The Gray Zone

Tonight's social at school was called the "Brewsters Social" and co-host with Dr. Spike, an ethics professor at UT. After almost everyone had left, a few officers and I stood around Dr. Spike commenting on the success of the social and discussing ethics. Dr. Spike explained, "It can be difficult teaching ethics because some students want a 'it's right or it's wrong' answer.  But often it's not that way. Life is interesting because usually there isn't an obvious answer." Life is rarely black and white. Most of the time it's gray.

His words lingered in my mind as the conversation continued. I thought back to my last post when I posted about not having a plan for after graduation. I suppose Dr. Spike is right, life would be less interesting if I knew what I was going to be doing next.

In addition to class, work, and the social, I also attended a TEDMED talk hosted on our campus. It was being live streamed from Washington DC. The talk was called "Don't Talk About It" and discussed sensitive and controversial ways of looking at problems in health. Many of the speakers also questioned the ethics of our health system.

Nostalgic about my summer in DC, I listened attentively in the school auditorium but secretly wished I could have been there in person. Even over ITV the stories were powerful and each message was tied to the idea that we should think "outside the box" and approach things in an atypical way.

Caught in a memory, I found myself on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial gazing at the reflection pool and Washington Monument in the horizon. Our Archer Center professor's words were suddenly booming through my mind, "You have to look at what everyone else looks at and see what no one else sees."

I felt as though each speaker on the TEDMED talk was doing that by providing us with a unique perspective and shed light on topics most feel uncomfortable discussing. There are very clearly issues in our preventative health and our health care system. The other details such as why the system fails and how to fix the broken system aren't as clear. Those answers are more like gray, than black and white.

Attempting to "look at what everyone is looking at and trying to see what no one else sees",...

The uncertainty in life is stressful. And frightening. But it is also exciting. And empowering. It can be discouraging. Yet it can be confidence building by transitioning through change. There are many times when uncertainty is unwelcome however, there are other times when uncertainty produces unexpected creativity and growth.

As an author, Alissa Finerman, on Positively Positive wrote in 2012, "Many people condition their mind to view a change in their situation as a bad thing when in reality it’s neutral. The event only takes on a positive or negative spin when we classify it. Typically, we are excited for “positive” events and uncomfortable with “negative” events because they fall outside our comfort zone. Feeling unsure or being in the uncertain phase is similar to being outside your comfort zone. People who turn ideas into action agree that the magic happens outside your comfort zone."

It seems that we need an element of uncertainty in both our personal and professional life because it’s the fuel that helps us reach for our highest potential. Uncertainty requires courage, strength, patience, and, most importantly, flexibility. Each of these can become lesser or greater and it all depends on our mindset during our circumstances.

You and I both look at the "gray zone" in our lives. You might see threats. I, on the other hand,... I see opportunities.