“You find peace by coming to terms with what you don’t know.”
Nassim Nicholas Taleb
Why don’t I know the answers? We struggle with this constantly. We in tech love answers. We berate ourselves for having to Google. Our self-talk goes into the maddening.
What is my purpose? We turn to religion and philosophy when we feel unsettled. We go to seminars, life coaches, and meditation centers. What makes us feel whole?
When will the suffering end? We wonder why we have financial troubles, relationship issues, and health struggles. In tech, we struggle with mental health greatly. Should we just cheer up? Why don’t we have the answers?
We don’t even have the answer to why we don’t have the answer. So, we make projections, fall into distorted thinking, and make worst-case scenarios.
We want answers with the illusion it will bring us meaning, harmony, peace. It won’t. Answers only help us find new questions.
Questions aren’t bad. Doubt helps us explore. Curiosity brings us to science. Empathy brings us to healing.
Yet. Yes, and yet. Questions will always arise with no answers. Answers are relative. They are stuck in the relative time that Einstein told us about. They float in another dimension.
To find peace, we must reconcile ourselves to the fact there will always be things we do not know. Write it off in your mind like an accountant writes off bad debt. It is what it is. It isn’t worth the energy to collect, the distraction of our mind.
Those things that spark passion, life, and curiosity are the questions we should pursue. Facts are terrible dictators. They only take. Curiosity allows us to grow and evolve. Curiosity comes from peace. Peace comes in knowing we won’t always know.
Thought For Today
I don’t know all of the answers. It’s not my responsibility. I am a curious being. I love to learn. I explore myself and my surroundings. In my pain and suffering, I find peace. I allow it to exist along side of me. I choose to not allow it to rule my thoughts or steal my zest.
Big Orange Heart