Certain with Uncertainty

“Is this going to work?” I kept asking myself the same question again and again. For years, I was doing the patient charts into the late nights and weekends. Would I be able to change that? I tried to do different things. I typed as fast as I could. Nothing seemed to work.

One thing I was certain was that I had to do something different to go home on time. There were different possibilities. I could cut down my work hours – that was not exactly an option in my job. I could work somewhere else – I did not want to move from where I was. The focus was then on cutting down my charting time while seeing the same number of patients.

Since I tried different things without any success, I decided to approach charting differently. I asked for help. While I was newly introduced to the world of life coaching, it resonated with me and it made sense. I decided to give it a try. I was not sure if it would work to improve my charting efficiency and I was carrying the hope that it would.

Navigating in uncertainty can be scary. While I was hoping coaching would help with my charting efficiency, I was not sure if it would 100% work for me. At the same time, there was a decision to make – to invest my time and money for coaching or not. I was desperate. The uncertain possibility of success was enough for me to take the leap. I am so glad I did. That one step out of uncertain outcome opened up doors to a future that I did not even dare to spend much time to imagine – going home on time with all my charts done, as a full-time hematologist and oncologist.

We can be certain about uncertainty. It is always going to be somewhere, at some point in our lives. Out of the picture of uncertainty, there is always something we can be more certain or confident about. Those things may be used as our guide to make our decision.

Prioritize your life. What is the most important thing for you? That will help you answer this next question: is the level of uncertainty worth it for you to move forward based on your priorities?

For me, going home on time so that I could spend it with my family was so important that I would take a high risk decision for the possibility of achieving my goal. Life is a lot of balancing acts. Most things are not 100% guaranteed in life. It is important to allow ourselves to move forward in uncertainty. The unknown may be pleasant or unpleasant, and we will not find out if we do not take the first step. The outcome may not be what you desire if you do not take action.

Control what you can control. Allow what you cannot control to coexist. This does not mean you are going to do nothing about those unchangeable situations. It just means that you accept their existence rather than arguing with reality. You will have more physical and mental energy then to figure out what the next step is.

Focus on possibilities and opportunities in uncertainty. Be prepared to explore and improve your situation.

The unknown can be terrifying. It is okay not to let that feeling take over you and hold you back. Uncertainty is always going o be around. There are things you can do to operate under the least uncertainty. Expect the unexpected will decrease the impact of the surprised component. Get to know yourself well and understand your own priorities. That will guide your tolerance and action toward an uncertain situation. Whatever you are unsure or unable to control, allow its existence. There are always many different options to approach something. Be curious and receptive to uncertainty which will open up possibilities and opportunities.