Several months ago, I blogged about Peter Block’s Employee Manifesto, promising to discuss parts of the Manifesto in later postings. A bit late, but here’s another installment.

Item 6 is:

"Accept the unpredictability of the situation we are in. The future of the organization is a mystery and who knows how long these conditions will exist. Stop asking where we are headed. Today is where we are headed and that is enough."

Most people in most companies don’t have a clear picture of where they are headed. The world is too complex for us to make plans that spell out what to do and be right all the time. Think Soviet-style planned economy and multiply the factors and failures 10x.

What companies should be asking from their employees and what employees should be taking responsibility for is staying awake–to what’s happening externally and internally.

Honestly, there are no answers from up on high. There are only answers from what we know collectively. This is not to diss the top executives of any company. It’s to reinforce the idea that no one person is smarter than a group of people, committed to the best outcome.

Don’t make not knowing an excuse to stop thinking or acting or contributing. If anything, not knowing means that your contributions are even more needed. You have a piece of the puzzle that no one else has. Uncertainty and unpredictability are the invitation to step up and participate.