“Life,” John Lennon said, “is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans.” We have seen ample proof of this in the last year or so.
However, here is a tool, a mental model, a practice that can help us minimize the shocks that the unknowns and unknowables of life render us from time to time.
It is called Margin of Safety – a widely known but rarely applied idea – which is an engineering concept that is used to describe the ability of a system to withstand loads that are greater than expected.
In simple words, it is a buffer between what you expect to happen and what could (and often would) happen.
Most Buildings, bridges and structures are designed with a margin of Safety Concept. Airplanes Spaceships etc have a stand by engine.
Even God has built in a margin of safety and given us two of everything which is critical.
Life may offer you a raw deal, sometimes when you least expect it. A wide margin of safety ensures that the effects of good decisions are not wiped out by errors, uncertainties, or simply bad luck.
Of course, applying margin of safety in your decisions will not keep situations from going wrong, it will act as a cushion for you to fall back on and survive if and when things go wrong, which they will.
In the current time, the best Margin of Safety is to maintain Social Distance, Get vaccinated, Wear a mask, Stay safe and Stay blessed forever.
#dearson