The statement “I am sometimes wrong, but never in doubt” may seem comical, but actually has some validity. It is reasonable to doubt that which you are uncertain of, but unreasonable to doubt that which you are certain of. Skepticism can cripple an entrepreneur’s decision making with doubt. It is not uncommon to hear people in business say “one thing I am certain of is you can never be certain of anything.” It should be clear the very statement itself is a logical contradiction. How can you even be certain of that if you claim you cannot be certain of anything? But beyond this contradiction the question still remains can you be certain of anything and if so why?
First, to be certain is to be certain of something, which is possible because it has attributes that can be known through direct observation and validated through reasoning. Certainty only means you are certain of your facts and certain of your reasoning, which allows you to form convictions you can be equally certain of.
“able to prove its convictions, an active mind achieves an unassailable certainty”
Ayn Rand
When confronted by hard facts and sound reasoning leading to a strong conviction, none the less one often hears the response, “that’s just an opinion.” While opinions are convictions there is something more insidious implied by such a statement. What is often implied is that everything is just an opinion. There are no objective truths to be discovered. As such decisions should be subordinated to the opinions of those in authority.
Subordinating decision making to the opinions of those with authority is both potentially dangerous and unhelpful. Even if a Nobel Laurette stated something was true, I would still demand to know why. If they couldn’t explain it simply enough for me to understand I would remain uncertain of their understanding of it and potentially its validity.
“If you can’t explain it to a six year old, you don’t understand it yourself.”
Albert Einstein
But it is also unhelpful. If you can’t confirm for yourself the facts and the reasoning from some authority, what have you learned to aid your ability to make the decisions you are responsible for acting on? It is not the opinions of authorities that matter. It is the facts and reasoning that their opinions are premised on that matters and is of value for you to learn. Only based on what you learn from them will you be able to make rational decisions for yourself both immediately and into the future on similar issues.
Finally you might still claim you can never be “certain” because you are fallible. You could be wrong. Doesn’t that mean you cannot be “absolutely” certain of anything? But certainty does not imply absolutism. It only means you are certain of your facts and reasoning until proven otherwise. Nor does your fallibility mean you cannot be certain of anything. Even to be certain something is wrong demands you must be equally capable of being certain something else is right. Yes, be aware of your fallibility. Challenge your convictions to reaffirm or renounce them. But if your decisions are based on convictions you are certain of you can be equally certain of your decisions and need not doubt yourself. Reality will prove whether those decisions prove to be right or wrong.
“Fallibility does not make knowledge impossible. Knowledge is what makes possible the discovery of fallibility.”
Leonard Peikoff
Challenging one’s premises to reconfirm their validity is always a good practice. But an Objectivist entrepreneur proceeds with certainty, knowing it is possible to be certain of their decisions and actions. With any new venture there is enough inherent uncertainty facing an entrepreneur on a daily basis without undercutting oneself with the idea that nothing can be known for certain. Being certain that facts can be known and goals can be achieved allows the Objectivist entrepreneur to remain confident and motivated toward achieving them. Without being certain one becomes paralyzed with doubt, ending up in a viscous circle of endlessly second guessing oneself. The Objectivist entrepreneur embraces the motto “I may be wrong but I am never in doubt.”