The Predictability of Uncertainty

If you are a perfectionist, you have a big problem.

The problem is you live in a sloppy world.

Precision is precise within constraints and tolerances. Sometimes these are impressively accurate, but driving somewhere and making it on time, every time, is not something you can control. Rushing to stay on time is most often a problem with planning, not execution — the failure to factor in enough uncertainty. Having said this you still won’t always make your destination on time.

I bet you knew this already, but consider how much emotional energy you spend fuming about crazy drivers and conspiratorial traffic lights that, when they see you approach, turn red and just sit there F O R E V E R just for spite.

So, just for today, embrace progress, not perfection.

Do the best you can and give yourself some slack. And what does "slack" mean? It means tolerance, wiggle room, or flexibility to maneuver the unpredictability that is certainly out there ahead of you -- just waiting . . .