Embracing Uncertainty
When we embrace uncertainty, a modern definition of courage emerges.
Ben Crowe, Where the Light Gets In
What do you get when you put Crowey in a room and ask him about the stories and lessons that have shaped so many journeys within the Mojo community?
Well, turns out, you get a lot of thoughts about uncertainty!
Not just the kind that keeps you up at night. The kind that makes life interesting..
Meet our brand new, special edition documentary series - an unfiltered behind the scenes exploration of Crowey’s debut book, Where the Light Gets In.
It’s been a while since we’ve ventured into long-form content like this - beyond our WTMWTD emails and blog. Mojospresso was something we loved creating in our early days, and it was humbling to know it was helping so many of you too in the face of a global pandemic.
Today’s world has become more intense than ever before, saturated with quick-clicks, grabby headlines and short videos that feel like they’re playing in fast forward. Exciting as it may be, it’s a perfect storm of distraction and overwhelm. And if you’re anything like us, you’re probably craving more depth and substance from it all…
So we thought, why not do just that? Let’s play around with some long-form episodes and get back to our Mojospresso roots.
Episode 1 of this series launches today, and dives straight into the idea of uncertainty, and why this theme kept showing up through the writing process. Why we’re so drawn to it in some aspects of our lives, and yet so terrified of it elsewhere. And how changing our relationship with it might be the most powerful shift we can make.
It touches a part of us that loves surrendering to the unknown, to spontaneity, to surprise, to possibility, to opportunity, where we accept we don’t know what’s going to happen next and who’s going to win.
[Well], the thing is, life can be that way too. Because life itself is unpredictable and uncertain and unscripted.”
Ben Crowe
Now, there are a number of powerful perspective shifts within Where the Light Gets In that can help us reframe the way we relate to uncertainty. We can’t control the unknown, but we can transform our relationship to it.
That takes vulnerability. Imagination. And learning to believe in our potential to grow and learn through the events and experiences to come.
Of all the great Mojo stories, our favourite example of uncertainty - and the ways in which we can completely re-write our relationship to it - comes from Molly Picklum. And fun fact: this story was still unfolding after the book was finished, and was rushed into the final copy! It was just too good not to share.
Last December, Molly built a plan for 2024. She had just finished building what looked like the perfect plan for her upcoming world title campaign.
There was no stone left unturned. Team, process, diet, fitness, skillset, mindset - every detail mapped out with championship precision.
But when she paddled out in Hawaii to kick off the year, something just wasn’t clicking. She was going through a tough time, and finding acceptance was even tougher. Acceptance for the things she couldn’t control, for herself, and where she was at. Sometimes when we struggle with acceptance, there are things we’re not admitting.
We’ve often found that the world’s greatest athletes, leaders and learners have an appetite for the truth. A hunger for knowledge, and a willingness to ask themselves: What am I in denial of?
These two factors, acknowledged with courage and vulnerability, were where Molly could really start to unlock the power of acceptance. Because now she wasn’t trying to reach for expectations or impossible, unrelenting standards. She was learning to embrace the real Molly, fears, dreams and all.
This honesty unlocked Molly’s acceptance, and her acceptance unlocked a new level of performance. She went on to an incredible couple of weeks in Hawaii, and then at the Wave Park, finding more confidence in her skills and acceptance of things that were outside of her control. Two important pieces of the puzzle were falling into place.
But there was still something missing.
You see, our brain has two operating systems. Put simply, one is narrow and logical. It craves certainty and control and having everything set, squared, and organised. But another system, a bigger system, craves connection to a bigger picture. Where it surrenders to the unknown and actually enjoys a little ambiguity and uncertainty.
It’s this system that most of us could use a little help to tap into. And that’s exactly what Molly did next… completely transforming her perspective on doubt, uncertainty and her own potential, in and out of the water.
Check out the full episode here👇