The Perks Of Not Having A Clue What You’re Doing
Most of the time we don’t start something until we are sure what the outcome will be.
We’ll go on a date with that person when we know a little bit more.
We’ll build that company once we have an exit strategy.
We’ll start writing that book once a publisher expresses interest in our idea.
We just need a little bit more research, a little more time, a little more guarantee before we can actually start doing the doing. But by waiting too long, we run the risk of becoming our community’s “Invalids (In-vuh-lids) Of Progress.”
The path to surety is started by a machine not having the slightest clue what it is doing.
You can’t “wonder if…” without some sense of doubt. After all, if every outcome was certain before it was done:
our forefathers would have never stepped out of Africa
Columbus wouldn’t have stepped on a ship and sailed west
Neil Armstrong wouldn’t have stepped on the surface of the moon
Sir Edmund Hillary would have never had a step named after him
Your dad would have never stepped towards your mom to ask her out
The Goldilocks Zone Of Doubt
If you’re too certain of an outcome - like arm wrestling a 4-year old - you’ll get bored.
Conversely, if you don’t have any chance at success - like beating Usain Bolt in a 100-meter dash - you’ll lose all hope in trying.
No, we excel in the 50-80% certainty world. The”just-right” zone where butterflies find there way to your stomach, and cotton sprouts in your mouth. It’s where we might not actually get the result we want but the fact that it is within our grasp, drives us to try.
When learning, certainty quickly becomes bloated and bland that it’s best to move on to the place of “knowing enough right now.” That is where “maybe” comes in. That is where change takes place.
There is nothing to lose in the early stage of wonder. Seriously. Enjoy not having a clue for a little bit.
Because when it is deemed that you do have a clue what you’re doing, a “bucket of “expectations” starts materializing over your head, waiting to unload on you at the first chance you mess up.
You’re supposed to be unsure. You’re supposed to wonder. You’re supposed to be scared. But I promise you that the trying you do in the face of doubt will be more interesting and more fulfilling than doing something you're certain of.Sometimes we just have to let go and summon chaos. What have you been holding off until the "timing is right"?
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