The certainty of uncertainty. [Wise Wednesdays]

The only certainty is uncertainty. And even that is uncertain…

So how do you make decisions?

Option 1: Make predictions
Option 2: Freeze
Option 3: Take blind action

Seeing news of the massive earthquake in Myanmar, which was felt all the way in Nepal where I had visited last month, was clarifying. There is no certainty. But that doesn’t mean you freeze (or even just fall back asleep, accepting the inevitability of death and hoping for the best like I did during the earthquake in the middle of the night).

This is the time of visionaries, mystics, and the sombre willingness of ordinary heroes.

Sometimes we have to march on dark roads. And sometimes we sit in open fields, listening for signs.

Right now, my senses are heightened, picking up on patterns and attuning to accelerating trends: AI reshaping human relationships, geopolitical shifts disrupting careers, and climate change transforming financial systems. Lately, it’s taking longer for Wise Wednesdays to form in my mind—it feels like the sheer volume of data and emerging insights take more time to configure.

This heightened sensitivity brings more data to process, but it’s also what has allowed me to act ahead of trends and make bold career and life decisions that later gained wider acceptance.

This year, I’ve also noticed that coaching conversations feel more alive when exploring how to lead for liberation rather than control, and how to make career moves that are aligned with rapidly evolving societal contexts, moving away from outdated models of success that are no longer ‘safe.’ Some coaches I know are also sensing a shift toward presence-based spaces that support wise decision-making amid complexity, and a move away from the traditional focus on performance and growth.

As leadership coach and Buddhist practitioner Rasmus Hougaard identifies in his survey of CEOs and leaders: humans will no longer produce content (which AI will do) but will be required to understand context.

Of course, it may feel like a luxury to be able to slow down and sense. But might it be worth cutting out some social media, news, or phone time and allowing your higher cognitive faculties to come online?

What’s a shift you’re sensing amid uncertainty in your environment?How is it reshaping an area of your world?

What do you need to do now?

It seems we’re firmly in the Age of the Sensemakers.

Have a great week,

Amina

One more thing: The Shameless Careers Podcast - Conversation with Varia Pechurina

“Success without fulfilment is the ultimate failure”. Yet so many people are caught in the success trap of having the external markers of success but feeling empty inside. This individual phenomenon isn’t just personal but is closely linked to the economic system that extracts energy from nature and humans to privatise gains while externalising costs. Liberation is the process of shedding external expectations and prioritising an inner-vision of life and work. One of the biggest insights in life is recognising when it’s time for change to align more fully with the bigger vision we hold.

Listen to the full conversation on achieving true career fulfilment with Varia Pechurina, a director at BlackRock who is driving the conversation on success in London’s financial industry and beyond on the Shameless Careers podcast. If you’ve ever felt the tension between ambition and authenticity, this conversation is for you.

Listen here:

YouTube

Spotify

Apple Podcasts

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