“I can live with doubt and uncertainty and not knowing. I think it’s much more interesting to live not knowing than have answers which might be wrong. I have approximate and possible beliefs and different degrees of certainty about different things, but I’m not absolutely sure of anything and many things I don’t know anything about. But I don’t have to know an answer, I don’t feel frightened by not knowing things, by being lost in a mysterious universe without having any purpose, which is the way it really is as far as I can tell.”
- Richard Feynman
To be a good scientist, you need doubt and uncertainty.
As a scientist and engineer I’m always wary of my theories. I test their boundaries and see where they fail. When someone brings up a counterpoint, I’m open to debate. I know that I could be wrong - that my method is flawed, that my model could be more accurate.
Uncertainty is required for knowledge gain.
Uncertainty wreaks havoc on personal goals.
There is no room for uncertainty when pursuing your goals. You have to know that you will be successful. It doesn’t matter that there’s a chance of failure, you must be certain of your success. There is no room for uncertainty lifting weight. There is no room for uncertainty at late night under a deadline. There is no room for uncertainty when you're selling. Uncertainty weakens you. It takes energy to doubt yourself, energy which could be used to pursue your goal.
To be able to achieve in day to day life, you need to be certain.