Risk-taking is at the heart of making a difference, but often we’ve been conditioned to avoid risk as much as possible. So, we asked some successful risk-takers to talk to us about how they developed their comfort with taking risk.
Heather Weller
The very process of art making is risk taking. Each step of the process presents a challenge with the opportunity of reward or failure. As an artist I make decisions both big and small that culminate in successful art. The risk associated in making art is a work that just turns out bad. However, bad art is not cause to quit. Read more>>
Ashley Allen
If you asked me if I was a risk taker, I would say no. I like to think of myself as a calculated planner with a dash of perfectionism. I think everything through, even too much so. Everything needs to be perfect all the time. Read more>>
Zuri resendiz
In my industry I like to say it’s like evolution , is not the tallest or the stronger who will make it , if not the ones who adapt better to the kitchen . As a chef is necessary to take risks every in every kitchen we worked. I like to say no risk no success always thinking and planning on outcomes. Read more>>
Amanda Marcus
Perhaps the biggest risk I’ve taken was in August of 2018, when I joined the ranks of those nomadic, wandering-types by quitting my full time job, packing my life into two backpacks, and boarding a one-way flight to Bali to go travel the world. In my experience, I am one of many adventurous types who have made this decision. Read more>>
Adita Yrizarry-Lang
I basically grew up in health and wellness. I started teaching group exercise classes when I was 16, at a time when the adults were not sure I could pull it off. The next thing I knew, I was packing in the room and having a great time teaching. All of this while finishing high school. That was probably my first “risk taking adventure”. Read more>>
Amie Santiago
Everyday when we wake up, we make choices. Those choices usually dictate the way that the rest of our day will go — and with that, the rest of our lives. I believe the saying that says, the best things in life are the ones that are worth a risk or even “high risk for a higher reward”. Read more>>
Anna Yang
Navigating through risks is essential for developing the ability to take risks. I believe life is all about embracing risks, as they foster growth, ignite creativity, and unveil new opportunities. Similarly, learning from failure is crucial; one should never fear failure. Read more>>
Benjamin Long
The art department in my school was small, but there was one professor in particular who encouraged moving beyond the basics; to try a different approach and way of thinking; to take risks. That stuck with me, as did the idea of trying to make art that was unlike anyone else’s, to present something that could only come from me. Read more>>
Kris Kiehn
When I was 26 and had been working for a few years post-college, I had decided that I’d wanted to move to the West Coast, Northern, CA to be exact. As I lived in NJ this was not just a few states away, this was a big change, but I’d been working as the sole East Coast representative for Palo Alto based company. Read more>>
Sierra Hooshiari
I suffered a severe brain injury as a sophomore at Cornell University that left me in a coma. The recovery was unlike anything I could have anticipated. I don’t remember the specific details of the event, but onlookers said it appeared as though I was trying to jump out of the way of a speeding driver while crossing a pedestrian sidewalk. My sandal got stuck in the hood of the car, and I landed on the windshield. The neurosurgeon who evaluated me said I was a ‘force of nature.’ And that’s probably an accurate description. Read more>>
Brandy and Rick McLain N/A
My ability to take risks has developed over time, through balancing a calculated decision-making process with a willingness to step outside my comfort zone. When my husband and I started Modern House Numbers, I made the difficult choice to leave my role in planning and architecture to take the reins of the operation. Read more>>
Kareema Weaver
One of my life mottos is, “What’s the worst thing that can happen,” for the most part, I don’t factor in the worst possible outcome. I think of the positivity of whatever endeavor; as a result, I have landed in some exciting shenanigans, but each time, whether good or bad, I survived, learned, and grown as a woman. Read more>>
Viplav Pimrale
This is a great question. I used to struggle with this a lot. I was always worried about what people might think of me or what they thought of my work. I found myself comparing myself a lot with other creatives in my field who had been in the industry longer than me or were better than me (in my opinion). I even missed out on some opportunities because I was too scared to take risk. Read more>>
Krista Oakes
I believe to take risk you have to find courage. To find courage you have to acknowledge what’s at stake and determine that what’s on the other side of the risk is worth taking the leap. Courage means taking action despite the feeling of fear and without any guarantees. Read more>>
Kristin Sensenbach
Developing the ability to take risks goes hand in hand with continuing to developing my self-confidence. Visualizing the dream (or risk) has always been the easy part, but my key to taking the first step required more work on myself than it did on my business. After growing tired of the same anxious conversations in my head about when and how to start a business, I had to take inventory on how much I felt the risk actually impacted me. Read more>>
Morgan Elliott
Embracing Risk: The Journey of Lux.Fino Picnics and Events Transitioning from the secure and familiar world of education to the unpredictable realm of entrepreneurship is a daunting leap, one that requires a fundamental shift in mindset and a willingness to take risks. My journey towards founding Lux. Read more>>
Taylor Gladmon
I developed my ability to take risks by understanding that I won’t fail if I don’t try. For me, taking risks is about letting my faith be bigger than my fear. This mindset has been essential in building Midas Moving, and it continues to drive my approach to business. Read more>>
Allen Benatar
By taking risks! It’s important to trust yourself and to be comfortable with “failure”. Read more>>
Trevor Smith
When I think about risk the first thing that comes to mind is not living my life well. The risk of not living my life well. From a young age this type of question has been with me. What does it mean to live a life well? How do I enact my morals and what should my morals be? What should I do with my time, given there is so much suffering in the world? Read more>>
Omawattie Singh
This skill didn’t come easy to me. Being born into an immigrant family makes taking risks a forbidden topic. I always followed the status quo because that was what was told to me by my family and society. Get an education, a great job, the whole spiel. I followed through but never was I happy at all. Read more>>
JeanCarlo Ramirez
I developed my ability to take risks through a pivotal decision I made at the age of 19. Instead of opting for a traditional full-time job, I chose to invest my time and energy into building my own production company, ‘indiehousefilms.’ This decision was a significant leap of faith in my artistic abilities and my passion for filmmaking and storytelling. Read more>>
Karnecia Hall
My ability to take risk came naturally, I have always been adventurous, and willing to take on new challenges. The first risk taken was becoming a teen mom, not knowing what to expect, made me want to adventure out more and continue risking the unknown. Teenage parenting was the hardest thing I have done so far in life so risk taking is easy. Read more>>
Gunta Liepina Miller
I think that taking risk is inhibited in the profession of being an artist. We are creating new works, but new also means risk – are people going to like my work? Am I an imposter? All of that involves risk taking. Looking back I can also see how taking risks, based on an intuition, has led me to where I am today – l was born in Latvia and loved dance so much that the curiosity to learn more has led me to wonderful moments – traveling and taking classes from the best teachers in Europe and also take the leap to come to United States to get my Masters in Dance from UC Irvine. Read more>>
Thomas Williams
All my life I have taken chances. I thought back then not as taken chances but accomplishing what I want. I had promised myself at 12yrs old to join the little league team when we move to our new neighborhood. I practiced by myself in my yard and when tryouts came up I signed up and made the team. I would continue to promise myself after that success. Read more>>
Michele Margherita
Fear keeps a lot of people from taking risks which creates anxiety, stress and stops people from trying new things. From job changes to vacations, many people prefer staying in a safe, known space rather that be uncomfortable in a new one. Years ago I took a Dale Carnegie course based on his 1936 book “How to Win Friends and Influence People”. Read more>>
