UNCERTAINTY, THE LURKER IN THE SHADOWS

 Our brains are wired to seek certainty and avoid uncertainty.

 We not only shy away from uncertainty but also crave certainty.

And yet, to be an Indie Author requires going all the way against that. So how do we cope with uncertainty?

1.) THE WALKING DEAD perspective:

Indie Authors shoulder uncertainty because they see no other alternative.

Writing is something that is bone of your bone.  You write because you are compelled.  There are no easy roads to success in writing.

That is true for all of life.  

There are no certainties but death and pain.  Weeds come up on their own.  Roses and  vegetables must be planted, watered, and watched over.  The same is true of a fulfilling life.


2.) Indie Authors endure uncertainty because they realize FAILURE is a certainty if they do nothing.

The same is true for the rest of our lives.  We struggle and plan and persist since that is the only way to the dawn of our dreams.


3.)  The BAMBOO PERSPECTIVE:


There is nothing that happens over night. There is a growth principle; when you put a seed into the ground, it does not just blossom immediately. You have to water it, you have to nurture it.

 It is a process. 

If you fall, get up and walk again. If you fall again, get up again. You have to go into it with the humility of a baby.

4.) "IT IS WHAT IT IS" PERSPECTIVE:

The twenty-first century -- where everything is possible and nothing is certain.

It is necessary to appreciate that our body/mind's automatic reaction to change and uncertainty is stress. 

As a result, our stress arousal system is "on" all the time, a natural security reaction to constant demands to adapt to newness.

Therefore, in our post-modern digital world, our body/mind almost never properly breaks out of a chronic low level stress.

We may not be able to control what's happening "out there" 

but we all can learn how to quiet and center ourselves, renew our being, and replenish our core.

This can be done by accessing uncommon rest and recuperation through "the relaxation response", 

a measurable and natural shift in the mind and body triggered by a one-pointed focusing of the mind.

When simple mental techniques and breathing exercises are practiced several times, 

the ability to reduce the volume of the stress becomes progressively easier.

5.) BE THE CHANGE YOU WISH TO SEE IN THE WORLD:


You should take risks, because life isn't about having all the answers and knowing for sure what's going to happen tomorrow.

Resting in the knowledge that nothing ever stays the same while boldly making the most of any situation, can bring a certain level of inner peace and satisfaction.


6.) REPLACE EXPECTATIONS WITH PLANS:


When you form expectations, you’re setting yourself up for disappointment. 

You can guide your tomorrow, but you can’t control the exact outcome.

The future is not in your hands right now. 

What is in your hands is what you plan–

what you will actively do to find balance and live in the mind-set you want.


7.) FOCUS ON WHAT YOU CAN CONTROL:


Oftentimes we overlook the little things we can do to make life easier while obsessing about the big things we can’t do.  

A large task can seem daunting. 

Cutting it up into small do-able activities and attacking them one by one will have you scaling the largest mountain:

One hand hold at a time and Mt. Everest is climbed.

 " I wanted a perfect ending. 

Now I've learned, the hard way, that some poems don't rhyme, and some stories don't have a clear beginning, middle, and end.

Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what's going to happen next.”  
Gilda Radner