Order & Chaos

The relationship of order and chaos, ying and yong, the competing energies, the balance of life. We all live within a constantly changing environment of these two forces with our ability to tolerate them at a very differing and individualistic level. Let’s talk.

We’ll start with the basics, in my perception/perspective. Order is the comfortable/routine things in your life, with chaos being the uncomfortable/fearful things in your life. The balance of the two depends on the type of person you are and the things you enjoy. Some people thrive in the chaos and some in order, but let’s use some more concrete terms from the man JP (Jordan Peterson)… Order is when you’re where what you’re doing is producing where you want to have happen. It’s orderly because you can predict it, you do A, expecting that B happens and then, of course, B happens. Chaos would be just the opposite, the unexpected. He uses an example of skating on ice, with the rushing water below. You can be in a perfectly orderly situation and chaos can then emerge itself just like a crack in the ice where it may have been too thin. So, there is a relationship between the two, and a balance. That one can produce the other and that they are constantly changing and shifting. He then gives an example of two gymnasts and perfection. He uses this as a demonstration of the relationship between order and chaos. He states that one gymnast executes flawlessly, no mistakes, perfection. Scores a 9.8/10. The second gymnast, also performs flawlessly, BUT with each move and step you can see that she is holding it all together by just a thread. Pushing every fiber in her muscles and ligaments to keep each move perfectly in balance and maintaining her poise. The second scores higher and wins the competition.

He states that meaning comes from this relationship, the fine line between order and chaos. Now, I believe that, as well as some other things, in regards to meaning which is for another article (already wrote once about it). So, we have these two competing forces and we are all in a predisposition for our ability to handle both sides of this coin. Let’s look at an example. There’s a couple who has decided to take a trip for their 3 year anniversary. They have been traveling before, but to mostly developed nations. They decide to try something new and try somewhere more “riskay”. They narrow it down and finally decide on Asia, and to head to the country of Bangladesh. They get into the country and decide to go out to celebrate their first night. After a long night on the town, they hop into a local cab and show the address of their hotel to the driver. The driver realizes this is a more affluent area of the city and that these are two tourists on a short term stay. He then drives them into the country side where he then holds them up at knife point stealing their belongings, and leaving them on the side of the road. Sober, tired, and defeated the couple begins to walk back to the hotel. The ,at first, calm conversation begins to get heated. The husband begins blaming the wife’s carelessness at dinner and then the bar and griping about not knowing where they’re going. While the wife is trying to recollect the path they took, reassuring the husband that it will be ok. He continually talks of just going home and cancelling the rest of the trip, while the wife is focusing on how to make the most of the trip.

Now this made up story is an exaggeration and I have spent extensive time in Asia and did not have any of these experiences. What I am trying to show is that when you think that all is right in the world and order is prevalent, chaos can rear it’s ugly head and ruin an experience. The thing about this example as well is that I want to show that we are all capable of both of these forces/emotions/experiences (not sure what to call them). It is also to show that our ability to tolerate these elements in different arenas is true as well. Maybe back home, the wife is the one who cannot handle a situation where they have to sit down and file taxes, or something full of order. That her ability to tolerate chaos is higher than her husbands, in that she can stay calm and rational when things are going wrong, maybe even potentially thrive in that environment. And what I believe is that we have a different ability to handle both of these elements. Some of us live in order, some of us live in chaos, and most of us balance the two in a constantly changing and manipulating relationship.

For me I am heavier in the world of chaos. I feel that I enjoy being pushed and strive for seeking not only opportunities that do that, but also ones that have steep learning curves. I find myself enjoying being in an environment where there is a lot going on, a world that is extremely busy. I often find myself in things that I become obsessed with and continually do while also juggling a lot of other things on my plate. Yet, in this state I also find order. I enjoy routine in certain areas like my sleep, my diet, my exercise routine, and even somewhat my mornings. I often can sense when my energy is too low or when I feel I have stretched myself thin I revert to a highly structured and routine based plan before plunging back into something new the next day. I think this is why I love traveling, it allows me to calibrate how much chaos I have in my life, by putting myself in countries, places, and situations where I can grow through the chaos. I’m not sure where these predispositions come from, or how we all manage them, but for me when things are all going wrong or crumbling down in chaos I start with the same mindset. One step at a time. In the aforementioned situation, maybe it’s orienting myself in the city. Then beginning to potentially identify someone who may be able to help. Then getting back to the hotel, and filing an insurance claim, and maybe wiring some money to a local bank for us to spend. It’s focusing on the variables that you can control and demonstrating the ability to deal the ambiguity of not knowing what is next. The only way forward in that situation is through one step at a time. So, I ask you to do some reflecting. What is your predisposition? What is it you can work on getting better at dealing with? The relationship of order and chaos in our lives will always be prevalent. So, how will you handle when it arrises?

On purpose,

Matt