Better Make Friends with Uncertainty: It's a Life Skill

Several fundamental problems attend to the human condition. For one, we have no official owner's manual for living. Many think they have one (the Bible, the Koran, Buddha's teachings, etc.), but nothing bears an official stamp universally recognized by all people everywhere. This fact lies beneath much conflict between humans. An equally vexing problem is that we seem poorly engineered, biologically and psychologically, for the most prevalent and persistent aspect of existence: uncertainty. And this fact lies beneath anxiety, perhaps the most prevalent and potent of human emotions. 

The above has always been true, but humans persist in the belief that with enough experience, technology, data, and rationality, we can render uncertainty obsolete. This belief is strong enough that we assume something has gone seriously wrong when uncertainty rears its head. There may well be a biological basis for craving certainty because change from stasis often signals threat and jeopardizes survival. 

Nonetheless, journalist Walter Frick, writing for Bloomberg, about U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs, says: 

“The predictable pillars of the modern economy are crumbling. The global economy is now a perpetual uncertainty machine. Get used to it.”

Here's the thing: the global economy has always been an uncertainty machine. Read Peter L. Bernstein's, Against the Gods: The Remarkable Story of Risk, for a magisterial analysis of the way we humans have tried to hedge against uncertainty through the ages. We can hedge against it, buy insurance, make contingency plans, but in the end uncertainty wins out. None of us can really predict tomorrow, let alone next month, year, or decade. Probability theory is perhaps one of the most under-emphasized classes in almost everyone's education.  

For individuals and organizations alike, the challenge lies not in eliminating uncertainty—an impossible task—but in learning how to live with and respond constructively to it. Embracing uncertainty begins with acceptance. When we acknowledge that perfect certainty is unattainable, we can redirect the energy spent resisting this reality toward adaptive responses. This isn't resignation but recognition—uncertainty isn't a temporary condition to endure until stability returns, but rather a fundamental aspect of human experience. 

Psychological flexibility is a crucial skill in uncertain times. This involves holding our plans and expectations lightly, allowing them to evolve as circumstances change. The most resilient individuals aren't those who never experience doubt or anxiety, but are those who can pivot without becoming overwhelmed by the emotional response to disruption. 

Another vital strategy is to anchor in core values and purpose. When external circumstances are in flux, clarity about what truly matters—be it personal integrity, organizational mission, or ethical commitments—can act as a compass. This anchoring creates a sense of coherence and guides action even when the path ahead is unclear. 

Building robust systems rather than perfect ones offers another practical approach. Instead of optimizing for a specific future that may never fully materialize, we can design our lives, organizations, and societies to function reasonably well across a range of possible scenarios. This might mean maintaining liquid reserves despite opportunity costs, or ensuring that our faculty and staff develop transferable skills rather than overspecializing. 

 Finally, finding meaning within uncertainty itself transforms our relationship with it. Seen through one lens, uncertainty creates space for possibility, growth, and surprise. While the unknown contains potential hardship, it equally holds unexpected joy and discovery. By cultivating curiosity toward what might emerge, we can experience uncertainty not merely as a threat but as another chapter in an unfolding story. 

In short, dealing with economic, social, and political uncertainty is less about prediction and more about preparation, values-based navigation, and finding meaning amid fluidity. The goal is not to find or restore a (false) sense of certainty, but to stay grounded and capable in its inevitable absence.