Maggie Jackson

And so that kind of expert, and that's a great thing, that's really impressive in predictable situations.

But when something new happens, and here comes the wakefulness of uncertainty again, actually the more adaptive expert is one who spends more time investigating this new complex messy problem than even novices.

And they also evaluate different options and also don't just evaluate one option.

So the adaptive expert is nimble in the crisis because they're inhabiting that space of uncertainty.

There is a difference between being fearful of uncertainty, and that includes being angry at the fact that something's uncertain.

There's a personality measurement, a disposition called intolerance of uncertainty.

Now, people who are intolerant of uncertainty, who tend to be more rigid thinkers, who tend to dislike surprises, actually feel like something that is unexpected or ambiguous is unfair.

I hear that quite a bit from scientists.

Whereas if people are able to lean into uncertainty,

and that is see it as a challenge not a threat they're actually more flexible thinkers and that's a really important distinction um so you know uncertainty always might give us a little prickle of unsettling unease if we can recognize that that's actually helping us think better think more widely you know be on top of things that's a great starting point

Precisely.

And that is a great point, too, because there are a few things I could say about this.

One is, yes, we're all maybe not born, but we're all shaped to be somewhere on the spectrum of, you know, eager.

uh you know tolerant of uncertainty however uncertainty is also as well as a dispositional trait it's also situational so it's really important to understand that when we're tired uh when we're in situations where we feel compelled to be in an answer you know you're the new person in the room in the conference around the conference table and you feel like you really should say something

you're more likely to be intolerant of uncertainty.

So you're more likely to make a snap judgment.

You're more likely, you know, you're less likely to see the nuances around you, to see the complexity, et cetera.

So it's important to show that each of us has a disposition.

It's situational, but at the same time, it's changeable.

So as I was mentioning, we can all practice uncertainty.