Certainty - The Smart Know It's Mostly Talk

 "Being uncertain means that I lack confidence."

"There is really no such thing as a problem that can't be solved."

"I should be able to organize everything in advance,"

Those are statements, quoted by Maggie Jackson in her November 2023 book "Uncertain." They mirror how the ambitious assume they have to present themselves. The book argues the extreme effectiveness of not being so sure. 

The book starts out with Martin Luther King's admission to his aides in preparing what turned out to be the iconic "I Have a Dream" that he was uncertain what to say. 

I would add that the team Lee Iacocca recruited to try to turn around Chrysler wasn't certain of success. They knew that they were risking their reputations exiting secure jobs at Ford to pitch in with the Chrysler adventure. Not operating in the usual box allowed them to roll with the myriad crises (including a fire where the paper work was housed, pre-digital). 

Two years ago I admitted I had to figure out my transition from four decades in business communications to intuitive coaching and tarot reading. That made me totally open, spotting opportunity faster and jumping in on course correction immediately. 

Interestingly, elite law firm Paul, Weiss announced that it had established the NonEquity Partnership tier. That was, it included in the announcement, before the firm had actually figured out how to structure the terms and conditions. In this volatile business environment it seemed to recognize that it had to proceed without all the pieces in place. 

At the once ever-so-sure of itself management consulting firm McKinsey reelected head Bob Sternfels indicated the organization had to do soul-searching. He did not, at the time, provide a restructuring plan. 

The vacuum created by uncertainty can be emotionally painful space. One 50-year-old I coach gave up on the certain path she had planned: supply chain project management. "Lost" was how she felt and she had never experienced that before. It took several months for her to accept that her best bet was setting up several small enterprises in personal services. They have begun to grow but she still can't shake off that strange interlude of not-knowing.

However, for most of us who have to earn a living from our labor there seems to be less and less that is certain. In presenting ourselves out there we may have to maintain the fiction of being fully in control. But we better not expect that to be the reality. Those who did share their shock on professional anonymous networks ranging from Blind to Reddit Career Guidance. 

In most cases you have only one shot in communications. Jane Genova is a communications coach and content-creator. Complimentary consultation (please text 203-468-8579 or email janegenova374@gmail.com)

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