Simple Reasons Why You Don’t Have to Completely Figure Life Out

It’s Life. You don’t figure it out. You just climb on the beast and ride.”
–Rebecca Wells

Life comes with a lot of ups and downs, challenges and triumph that leaves us constantly grappling for answers. It seems we are always trying to make sense of the all confusion. Yet, despite our best efforts, we are constantly confronted with the stark realization that life is indeed a puzzle with pieces that sometimes refuse to fit in neatly.

Why do we need to figure life out anyway?
This is a deeply personal question that we each must explore and decide for ourselves based on our aspirations. There are certainly some who choose to just be more focused on just living in the present and taking life as it comes, without the need for any exhaustive analysis or planning. For them, the journey itself is more important than any final destination or understanding.

Yet others tend to feel a strong desire to understand and make sense of the intricacies. For this group, finding meaning and understanding is a fulfilling and worthwhile pursuit too.

Here, you may be wondering that despite their best efforts, why is it that latter group still never seem to completely figure out life:

1. “It is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose. That is not weakness, that is life.” –Patrick Stewart

No matter how meticulously you analyze, plan, strategize, and execute, life’s favorite pastime is still throwing curveballs when you least expect it. So there will always be times when despite having certain plans and aspirations, our lives will take unexpected turns and throw us off course.
Our knowledge of this natural uncertainty of life, however, should keep us on our toes. We should never lose sight of this unpredictability that permeates our existence. Yet we still acknowledge that many times very meaningful moments and experiences will still occur even when we least expect them.

2. “Life is a funny thing, the minute you think you’ve got everything figured out something comes along and turns it all upside down.” –Zayn Malik

Life is in a perpetual state of flux. It seems always when you think you have it all figured out, the winds suddenly change direction. Sometimes the change is so drastic that it reshapes your reality and makes you question things you have always known to be true.
You will find nothing remains stagnant: not your career path, not your personal relationships, nothing! The best you do is to accept the inevitable changes and adapt, as resistance only breeds frustration and disillusionment.

3. “Thanks to impermanence, everything is possible.” –Nhat Hanh

Seeing as change is constant and nothing is permanent, there are, therefore, endless possibilities. It also happens that we get so overwhelmed with the sheer number of choices at our disposal, and the possibility of each decision branching off into countless trajectories that we get paralyzed by indecision. Life is such a vast expanse of infinite possibilities that you cannot predict every outcome: things you thought could never happen can very well happen!
The good thing is, this ever-changing nature of life means there is always the potential for positive change.

“Despite all your best intentions and actions, the outcomes will not always be within your control.”

4. “We don’t see things as they are; we see them as we are.” –Anais Nin

These words beautifully capture the idea that life is inherently subjective. It is shaped by our individual perspectives, biases, and personal experiences. Therefore, what you may see as a clear-cut truth can be a perplexing riddle to someone else. Your perceptions of success, happiness, and fulfillment are all deeply personal to you and it is impossible to impose a universal standard on all in the name of “figuring it out.”
This undeniably highlights the importance of not only being self-aware but also the need for empathy in recognizing the diverse perspectives of others.

5. “The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.” — Alan Watts

Your being on a continuous journey through life means you will evolve and mature, your priorities, your values, and aspirations can all undergo transformations. Some things You previously attached a lot of significance to can fade into obscurity and be replaced by some newfound passions and ambitions.
All this means that the process of figuring out life is not actually a destination, but a lifelong journey of self-exploration, self-realization, and growth.

It seems in essence that the enigma of life lies in its natural unpredictability. Could it be then that rather than trying to unravel all the complexities, our true essence of living lies in accepting that uncertainty and cherishing the moments of clarity? This being he case, than perhaps the next time you find yourself grappling with life’s perplexity, just take a step back, take a deep breath, and marvel at the wonderous chaos that defines our shared human experience, because within all that are endless possibilities.

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This post was previously published on medium.com.

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