The Upside of Uncertainty: A Guide to Finding Possibility in the Unknown

Adjacent possibles can also reveal themselves when we ask what’s missing.

There are four groups of tools that increase uncertainty ability, organized around an uncertainty first-aid cross to remind you that there is help available for facing the unknown (see figure I-2). Reframe tools enable and strengthen a perspective shift, motivating you to look creatively for all the possibilities and to believe in an upside that yo

Adjacent possibles also reveal themselves when we look thoughtfully at problems we face.

cultivate the garden.

“Parents teach their children to live their dreams by living their own dreams.”

Discovering the upside of uncertainty starts with undergoing a radical shift in perspective: Instead of fearing and avoiding the unknown, you recognize and embrace it as the origin of possibility. It’s that simple.

Adjacent possibles reveal themselves, too, when we purposefully recombine things.

The role we suggest you inhabit is that of the artist (poet, painter, film director, chef) who pays attention, learns to be transfigured by the ordinary materials of life, and then from that place creates beauty, meaning, or even revelations of flavor that thrill and inspire us.

Seeking magic (serendipity, good luck) starts by sharpening your senses, increasing your awareness, and opening yourself up to conversations and situations where magic can happen.