Simone Stolzoff

Part of what it means to live in the modern world is to be able to face uncertainty and continue to make decisions, continue to persist.

And if we're intolerant, then we continue to close our minds and not open our minds to the possibilities that might be sitting on the other side of what we don't know.

I think it's an attempt to find control in a situation that you might not necessarily have very much control.

So in the book, I talk about three different traps that we often fall into.

The first is comfort, our desire to stay comfortable, which keeps us from exploring things outside of our comfort zone.

The second is hubris, our tendency to think that we know best, which keeps us from admitting what we don't know.

And the last trap that I talk about is control, our desire to plan, to think,

know exactly what the future will hold, even when we sometimes cannot.

And so I think in a situation like this with the New York airport, certainly it's good to do some research to figure out if there's estimated wait times, if maybe your airline can send you an estimate.

But there comes a point in any sort of decision-making process where gathering more information has diminishing returns.

I'm thinking specifically about one moment in my life where I was deciding between two job offers and I spoke to everyone I could about it.

My Uber driver, my yoga teacher.

I was like insufferable as a friend and as a partner.

And I realized I was trying to control a situation that I fundamentally could not.

I wanted to know what was the right job for me in the same way that you might want to know exactly what time you should arrive at Newark.

And so I think for someone in your situation, the most important thing is to separate what you can and you can't control.

You can control for things like your method of getting to the airport, trying to arrive with as much time as possible.

But there is a level of uncertainty that is inherent in flying or making any sort of decision like that.

And I would say to not opt on the full end of the conservative spectrum and arrive six hours for your flight.

And then not...