, the empirical decision-makers, the adventurers, the Giants. Let's step into the unknown, shall we?
Nicholas Townsend Smith
Author, The Giants and the Smalls
Word of the Month: Uncertainty
Uncertainty (uhn-SUR-tuhn-tee): The state of not being sure or having complete knowledge about something.
Uncertainty refers to a lack of definitive information or confidence regarding a particular situation, outcome, or event. It is characterized by doubt, unpredictability, and the absence of clear and precise knowledge. Uncertainty can arise from various factors such as incomplete data, conflicting evidence, or the inherent complexity of the subject matter. The term "uncertainty" originates from the Latin word "uncertus," meaning "not reliable" or "not sure." It is often used in fields like statistics, economics, decision theory, and philosophy to describe a condition where the outcome or probability of an event is unknown or cannot be precisely determined.
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