Don't get too attached to certainty. Unfortunately, many people feel uncomfortable in the presence of uncertainty, simply because they fear the loss of control and being seen as incompetent. In the absence of control we must focus on the guiding principles or rules that influence the way the elements or agents in the system interact.

Possibility Space
Given the complex interdependencies of a 'complex adaptive system' its exact state, at any point in time, is unpredictable. An infinite number of possibilities make the future unknowable. Plans rarely deliver everything expected of them, which is why real change leaders must investigate multiple possible futures.

Yearning for certainty knowing it's impossible, seems to be a more reasonable position than accepting the possibility of uncertainty. It was Lao Tsu who supposedly said "The world is won by those who let it go" yet we strive to put order (a desired state) into what we perceive to be chaos (an undesired state). We do this, even when we know that order will emerges from chaos anyway. We need to accept that it is natures way allowing what is meaningful to shape what you see and how you react to it.

There comes a point when more control has the opoosite effect to what is intended. People try harder, but the hard won energy just seems to drain away. More literally delivers less and less. For less to deliver more, it is necessary to go with natures forces and embrace unpredictability.

Implications for Coaching
You could easily find yourself in a position where you must act without the full facts, or without being sure of what the eventual outcome will be. This can lead to surprises, which are then assumed to result from bad planning, ignorance or incompetence. But do they ? Other forces are at work beyond your conscious awareness or control. Somtimes you just need to 'go with the flow' and hold on tight.

How many times have you heard a manager say . . "if people just did what they were supposed to, things would be right every time." But would they? As we cannot control all eventualities we know, nomatter how intelligent people are, sh-t happens.

If you take a complexity perspective, you develop
a mindset that embraces surprise as a natural
state of affairs, nommatter how well you have
planned things. Embracing uncertainty releases
anxiety associated with 'not knowing'. You can never
know everything or even remember it if you did.
Accept uncertainty and it will not incapacitate you.

If individuals know who they are and what they stand for they know intuitively what to do at times of uncertainty when hard choices have to be made. Actions are consistent with deeply held intentions and guiding principles. As a result the individual knows what to do almost without thinking. What is right for the whole system is right for them.

Viability - paying attention to your intention
Evolutionary processes teach us that despite huge complexity in adaptive systems, they are shaped by a few simple factors or tendencies. These factors give the complex system its identity. For example, a shared vision and a few shared values can allow the many agents in the system to commit to the survival of their system by responding to the diversity found in their continuously changing environment.

This response is reflected in Ashby's Law of Requisite Variety. The system must have within it as much complexity or flexibility as the system it is part of (its environment) if it is to survive. For example, organisations are more likely to survive if they reflect the diversity in the environment they sell to, recruit from, etc.

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