What it helps with: Stopping the energy drain of trying to predict the future while ensuring your nervous system feels safe enough to take the leap. It transforms faith from a passive feeling into an active preparation.
When to use it: When you feel paralyzed by uncertainty, or when your brain is spinning trying to calculate an outcome that hasn't happened yet.
How to do it:
- Draw the Map: Take a piece of paper. Draw two columns or distinct areas.
- Anchor in the Known: In the first area, list everything you currently know for a fact.
- Why: Anxiety often makes the "Unknown" feel like 100% of the picture. Listing the "Knowns" reveals the solid ground you already stand on.
- Define the Gap: In the second area, list the specific Unknowns that are stopping you.
- The Decision Gate: Look at the "Unknowns" list and ask: Can I take action without knowing these answers?
- NO: Activate Experimentation. You need data.
- YES: Activate Faith. You are choosing to proceed. Move to Step 5.
- Pack Your Backpack: You cannot predict the future, but you can pack for the journey. Identify what "items" you need to carry to handle the discomfort.
- Tactical Items: Resources for specific logistical unknowns.
- Regulatory Items: Practices to manage the feeling of uncertainty.
Example 1: The Curiosity Investment
- The Decision: "I want to invest $2,000 in a pottery course just because I love it, but I’m scared it’s a waste because I won’t make a career out of it."
- The Knowns: I have the money. I feel bored in my daily life. I love working with my hands.
- The Unknowns: Will I be good at it? Will I regret spending the money later? Will people think I'm being frivolous?
- The Backpack:
- Tactical Item: I am packing a "budget boundary"—this is the only big purchase I will make this quarter.
- Regulatory Item: I am packing a "Reframing Mantra." When I feel guilty about the money, I will remind myself that play is a nutrient, not a luxury.
Example 2: The Interpersonal Boundary
- The Decision: "I want to tell my family I am not hosting the holiday party this year because I am exhausted."
- The Knowns: I love them. I am physically burnt out. Hosting will cause me resentment.
- The Unknowns: Will they be angry? Will it ruin the holiday tradition? Will they think I am selfish?
- The Backpack:
- Tactical Item: I am packing a "Script" so I don't freeze up, and an "Alternative Plan" (meeting at a restaurant) so I am offering a solution.
- Regulatory Item: I am packing a "Guilt Hangover Plan." I know I will feel guilty after the call, so I am pre-scheduling a movie night immediately after so I don't sit and ruminate.
Example 3: The Business Launch
- The Decision: "I want to launch a new creative offering, but I don't know if it will work."
- The Knowns: I have a small audience who trusts me. I have the skills to deliver this. I have a partner who supports me.
- The Unknowns: Will anyone buy it? Will I be criticized? Will the tech fail? Will I be misunderstood as I’m figuring it out?
- The Backpack:
- Tactical Item: I am packing a "savings buffer" of 2 months' savings so I don't panic if sales are slow.
- Regulatory Item: I know uncertainty triggers my anxiety, so I am packing "Daily morning walks" and "A pre-scheduled call with a mentor" to regulate my nervous system during the launch week.
