When so much around us is changing so fast, and the world no longer works the way it used to, it can be easy to misinterpret what events mean. Add to that the stress, anxiety, and even fear that so much uncertainty can bring, and it’s no wonder if we sometimes find it difficult to make sense of what is happening.
What all this means is that, after we have connected deeply with ourselves, the second step to becoming antifragile is to pause and make clearer sense of the situation. Having gathered the available facts, there are two strong ways that we can do this.
One is to notice when we are making assumptions that are based on the way the world used to work. Then we can look for other explanations, based on how the world works now.
The other is by calling on our intuition. In a time of change, our conscious minds will still be trying to make sense of the world according to the ways it used to work. But our unconscious minds will already be spotting the new patterns that are emerging. By learning to connect more strongly with our unconscious intuition we can make better sense of how the world is going to work — and find new ways to succeed within that world.
Pausing to apply these two simple tools before we leap to action will make us clearer and more confident about what is actually happening around us. And it will also bring us more options for the actions we might take. Then, even if our best way forward isn’t perfect, we can at least be confident that it is the available best option.
All this will bring us more clarity, more confidence, and more enthusiasm to take the actions we choose. And in a changing world, that will not only make us more likely to succeed, it will also bring us a step closer to becoming antifragile.
Does the world around you still work the way it did a month ago, let alone a year ago? Do you pause to check whether you are making assumptions that no longer make sense? Do you use your intuition to help you find your best way forward? Would it be useful to start doing these things now?
Adapted from The Churning, Inner Leadership: a framework and a set of tools for building inspiration in a time of change.
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