Disciples of Jesus are Antifragile

In my reading of Antifragile: Things That Gain From Disorder,^[1]by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, I found myself reflecting of Christ’s call to individuals to follow him. Those invitations were huge steps into the unknown. Steps out of stability and comfort into a lifestyle of risk, and process of transformative, or refined resilience. I cannot help but wonder how often, we as church leaders actually invite people into a life of all in risk taking with Jesus? Or has our “need to something”^[2] resulted in “naïve intervention” weakening the spiritual substance of those we are called to serve?^[3]

The disciples of Jesus were invited to a life of growing in antifragility. It was an invitation into a life that is totally reliant on one’s Creator (Luke 5:1-11). This was a life of adventure, randomness, volatility and insecurity in the tangible world (Luke 9:57-59). Yet somehow the risks and loss, produced a resilience of character that was sustained through faith, and an inner peace beyond comprehension (Luke 10:4). Those who embarked on this journey experience great joy and empowerment, as well as great loss, and pain (Luke 10:17, Hebrews 11:35-38). What makes this an adventure and not just some spiritual masochistic endeavor? Could the answer and strength be found in the relationship with the master? In the daily interchange of thought, daily life, and watching him navigate the random disruption with a surety and peace the disciples had not encountered? Could this possibly the value Taleb found in the “apprenticeship models” of the Swiss education system?[4]

Nassim Nicholas Taleb’s vast background in mathematics, probability, and philosophy is reflected in his writing in Antifragile. This comes through is numerous references to mythological gods and events. He has a statical approach to the nature of randomness and volatility. The overarching theme in the book is that all things, including people, benefit from “shock” and “volatile environments, because as they’re stressed and put under pressure, they get better.”[5] Taleb uses a growth mindset[6] approach to explain how a fragile being analyses the “indicators of success and failure”[7] to overcompensate, “by building extra capacity to handle even bigger shocks better.”[8]

This comprehensive book systematically explains every aspect of life in terms of how those people or aspects of society engage in facilitating strategic randomness and volatility. His knowledge and expertise are evident in his “important warnings and insights.”[9] Personally, I found this book difficult to get through. I am not sure if the content is similar to other books this semester or that my non-mathematical background struggling to connect with his logic.

That being said, I do find myself being challenged to reevaluate my leadership in terms of stealing the struggle from those I serve. There is definitely great value in exploring more of a mentor model within the church that is active and interactive while allowing for lessons through both failure and success.

 

 

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[1] Nassim Nicholas Taleb, Antifragile: Things That Gain from Disorder, Random House Trade Paperback edition (New York: Random House Trade Paperbacks, 2014).

[2] Ibid., 110.

[3] Ibid., 111.

[4] Ibid., 91.

[5] Niklas Goeke, “Antifragile by Nasssim Taleb Summary and Review,” Four Minute Books, March 6, 2016.

[6] Carol Dweck, “The Growth Mindset,” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-71zdXCMU6A.

[7] Goeke, “Antifragile by Nasssim Taleb Summary and Review.”

[8] Ibid.

[9] Julian Baggini, “Antifragile: How to Live in a World We Don’t Understand - Review,” The Guardian, December 15, 2012, https://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/nov/21/antifragile-how-to-live-nassim-nicholas-taleb-review.