Past Events
The Wisdom of Uncertainty: Launching a Non-Fiction Reading Series
May 29th, 2024
7:00 - 8:00 pm
Serendipity Books
108 E. Middle Street
Chelsea, MI
How can we skillfully contend with the unknown and the unsureness it sparks?
How can we cultivate the wisdom of uncertainty - and not appear weak? Why is not-knowing an unsung antidote to polarization? On the next leg of the popular "Uncertain Tour," Maggie will be the inaugural author in a new series of non-fiction talks at Serendipity Books in beautiful book-loving Chelsea, Michigan.
Free, with books available for purchase and signing.
Stockbridge Library Presents: Uncertainty: An Antidote to Angst and Hate in an Age of Flux
April 27th, 2024
3:00 - 4:30 pm
The Stockbridge Library
46 Main Street
Stockbridge, MA
Why is not-knowing the next frontier in human meaning-making? Why is the uncertainty we fear actually essential for curiosity, creativity, and resilience?
Join renowned author Maggie Jackson at the venerable Stockbridge Library in the beautiful Berkshires for a talk on the unsung wisdom of being unsure. Drawing on cutting-edge reporting from Paris to Los Angeles and in-depth multi-disciplinary research, Jackson upends our outdated notions of uncertainty as inertia and weakness. Instead, productive not-knowing is a proven treatment for anxiety, a path to mental well-being, and a promising strategy for making AI safe for humanity. It's the mindset we most need in this time of flux and angst.
Learn more here. Books available for purchase courtesy of The Bookstore in Lenox.
American Association of University Women's Annual Authors Luncheon: An Author's Journey to Discovering the Wisdom of Uncertainty
April 20th, 2024
11:30am - 2:00 pm
Wyndham Newport Hotel at the Atlantic Resort
2040 Aquidneck Ave,
Middletown, RI 02842
Maggie joins two other Rhode Island authors at the AAUW Annual Authors Luncheon to talk about her multi-year journey writing and researching her acclaimed new book Uncertain. She will relate her cutting-edge research and reporting adventures in AI labs, operating rooms, activist campaigns, and deep archives as she unearthed the unexpected wisdom of uncertainty in an age of flux. $40 for luncheon and author talks. Books available to purchase. Benefits the Rhode Island Center for the Book.
World 50 Presents: Uncertainty is Edgework, A Conversation with Chief Technology Officers
April 16th, 2024
3:30 - 4:30 pm ET
Enterprise 50 Summit (Invite-only)
New York City
Chief technology officers are frontline drivers of their company’s capacity for agility and innovation. They work at the edge of the known – an exciting and daunting place to be. How can an ‘uncertainty mindset’ equip CTOs to dwell skillfully in a space of possibilities and find the answers best suited to fast-changing problems? What does it mean to ‘lean into’ uncertainty and how does this stance fuel insight, clarity, and vision? Why is uncertainty seen as the next big idea in designing smart, human-compatible AI? Going forward, the capacity to be expert in navigating uncertainty will be the skill set that sets apart the superior from the mediocre performer.
The Provocation of Uncertainty as a Driver of Creativity: A Workshop for Writers and Creators
April 13th, 2024
1:00 - 4:00 pm
Wamsutta Club
427 County St.
New Bedford, MA 02740
Do you fear the blank page and seem to spin your wheels when trying to generate bold ideas for a new project? Contrary to our assumptions, the “uncertainty mindset” is actually an antidote to the angst that holds us back from soaring creativity. In this afternoon talk and workshop, Maggie will introduce proven strategies to harness the “good stress” of uncertainty in order to creatively navigate the unknown. Creativity coach Midori Evans will then lead people in small group exercises to build skill in navigating the unknown. Following the workshop, there will be a signing for Maggie’s popular new book Uncertain. Tickets cost $10 dollars, including cookie break. Open to all. Register on Eventbrite.
Yale Association of Rhode Island Book Talk and Signing
April 11th, 2024
6:00 - 8:00 pm
At a Private Home in Down City Providence, RI
In an age of flux, it’s too easy to retreat into the comfort of our certainty. But only by being skillfully unsure can we gain the agility, discernment, and resilience needed in a volatile era. Join Maggie Jackson ’82, P’14 for a talk hosted by the Yale Association of Rhode Island (YARI) on her acclaimed new book Uncertain. As YARI’s selection for the 2024 Yale Book Awards, Uncertain will be given this spring to two dozen R.I. high school juniors of outstanding character and promise.
Note: Free event open to Yale alumni and their guests.
Learn more and register here.
Book Signing and Reading at The Drawing Room
March 23rd, 2024
2:00 - 4:00 pm
The Drawing Room
22 William Street
New Bedford, MA 02740
Join Maggie Jackson for a cozy winter afternoon book signing at The Drawing Room, an art and design shop in New Bedford's famous downtown historic district. There will be wine and cheer and readings on the hour. Nominated for a National Book Award and thrice named a "Best Book of 2023," Uncertain offers an antidote to the narrow-mindedness of our day and hope in an age of fear. Come see what all the buzz is about!
Learn more here.
Uncertainty’s Unsung Wisdom in Times of Flux
March 14th, 2024
12:00 - 1:00 pm ET
Virtual Talk to the Haynes Boone Law Firm (Invite-only)
Quick, neat certainty is typically seen as the path to success today. But the ultra-decisive leaders whom we admire tend to cling to the status quo in a crisis and so falter. In contrast, being skillfully unsure fuels agility and inclusiveness – skills that are urgently needed in an unpredictable era. In this virtual talk to the global Haynes Boone law firm timed to Women’s History Month, Maggie draws on the new science of uncertainty to discuss how leaders can own their uncertainty without appearing weak; how uncertainty can avert complacency in groups; and how professionals can gain skill in contending with the unknown. She reveals the hidden gifts of a mindset that we too often mistakenly shun and fear.
New Bedford Science Café Talk
The Importance of Not Knowing in An Age of Flux
March 5th, 2024
6:00 - 7:30 pm
Last Round Bar and Grille
New Bedford, MA
A grassroots global phenomena, Science Cafés around the world offer the chance for scientific experts to engage with the public in an informal setting. Maggie will join the New Bedford Science Café to talk about why psychological uncertainty is a kind of good stress that prepares the brain to learn and how contemporary pressures to be quick and sure may perilously narrow our thinking, deepen our anxieties, and exacerbate our divisions. Grab a beer and a bite and learn why being unsure is critical for human flourishing in a time of rising unknowns.
Event is free. Books and food/drinks will be available for purchase. Learn more here.
The Wisdom of Not-Knowing: Finding Wonder and Curiosity in an Age of Fear
Febuary 18th, 2024
4:00 - 6:00 pm
Dedee Shattuck Gallery
1 Partner’s Lane
Westport, MA 02790
How does a restful pause seed deep insight? Why do scientists call forgetting a friend to learning? How does unsureness help us stand up for what's right while at the same time begin healing the divisions of our day? Join Maggie Jackson at the beautiful DeDee Shattuck Gallery for an interactive discussion of her acclaimed new book Uncertain. Maggie will be in conversation with Mindy Todd, host of WCAI's award-winning public affairs program The Point.
In an age of rising unknowns, it's all too easy to retreat into the comfort of our certainty. But only by being skillfully unsure can we gain the agility and discernment needed to thrive in an era of flux. And uncertainty as a strength of mind comes in myriad modes from the suspense of pausing to the "unassumingness" needed to see the humanity in our enemies. There is no better time to be unsure.
Reception and book signing to follow. Learn more here.
The Wisdom of Uncertainty: Facing 2024 with Wonder and Curiosity, Not Fear Maggie Jackson with A.J. Jacobs
January 30th, 2024
6:00 - 7:30 pm
Church of the Heavenly Rest
1085 5th Avenue
New York, NY 10128
In an age of rising unknowns, it’s all too easy to retreat into the comfort of our certainty. But only by being skillfully unsure can we gain the agility and discernment needed in a volatile era. Join renowned author Maggie Jackson for a fascinating dive into her new book Uncertain: The Wisdom and Wonder of Being Unsure, nominated for a National Book Award and named to three “Best Books of 2023” lists.
Uncertain highlights the new scientific discoveries that reveal this mindset as a key path to human flourishing and an antidote to the narrow-mindedness of our time. Far from miring us in inertia, uncertainty is a gadfly of the mind, jolting us from complacency into cognitive spaces for exploring unseen meaning. A scientific adventure tale set in AI labs, operating rooms, c-suites, and artist studios from Paris to LA, Uncertain has been lauded as "remarkable and persuasive" (Library Journal) and "incisive and timely" (Dan Pink). Maggie will be joined by A.J. Jacobs, a podcaster and the bestselling author of The Year of Living Biblically, Thanks A Thousand, and most recently The Puzzler, which the New York Times called a "romp, both fun and funny."
Reserve a spot here.