How to Deal With Uncertainty

I'm freaking out right now, and I'm guessing you are too.

There's a lot of chaos, uncertainty, and hatred happening in the world right now. And that makes it hard to function as a human.

It feels a thousand times harder to be kind and loving when you're not seeing kindness and love reflected back to you.

I'm finding myself retracting into hermit mode more and more, seeking out comfort shows and movies that are soft and loving. Even the slightest bit of confrontation in a show and I'm like, "Nope. Can't do it."

We're fatigued with stress.

And it's the type of stress we don't necessarily see, right?

The stress from your job, your to-do list, the things yet undone—that's obvious and easy to understand.

But I'm talking about the invisible stress we're all under right now.

The stress that comes from having systems that aren't supportive.

The stress of watching our friends, neighbors, or even ourselves being persecuted for being who we are.

It's happening at such a level that you've likely tuned it out because it's become your new baseline.

But here's the problem: when we're constantly at that baseline stress level, it's taxing.

You might be in the middle of doing laundry and break down crying for no reason. Or driving to the grocery store and wanting to cuss at everyone, whether they're in your way or not.

This stress isn't sustainable.

And unfortunately, it's not going away either.

So here's what I want to offer you:

The only way we're going to make it through this without completely losing it is if we focus on joy, kindness, and inclusivity.

(And no, I'm not talking about toxic positivity. That's B.S. and worse than ignoring your stress.)

I'm talking about finding tiny everyday joys.

When you can tune into that frequency, the more you do it, the better you feel.

Joy is a frequency. And it's fucking real.

When we're kind to one another, it reminds us that we're human and there are other humans here. We don't need earth-shattering kindness right now—the tiny things are going to make a massive difference.

Think about the last time a stranger smiled at you and it made you feel good. That was a tiny moment of joy for you. When you offer kindness to someone else, you give them that same moment—and it gives you joy too.

Inclusivity means noticing the person in your work environment who doesn't speak up very often. Maybe they overthink, don't think their voice has value, or the space just doesn’t feel safe enough for them to speak up. Offer them inclusion in the conversation.

The easiest way? Ask them a question that starts with "what."

"What do you think about this?" "What are your thoughts on that?"

Questions starting with "what" are inviting. They don't trigger people the way "why" and "how" questions can.

We need more positive connection to one another.

Think of it as the antidote to all the chaos.

What helps you build positive connections?

What small moments of joy or happiness have you had this week?

Share in the comments. Joy is contagious.