We live in exciting and uncertain times. And whether or not we like it, uncertainty permeates the fabric of our lives, personally and professionally. What certainty do any of us have about anything yet to come? It’s all uncertain. From daily life—like whether a traffic light will turn green in time or how a jury will decide a case—to the broader world of shifting economies and the implications of AI, we are regularly reminded that uncertainty is not the exception but the rule.
There are degrees of certainty we can grab hold of—or that can grab hold of us—such as confidently looking forward to meeting with a new client or worrying about a long-standing client taking their business elsewhere. But plans can be disrupted. And while the disruptions to even the best-laid plans are often foreseeable, that foreseeability can itself be a source of alarm. Both catastrophizing and longing for a future outcome are made possible by the mind’s ability to probe the future and imagine a wide range of possible outcomes.
While such mental time travel and scenario-testing is essential for planning (how else to earn one’s keep drafting a motion to dismiss or settlement agreement?), it can also be a trap for even the sharpest minds. Anxiety about the future often stems not from the outcome itself but from a mind lost in thought, misjudging risk through the lens of fear, doubt, and confusion. This is where a little more mindfulness can be of real value.
Strengthening mindfulness—for example, with the help of the training described below—helps us face uncertainty with greater steadiness. One reason for this is a heightened real-time awareness (and disruption) of mind wandering. Whether we realize it or not, much of our waking life is animated by mind wandering—upward of 50 percent on a good day. Much of this mental chatter is harmless (“that color is ugly,” “that smells delicious,” “I wish I had that”), either because it doesn’t capture our attention for long or leads to decisions of little consequence. But some thoughts land harder, influencing our decisions and well-being as we race to fix problems that don’t exist, retreat from opportunities, or freeze in anxious anticipation. Impulsive stock picks, sell-offs, and holds are frequently driven by stories we tell ourselves to reduce uncertainty and feel temporary relief, regardless of whether they align with reality,
Something interesting happens, though, when we notice that our attention has been hijacked by a thought, image, or memory. In the moment of noticing, the mind wandering ceases as the “noticing faculty” takes the wheel. Like a lightbulb going on in a darkened room, there is at least a moment of clarity. It is akin to waking up out of a dream. Catastrophizing an outcome can be a nightmare—one worth waking up from.
Ironically, catastrophizing is often a misguided effort to manage uncertainty. By imagining worst-case outcomes, the mind narrows the range of possibilities, creating a false sense of certainty. While this may offer momentary psychological relief, it tends to escalate anxiety over time and can obscure more constructive, reasoned responses—ultimately limiting our ability to engage with challenges in a measured and strategic way.
Take, for example, an attorney awaiting a judge’s ruling after a high-stakes hearing. The attorney’s mind might spiral into pessimistic forecasting—imagining how a loss could impact the client, their reputation, or the firm—despite no decision having been issued. Or consider an attorney preparing for an important presentation days in advance, already gripped by imagined critiques or embarrassment. In both cases, increased awareness of this mental activity would allow the lawyer to catch the anxious drift and redirect their attention. The anxiety, it turns out, is not about uncertainty itself but about a distorted and narrowed reading of what lies ahead.
Mindfulness practice helps us see these patterns. With regular practice, we become more attuned to mind wandering and more capable of returning to the task at hand—or at least to something more grounded than an unproductive mental spiral.
So, how does practicing mindfulness do this? By training the ability to recognize when the mind has wandered and to skillfully redirect attention to what matters. Below is an instruction for a simple, popular, and research-backed practice known as Focused Attention.
The practice involves choosing a specific anchor for your attention—most commonly the sensation of the breath (or a sound, or visual object, or sensations of the body)—and gently returning your focus to it whenever you notice the mind has wandered.
To begin, find a comfortable seated position, allowing your body to be alert yet relaxed. Gently close your eyes or lower your gaze. Bring your attention to your breathing. Notice the sensation of the breath as it enters and exits the nose or the rise and fall of the chest or belly. This sensation becomes your anchor.
Inevitably, your attention will drift to thoughts, sounds, feelings, or physical sensations (to name a few). When you notice this—without judgment (or with awareness of the judgment)—gently bring your focus back to the breath. Each time you return, you strengthen your ability to observe the wandering mind (and catastrophizing) and to redirect your attention where you choose.
Start with just a few minutes a day, gradually increasing the time as it feels comfortable. Research finds 12 minutes to be a sweet spot, but even short periods of regular practice can go a long way. Over time, this simple yet profound practice helps cultivate a steadier mind—less prone to being swept away by worries or hypothetical outcomes. You become more familiar with the patterns of your thinking—especially those that amplify uncertainty into anxiety—and more capable of choosing how to respond.
Like all mindfulness practices, the aim of the focused attention practice isn’t to change one’s experience—as by reducing negative thoughts or feeling better—but to become more aware of that experience. Especially when it comes to uncertainty, mindfulness heightens awareness of mind wandering that might otherwise hijack a steady state and trigger turbulent emotional reactivity. On a related note, while not mindfulness practices per se, relaxation techniques—such as slowing the breath for a few minutes—can complement mindfulness practices well, as they do a good job easing tension during moments of worry.
In the end, uncertainty is not a problem to be solved but a reality to be met head-on with courage. Mindfulness won’t give us control over the future, but it offers something better: the capacity to meet each moment with clarity, steadiness, and openness. By noticing when the mind drifts into imagined outcomes and gently returning to what is actually happening, we reclaim our ability to respond rather than react. In doing so, we experience greater equanimity and learn to live more fully—not in spite of uncertainty, but alongside it.
