The Problem With WHAT IF Thinking

What If... ? is the latest Disney+ series in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Similar to my posts on The Falcon And The Winter Soldier as well as Loki, I want to look at what this series can show us about leadership.

What If…?  looks at alternative timelines within the multi-verse. Essentially, what if things played out differently than they did in the movies and TV series? In episode 2, the series asks, what if T’Challa (Black Panther) became Star-Lord? 

This episode (spoiler alert) shows us that T’Challa is a better Star-Lord than Peter Quill’s Star-Lord (Guardians of the Galaxy). We see that T’Challa is a natural-born leader. Unlike Quill, he is a famous galactic pirate with a Robin Hood-esque cause. In addition to this, he was even able to convince the MCU’s primary antagonist, Thanos to abandon his plan of eliminating half of all life in the universe. That being said, it stands to reason that Tony Stark is still alive in this timeline and enjoying a cheeseburger with his family. 

Just as the MCU writers are asking what if… things played out differently for our favorite fictional heroes, I think we do the same things in our own lives.

What if we never broke up?

What if I went to college?

What if I took that job?

As we look at everything going on in our world, it can be easy to ask what if circumstances were better.

This is the problem with what if thinking. We assume that different will be better. In the aforementioned episode, we only get to see the good things about T’Challa becoming Star-Lord and none of the bad things. That’s because what if thinking often assumes the best-case scenario. As you likely know, leadership is rarely the best-case scenario. 

The other problem with what if thinking is that it focuses on the past. Unfortunately for us, we can’t time travel like Steve Rogers in Avenger: Endgame. While we can’t change the past, we do have the opportunity to change the future. 

The antidote to what if thinking is what now thinking. Instead of asking what if the circumstances were different, leaders need to ask what now can we do with the circumstances we’ve been given.   

What now can I do that I’m not with that person anymore?

What now can I do to grow as a person?

What now can I do to find fulfillment in my work?

With everything going on in our world right now, we don’t need leaders who as what if…? Instead, we need leaders to ask what now…? 

Think about it: Are you someone who likes to fantasize about the past or dream about the future?