know the future

know the future. There are a lot of things that we’re comfortable not knowing. Not knowing a stranger’s name. Not

knowing our credit card number or a friend’s address. Not knowing the capital of Vermont.

We’re comfortable with these things because we know there are answers. Even if we have to get on our smartphones

for a few minutes to find them, we know these things are all facts that actually exist.

But there are lots of other things that we really want to know, like if our decision is going to be the right one, or if a job

What is the best use of my life? What is my mission? These things are unanswerable. There are many things that we simply can’t know|

And while we think it would be nice to know these things, to know the future, I’m here to tell you it’s really not the

case. Even if we could know these things, we’re actually better off not knowing them.

Last year, I took a new job in sales. It was a big change for me. I’d been in consulting and legal practice for the rest of my

career, and while part of my past work had been around growing relationships and coming up with ideas for new

projects, I’d never taken a job where I was a “sales guy,” where I would be evaluated solely on my “number.”

When I took the job, I was given a quota that, if I met it, would mean a significant increase in my pay. I was also told

that I’d be groomed for greater responsibilities and that I was seen as a likely future member of senior management. know the future

The company has been through three major restructurings |Several of my peers| including the two people who brought me in for grooming|

The market has dried up for our services, even as we were able to prove their effectiveness with randomized

controlled trials. There have been virtually no new sales. This means that I have taken a substantial pay cut and

have had to dip into my savings to meet my expenses.

The company has made almost no progress on new offerings, and several current clients have left. There is

some encouraging talk of new partnerships and capabilities, but these will take months to implement.

I sold nothing last year and am unlikely to sell much this year. And the most enthusiastic advocates for my

development within the organization is gone.

1. Not knowing takes the pressure off.| How to tell the future with your mind|

When we think we should know, we get stressed out when we don’t know things. But when we see that not

knowing is our natural state, we can actually open into that, into a state of curious detachment, of childlike

wonder. What’s going to happen next? Will it be a pleasant surprise, a learning opportunity, or both?

We can see that, in a sense, we can’t know anything. We’ve never known anything. So when the time comes

to make a decision, we just give it our best shot. And we know that we can always adjust if we need to.

2. Not knowing saves time| How to predict the future of a relationship|

When you know you don’t know (and can’t know), you look at the world differently. Think of the time and

money that we spend on trying to predict the future. I’m a big fan of sports radio. About ninety percent of it is

pure speculation on who’s going to win or lose and what that might mean. And the news is no different: the

debt crisis, the economy, the next Presidential race.

We don’t know what’s going to happen with any of this stuff. It’s possible just to admit that. Instead of trying to

keep up with what all the pundits are saying, we can spend our time doing things we enjoy, like spending time

with our spouse and kids. Or enjoying a walk in the park.

3. Not knowing fosters learning|

I wouldn’t have taken my current job if I’d known the outcome. And I would have lost so much in the process. I

think we can all point to bad experiences that we would not have chosen—a difficult job, the death of

someone close to us, struggling with a health issue.

And yet most of our growth comes from pain. know the future I’ve seen paraplegics and cancer victims smile

as they relate the growth that has come from their condition, insisting they wouldn’t have things any other

way. Often we only recognize in retrospect how valuable an experience has been.

4. Not knowing brings the joy of surprise.

Of course, we don’t want to know when bad stuff is going to happen. But what about the surprise call from a

friend? What about the windfall you didn’t know was coming? What about the laughter of a child?

A lot of the joy in life comes from surprise, too. And knowing exactly what’s coming would take all of that away.