Embracing "Maybe"

“One day, a farmer’s horse ran away. His neighbor came by and said, “You have the worst luck.” The farmer replied to the neighbor, “Maybe.” The next day, the horse returned with five mares, and his neighbor came by and said, “You have the best luck.” The farmer replied, “Maybe.” The day after that, the farmer’s son was riding the horse and fell off and broke his leg, and the neighbor came by and said to the farmer, “You have the worst luck.” The farmer replied, “Maybe.” The next day, the army came looking to draft the boy for combat, but he could not go because his leg was broken. The neighbor came by and said, “You have the best luck.” Again, the farmer said, “Maybe.”

Similar to the farmer’s ever-changing circumstances, we encounter setbacks like job losses, heartbreaks, and business failures. Yet, each moment presents an opportunity for something new. It might not always be as significant as avoiding war, but life evolves, forging paths that may exceed our expectations or offering us enough to make life’s journey worthwhile.?

Maybe the unfolding events are beneficial. Maybe we can accept them and still be okay. Maybe things can improve. This?Maybe?mindset instills a sliver of hope, motivating us to get out of bed in the morning. It gives us enough hope to create new businesses even when the economy is uncertain, begin new relationships even when we are heartbroken, or help us ease through small, unexpected stuff each day so it doesn’t linger and grow.

I’ve heard many people say that with everything going on in the world in the past few years, life has become more uncertain, and they feel despair about the future. Many don’t realize that our despair often affects us much more than the events that happen to us.??

Despair is merely another addiction to certainty, making us believe that the past and this moment guarantee a certain future.

A loose grip on hope does the opposite. It helps you see things for what they are, but you still get to believe in the potential of the unknown—the miracles and the good things you can never predict. This is precisely what the?Maybe?mindset can do for us.

Life is probably no more uncertain now than it has ever been. While certain days pose more significant challenges, the level of uncertainty remains constant. Many of us are unaware that the uncertainty we run away from has always ruled our lives, whether we like it or not. The job we take, the person we marry, the business we start—they are all measured in some way by our relationship with the unknown.

How much risk can we tolerate? How many things are we willing?not?to know in our relationship? How close to becoming broke are you willing to go to make your dreams come true??

We are always living in the unknown; we just fail to see the beautiful side filled with possibilities.?

Shifting to the?Maybe?mindset enables us to embrace uncertainty and approach each moment with wonder, creativity, and innovation. Stress and worry diminish as we grasp that most pressures are projections into the future, not grounded in the present. Embracing the full spectrum of?Maybe?opens our eyes to possibilities beyond our greatest fears.?

And even if fears persist, acknowledging all facets of?Maybe?broadens our outlook, making so much more possible.

For all we know,?Maybe?the best is yet to come!

For a deeper dive into this topic, read "The Gift of Maybe", by Allison Carmen