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This time around, I wanted to try a new approach to writing this manifesto for the month, inspired by an incredibly talented writer who's part of our team. I'll let you guess who?


In an attempt to write using a plethora of personal anecdotes, I must share the fact that I recently graduated from the University of Amsterdam, like some of my fellow writers, and now, seemingly for the first time in almost as long as I've been alive, I have no obligations to fulfil to society nor burdens to bear, but the ones I choose to carry. Having grown up in a culture which ensures children are conscious about their civic duty, the role they play in ensuring the success of the greater good, I've always been drawn to making my elders proud, hoping my grandparents can boast of their grandson's success amongst their peers in the park. In that manner, I always had a responsibility to fulfil, and to make sure of something, one must believe, without a semblance of doubt, in the next steps to take.


Now, after fulfilling what I believe to be the last straw in a series of seemingly never-ending responsibilities and societal standards, I enter life by myself. A challenge I've been aching for for far too long, and I embrace it in its entirety. To do so, I must be willing to take the good and the bad. And as a wise man recently reminded me, "One cannot enjoy the sun without the rain.



In this next chapter of my life, filled with absolute uncertainty, I am sure of one thing: that uncertainty truly is the only certainty we have in our world. Debuting this style of writing as I enter this new chapter of my life, I only wondered: why not? Adulting in an era where the doom of the world is screaming across our devices all day and night, alongside "guidance" about maximising your productivity, and reminders to stay present, to meditate and to have hope, I simply started to think:


Why?


Philippe Halsman | Jean Cocteau


Why do I, frankly, give a damn about everyone else's opinion on how to live my life?


Why do I live in a world where everyone accepts this as the norm?


Why do I enjoy the hobbies that I do?


Why do I not simply get to be, to do as I wish?


Why?


So many questions flooded my mind, and I was simply lost for answers. I felt like I needed to know all, and yet all I knew was that I knew nothing at all. I desired to know how my life would be in a year, what I would be doing. I wondered about life and death, about relationships to mend, situations to let go of, and so much more. I felt constant pressure to have all the answers, to live in a world of certainty, and yet, here I was, blind as a bat to the reality I was about to embrace.


And then, somewhere hidden in the Swiss Alps, watching the sun set in the Valley of Eternal Giggles, I found the answer to all I had been looking for. I knew that all this doubt wasn't something negative at all. On the contrary, these questions I asked myself only allowed me to understand myself better, to be better. Now, while the details about my recent enlightenment might remain private to my trusted comrades, I am utterly grateful for all that doubt, from others and from myself. I wouldn't be where I am now without it.



Coming back to the central theme for this month's manifesto: Doubt.

Heavily loaded with negative connotations, we as a generation have come to believe that doubt, or questioning oneself and the world around us, isn't the answer; that we will never find the answers that we are looking for, and that we should simply accept the world as it is today. Well, to that I must argue that doubt is simply an extension of curiosity, dressed differently. That very doubt that creeps in the back of our minds has the power to unleash within you. Whether that is doubting yourself, the decisions you make, or the state of the world, that doubt is present for a reason. That doubt is proof of a misalignment within you, and the longer you let it hide, the more questions will rise.


But fear not, for doubt is not only a demon that haunts your daydreams, but seems much more like Peter Pan, who allows you to live through your fantasy. Without doubt in your path, you simply follow the stream as life leads you, and while there is a beauty in being present, you must always be conscious of your agency. I truly believe the agency of self is one of the most powerful tools at our disposal, and doubt is the only thing which limits that tool. People always ask why. But why not?



Coming back to the central theme for this month's manifesto: Doubt.

Heavily loaded with negative connotations, we as a generation have come to believe that doubt, or questioning oneself and the world around us, isn't the answer; that we will never find the answers that we are looking for, and that we should simply accept the world as it is today. Well, to that I must argue that doubt is simply an extension of curiosity, dressed differently. That very doubt that creeps in the back of our minds has the power to unleash within you. Whether that is doubting yourself, the decisions you make, or the state of the world, that doubt is present for a reason. That doubt is proof of a misalignment within you, and the longer you let it hide, the more questions will rise.


But fear not, for doubt is not only a demon that haunts your daydreams, but seems much more like Peter Pan, who allows you to live through your fantasy. Without doubt in your path, you simply follow the stream as life leads you, and while there is a beauty in being present, you must always be conscious of your agency. I truly believe the agency of self is one of the most powerful tools at our disposal, and doubt is the only thing which limits that tool. People always ask why. But why not?



Oftentimes, the best things come out of doubt. Even this project we have been working on for the past year was born of doubt. Doubt in the system where a LinkedIn profile determines the path of your career. That spark of doubt led to curiosity, and now, after all this time, we are here. The journey has been one of doubt, no less: doubt in ourselves, in the idea itself, and doubt about whether it's all worth it. To get answers to all these questions, the only way was through. Doubt lingers when we don't commit, when we leave a piece on the board, when we do not act without faith. And after all that doubt, there comes a time when one must decide. Decide on the next course of action: to run and hide, or to stand strong and allow yourself to keep your faith. I have doubted, time and time again, the validity of my path, but time and time again I return to the same path, lessons learned and faith restored. Now it's your time to choose. And I must implore you to keep your faith.


Doubting myself about how I want to finish this article, I wanted to say this: Doubt will always creep in, but that's why it's so important to keep faith. No matter how many questions you ask yourself or how many questions you get asked, sometimes the simplest thing to do is have faith. Have faith in yourself, trust yourself to recognise the best decisions for you, and have faith in the greater good.

Philippe Halsman | Jean Cocteau


Oftentimes, the best things come out of doubt. Even this project we have been working on for the past year was born of doubt. Doubt in the system where a LinkedIn profile determines the path of your career. That spark of doubt led to curiosity, and now, after all this time, we are here. The journey has been one of doubt, no less: doubt in ourselves, in the idea itself, and doubt about whether it's all worth it. To get answers to all these questions, the only way was through. Doubt lingers when we don't commit, when we leave a piece on the board, when we do not act without faith. And after all that doubt, there comes a time when one must decide. Decide on the next course of action: to run and hide, or to stand strong and allow yourself to keep your faith. I have doubted, time and time again, the validity of my path, but time and time again I return to the same path, lessons learned and faith restored. Now it's your time to choose. And I must implore you to keep your faith.


Doubting myself about how I want to finish this article, I wanted to say this: Doubt will always creep in, but that's why it's so important to keep faith. No matter how many questions you ask yourself or how many questions you get asked, sometimes the simplest thing to do is have faith. Have faith in yourself, trust yourself to recognise the best decisions for you, and have faith in the greater good.


Why do I, frankly, give a damn about everyone else's opinion on how to live my life?


Why do I live in a world where everyone accepts this as the norm?


Why do I enjoy the hobbies that I do?


Why do I not simply get to be, to do as I wish?


Why?


So many questions flooded my mind, and I was simply lost for answers. I felt like I needed to know all, and yet all I knew was that I knew nothing at all. I desired to know how my life would be in a year, what I would be doing. I wondered about life and death, about relationships to mend, situations to let go of, and so much more. I felt constant pressure to have all the answers, to live in a world of certainty, and yet, here I was, blind as a bat to the reality I was about to embrace.


And then, somewhere hidden in the Swiss Alps, watching the sun set in the Valley of Eternal Giggles, I found the answer to all I had been looking for. I knew that all this doubt wasn't something negative at all. On the contrary, these questions I asked myself only allowed me to understand myself better, to be better. Now, while the details about my recent enlightenment might remain private to my trusted comrades, I am utterly grateful for all that doubt, from others and from myself. I wouldn't be where I am now without it.


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