My walk from the ferry to my office takes about 10 minutes. There’s a plaza halfway up the hill where there’s a lot of pedestrian cross-traffic at rush hour. If there was a drone filming the flow of people, it would look like ants colliding on an anthill.

Sometimes when I hit the plaza, there’s a clear line through the chaos. It’s like a pathway through the madness was preordained! The timing just works, and I don’t even slow down. I take a few side steps, and I’m through at full speed. On other days I’ll hit the plaza, and I hit a brick wall of cross traffic. No gaps appear, and I have to slam on breaks and wait for an opening.

The plaza is a good metaphor for my whole day. Working with other humans means that I have no idea what to expect each day. We are unpredictable animals. Will I just speed through, and will the gaps appear, or will I need to course correct and recalibrate. Once I embrace the uncertainty and surrender to the unknowns of the day, it’s more relaxing and fun.

Photo by Paladini Mauro on Unsplash