When you work on Wall Street you have the same conversations over again.
Just like the brain has some 70,000 automatic thoughts a day, 80-95% that are negative and redundant, most conversations are too.
“Where do you think the economy is headed?”
That’s a question you can get pulled into all day every day.
One person shares their opinion.
Others thoughtfully deliberate.
Endless time is wasted.
0% certainty
The future is 100% unknowable.
Period.
Full stop.
We all know this, of course.
None of us have a crystal ball, and all that.
But because of the way our brains are set up and how you are socially conditioned, all day every day you can be “thinking” about the future.
This can be extremely valuable.
A magical thing about being human is the prefrontal cortex that gives your brain the unique ability to strategize, rationalize, plan ahead.
There is limitless value in this.
It is probabilistic thinking, preparing for different scenarios.
This is different to kidding yourself that you have any certainty whatsoever.