Uncertainty Is a Sign That You’re in Alignment

Uncertainty means you’re no longer tethered to the unchanging past or the unpredictable future. It means you’re free-flowing through the present, which is as equally terrifying as it is loving.

When you encounter a state of uncertainty, your initial assumption might be that you’re doing something wrong. If you envision your mental state as a compass, uncertainty would be the needle going haywire, confusing you about where you came from and where you need to go. While uncertainty on its own can be terrifying, the dread and shame it brings to the surface is just as brutal an experience that you would probably rather avoid. Avoiding uncertainty might look like not taking action until you know for sure you’re on the right path or turning back the moment you notice your compass’s needle begin to twitch. If this is something you find yourself struggling with (as I do often), I’m here to tell you that uncertainty is actually a sign that you’re in alignment. 

Lacking clarity in your decisions or circumstances reveals that you’re stepping into flow. Flow state and certainty cannot coexist because to step into flow is to surrender all certainty. When I discuss the concept of alignment, what I’m specifically referring to is the act of letting go and trusting that within the dark, seemingly endless void, there is some sort of safety net. This safety net might not always be what you envision safety or comfort to look like, and that’s where certainty is lost. Trusting that you will figure things out, regardless of what they look like, is the only certainty you can have when in alignment, but this kind of certainty doesn’t satisfy your ego. Your ego’s idea of valid certainty is a certainty that adheres to what you already know or what you’ve been told. But when you’re in flow state, you can’t know what’s to come because that defeats the purpose of it. If you were to think of alignment as letting the tide take you, then how can you also know exactly where you’re going unless you’re being taken right back to where you are? What can be initially envisioned as the flow of a river—long and expansive—is now the rotation of a whirlpool taking you in circles and eventually sucking you under. 

This entire concept can seem paradoxical because your survival instincts will have you trying your best to predict circumstances before you encounter them. This is understandable and part of our biology, but without mindfulness, can trap you in a spiral of overthinking and rumination to the point of paralyzation. You no longer want to do anything because you realize that certainty can’t exist within newness, so you stay exactly where you are, where you believe you’re safe. But safety and familiarity are mutually exclusive because what’s familiar isn’t always safe and what’s safer for you isn’t always familiar. This can apply to relationships where you might not be operating within alignment and authenticity, but to leave would risk the unknown, so you stay because at least you know what to expect. It can apply to your work where the certainty and comfort of knowing what to expect from your boss or colleagues outweighs the desire to step into work that’s more purposeful or enjoyable. It can also apply to the way you approach your mental health, only using tactics you’ve seen used by your parents throughout your life and refusing to try new methods despite still feeling deeply unwell at your core. The devil you know is often less scary than the devil you don’t, but thinking of uncertainty as villainous is exactly where a mindset shift is required. 

To be clear, there is nothing wrong or shameful about wanting to feel safe. We all deserve to feel safe and it’s vital for our nervous systems. However, certainty doesn’t equate to safety and uncertainty isn’t unsafe. It’s in the fog of uncertainty that aligned living is being done. To live in alignment through the present moment will always be uncertain because you’ve never been in this present moment before. Or the present moment after this one. Or the one after that. Every step you take that isn’t in an unconscious circle back to where you already are will be uncertain…and that’s exactly what it’s supposed to feel like. That’s how you know you’re doing it right. Uncertainty means you’re no longer tethered to the unchanging past or the unpredictable future. It means you’re free-flowing through the present, which is as equally terrifying as it is loving toward yourself. 

So, I hope this essay is what you need to reframe the way you see your current uncertainty. Uncertainty of any kind is, ultimately, a fallacy because there’s no way to know for sure how things will unfold. Yes, consider factors that you can generally assume will continue to exist within your experience, but don’t attach your sense of self to their existence. The uncertainty you’re experiencing is a sign that you’re operating outside of any predictable or knowable time and space. It’s an indicator that you’ve stepped into flow; the only thing you can do now is wait for the next moment to be revealed to you and trust that you will receive it and figure it out as you go. 

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