Human beings crave certainty. When the circumstances of our life are uncertain, we become filled with anxiety and worry.
Uncertainty, for as long as it lasts, creates something called chronic stress.
Chronic stress causes the body to convert cholesterol into Cortisol. While in the system, Cortisol weakens the immune system by interfering with the production of white blood cells and their ability to defend the body against parasites, viruses and bacteria.
So, uncertainty impairs your health, which only adds to your unhappiness.
When your uncertainty is lifted or removed, you become relieved and feel normal again.
Back in 2020, when we were in the throes of a pandemic, were you happy? No. Almost everyone was unhappy because almost everyone was uncertain about the circumstances of their life.
And every time someone close to us got sick with Covid, that uncertainty grew, as did our unhappiness.
While much of life is outside your control, there is one profound thing you can do to reduce uncertainty in your life:
Have a Plan
Do you have a blueprint of your future life?
Having a blueprint helps remove uncertainty as it empowers you to take specific daily action in order to reach your destination. Having a destination toggles on three, innately human, goal-seeking neural processes within the brain: Thalamus, Reticular Activating System and Nucleus Accumbens. These brain regions, when toggled on, spur you to create and focus on something called Blueprint Goals.
Blueprint Goals are daily activities you pursue that you believe will help you realize the dreams that you must realize in order to reach your desired destination.
The amazing thing about Blueprint Goals is the impact they have on your mental outlook. Every time you achieve one of your Blueprint Goals, your level of certainty grows. You become more certain that you will reach your destination.
And every time your certainty grows, so too does your level of happiness.
Tom Corley is an accountant, financial planner and author of “Rich Kids: How to Raise Our Children to Be Happy and Successful in Life”, Change Your Habits Change Your Life, Effort-Less Wealth, Rich Habits Poor Habits and “Rich Habits: The Daily Success Habits of Wealthy Individuals.”
