"Have you ever noticed how the most successful people in your life often made choices that seemed completely insane at the time? The friend who quit their stable corporate job to start that weird business idea. The colleague who moved across the country without a job lined up. They all heard the same thing: "Are you crazy?" Yet here's what psychology tells us: Some of life's riskiest-seeming decisions actually have predictable positive outcomes. The choices that make your family worry and your friends stage interventions?"
"I've been diving into the research lately, partly inspired by Rudá Iandê's new book "Laughing in the Face of Chaos" that I mentioned last week. His insights about how "we are all wanderers in a strange and inscrutable world, fumbling our way through the darkness with only the faintest glimmer of light to guide us" really got me thinking about the decisions we label as risky versus safe."
Many of life's most progress-driving decisions appear risky but often produce predictable positive outcomes and deeper fulfillment. Examples include quitting toxic jobs without another position, relocating without guarantees, or pursuing unconventional ventures. Chronic workplace stress can rewire the brain, impairing decision-making and creativity, so leaving toxic environments can restore clarity and opportunity perception. Cognitive biases like loss aversion exaggerate perceived risk of income loss. Personal transitions such as temporary freelancing can accelerate skills and self-knowledge more than years in a stagnant role. Framing human experience as wandering through inscrutable darkness with a faint guiding light helps explain why perceived chaos precedes breakthrough.
Read at Silicon Canals
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