Train the Brave, 2nd Edition

CHAPTER 29Be decisive amid uncertainty

For more than 20 years, my husband Andrew has worked for an international company that has moved him into many different roles in different places around the world. Professionally, it's provided him with a diverse array of challenging and rewarding experiences. Personally, it's afforded our family with some wonderful experiences. However, I'd be lying if I said it'd been one long, globe-trotting cakewalk as we made our way from one exciting adventure to another.

Not knowing where we might be living next, or when we would next have to pack up our home, farewell our friends, uproot from schools, leave our community and build a new one in an unfamiliar city or country hasn't been without its challenges or anxiety. I've certainly had my fair share of ‘special moments' as I've juggled (and dropped) the balls of raising children and pursuing my own professional aspirations, all while relocating homes and hemispheres. Of course, we've always had the choice to pull the pin and say ‘Enough!', but we've ultimately decided that the benefits — individually and collectively — have outweighed the costs.

While my situation is unique, it's held two valuable lessons. The first is how important it is to accept uncertainty as a mainstay of life. The second is how much needless and paralysing anxiety we can create for ourselves when we don't.

LIFE REWARDS ACTION, NOT INDECISION.

Let's face it, we all live with uncertainty — today more than ever. Whether ...