One Day It Will All Make Sense

The Daily Stoic for March 13th. “One day it will all make sense”:

“Whenever you find yourself blaming providence, turn it around in your mind and you will see that what has happened is in keeping with reason.”
—EPICTETUS, DISCOURSES, 3.17.1

Wow, it’s amazing how such a short sentence can trigger so many thoughts and ideas in my mind. “One day it will all make sense”.

The first thing that comes to mind is Steve Jobs’s speech at Stanford in 2005. In the first story, “connecting the dots”, he famously said:

“…If I had never dropped out, I would have never dropped in on this calligraphy class, and personal computers might not have the wonderful typography that they do. Of course it was impossible to connect the dots looking forward when I was in college. But it was very, very clear looking backward 10 years later.”

Sometimes we make bold decisions. When I decided to quit my job, I was completely scared. I had no savings, and I was not sure if it was going to work.

However, looking backward years later, it was one of the best decisions of my life. It was the spark that ignited a series of changes in my life that have taken me to where I am now…

One Day It Will All Make Sense

That change process is still going on, and I don’t know for sure where it will take me. However, I fully agree with Mr. Jobs when he said that you need to make bold decisions and trust that somehow the dots will connect in the future.

The other interesting aspect that today’s stoic discusses is the “Butterfly effect“: our actions can potentially affect the lives of millions of others and vice versa. I don’t believe we are part of any master plan. I only believe in myself, and I only trust my senses. But somehow, what we do can make a difference in the lives of other people. Not only how we act, but what we write, share, create and give to others.

Over time, I am learning to trust myself enough to take decisions that I wouldn’t have taken 10 years ago. Perhaps in 10 years, I will be able to connect the dots on the ones I am taking today. Maybe I will regret the results, maybe not. What I will not regret is having had the courage of taking them.

Conclusion

Today’s Daily Stoic, “One day it will all make sense”, is such a powerful reflection, full of connotations and different ideas. The thought that our actions can make a difference tomorrow really resonates with me. I think we need the courage today to take bold decisions when we need a change in our lives. In my experience, when you can later connect the dots backward, it was worth the risk.

Comments?