Living with Uncertainty
Today I agreed to put new front shocks and struts on my car, for a total of about $1000. Something like this was not unexpected: I hit no less than three deep potholes this winter. I feel that my car repair company is reliable and knowledgeable. But still I had a nagging concern that they might be overselling me on the need to replace both shocks, and the struts. When I was younger and poorer I know I would have been more mistrustful, getting a second opinion perhaps, and I wondered: Is my current trust misplaced? Thinking it through I decided I was comfortable with that uncertainty . I was pretty sure it was good advice and it just wasn't worth the indecision, the extra effort, the number of unpleasant thoughts I would have in sorting it out. All of us are more or less anxious and fearful when faced with uncertain outcomes . And many of us face uncertainties that are far more upsetting than a decision about car repair. In our technology-driven culture, more an...