Embrace the Chaos

Out of Control

You have less control than you think, and that makes you anxious. You “overthink,” overanalyze and hope that your future will unfold as you envision. But life is not predictable. You “can never really conquer the chaos,” you “can only embrace it.” Accepting that life is uncertain exposes you to experiences you would never otherwise have and helps you discover abilities you never knew you had. Recognize that the only aspects of life you can control are your actions and perspectives, so “let go” of the rest.

The everyday lives of Indians in a land of more than a billion people exemplify how to cope with and relish life by determining realistically what you can control and what you can’t. Indians manage to find joy and contentment despite the odds. They exemplify three principles to follow in your effort to let go:

1. “Accept” – Life is unpredictable, uncertain, imperfect and complicated: Accept that. Stop thinking about obstacles and abandon negativity. For instance, an Indian taxi driver knows he cannot trust anything but his own abilities and the collective abilities of other drivers to keep out of harm’s way. He focuses on doing...