What comes to mind when you think of taking risks? Do you think of all the horrible things that could go wrong and imagine the worst? Or do you think about the exciting possibilities with butterflies in your stomach?
When you take positive risks, amazing things can happen. Here are three women who changed their lives by taking risks…
Helen had been divorced for years and living her life as a happy single. Her kids encouraged her to begin dating again and even set up a profile for her on a social media network.
As Helen began using her new profile, she re-connected with some of her old grade school friends. Charlie was an old friend and she reached out to him one day. She says, “I just decided to take a chance. He accepted my request right away. Turns out he was single too and we got together for a night. Just drinks as old friends and one thing led to another.”
Now, Helen is engaged and sending out wedding invitations. No one is more surprised than she is. “I just assumed that door to romantic love was closed to me. It didn’t occur to me that I could open it again until my kids pushed me to try something new.”
Emma was a teacher in her local school district. She enjoyed her job—working with the kids. But she didn’t like the politics that went on behind-the-scenes. When her supervisor informed Emma that he was grooming her to take over his position one day, she knew she had to leave.
“When he said that, my heart just sank and I realized I no longer loved my job. I was still passionate about the kids but I didn’t want to continue working in the public school system.”
After two decades teaching, Emma started attending online school. She became a computer programmer and now works at a software company that creates apps for disabled students. The new career allows her to have the best of both worlds—she feels fulfilled teaching and she’s excited about what she’s doing again.
Lily was passionate about her crafting hobbies. When she discovered crafting tutorials on YouTube, it changed her life. For the first time, she realized she could build a business around something she loved.
Others weren’t as supportive. “Pretty much everyone told me I was wasting my time—that craft businesses don’t make money. But I was just so excited about the idea that no one could talk me out of it.”
It took a few months to get off the ground, but Lily now runs a thriving craft business. She has so much work that she recently hired her first full-time employee. “Building my own business has changed my life for the better. I’m glad I didn’t listen to the naysayers.”
Taking a new risk can change your life in the best way. It builds your confidence, helps you develop new skills, and encourages resilience.
Jan was in a funk. She reached out to one of her best friends and described how she was feeling. In particular, she listed seven things that really had her feeling low. Read through the list below and see if you can relate to Jan’s thoughts…
The “doldrums” strike everyone from time to time. Maybe you really aren’t feeling that math class this semester or you aren’t enjoying a work project this week. It’s totally normal to feel this way occasionally. But if you’re regularly bored by what you’re doing, it might be a sign that you need to shake things up.
Sure, you’re not going to jump out of bed ready to tackle the day if you spent the night comforting your sick child or had to stay up late to meet a work deadline. But if you routinely hate getting out of bed in the mornings without any obvious recent cause, it’s a sign that you need more excitement in your life.
Whether you write, draw, paint or do another creative activity, you can’t seem to get into it. You’re struggling with feeling “blocked” and you worry that is the end for your creative endeavor. But before you call it quits for good, consider if you’re simply too comfortable in your routine. Sometimes, a lack of creativity is a cover for a lack of risk-taking.
When things become too familiar and you stop taking risks, it’s easy to become edgy. This can be a mild unease or slight anxiety that follows you through your days. This happens when your mind (and your body) are on autopilot all the time. Your brain is trying to warn you that it’s time to wake up and re-engage with life.
If you’re not regularly taking risks then small decisions like what to eat for dinner or which movie to see can start to feel more significant. That’s because in the absence of real risks, you start overthinking everything about your life. Think about the last time you took a risk—you probably had to make a string of decisions and make them quickly to keep things moving.
A friend is going to Paris to study the language for six months. Your cousin is busy writing her first novel. If you find that you regularly feel jealous of what other people are doing, it can be a warning sign that you’re not doing anything that thrills you.
You seem to be coasting by in life or in your career with no real game plan. While it’s fine to go through seasons when you need time to breathe, they can be dangerous if they last too long. Your growth starts to stagnate and you find yourself feeling restless and overwhelmed.
Jan’s friend listened to her complaints then suggested she try doing something to surprise herself this week. So she took her friend’s advice and signed up for a pottery class that was available at her local craft store. While Jan discovered that pottery wasn’t for her, she did meet new people that she connected with.
Like Jan, it’s easy to fall into a rut. But just because you’re in one doesn’t mean you have to stay there. Create a plan to do something different and shake up your current routine.
You’re ready to bust out of your rut and try something new…except that you’re stumped. What exactly should your next risk be? What will you do? Who will you do it with or will you take the plunge yourself?
If you’re not sure what you want your next grand adventure to look like, consider doing one of these things…
There’s nothing quite like the feeling of traveling solo. It can be exciting and exhilarating to be in new locations and new situations by yourself. You don’t even have to travel far—going short distances like to a nearby town or a neighboring city can be inspiring.
How risky you view this activity might depend on your upbringing and your belief system. Regardless of your views, choose a tattoo design that you find personally meaningful. You’ll enjoy the experience more this way and be happier with the final art.
If you really want to push your comfort zone (and get a nice adrenaline rush, too!) then go out for skydiving. You can even bring a friend or two if it helps calm your nerves or if you’re feeling daring, go out with a class of strangers.
Samantha Angel from Advancing Steps points out that not every risk has to be huge like skydiving. Instead, do something that gets you out of your comfort zone to build your confidence and self-esteem.
She says, “I’ve always wanted to do the class with a glass type of thing, but I don't drink anymore so I felt weird about doing it. But I keep thinking about it so I might just grab a Coke and a friend and hit it up.”
Few things will challenge you like learning another language. Not only is this a fun risk to take, it also broadens your horizons. Shannon learned Spanish and afterwards decided to spend a year in Argentina, working at a local medical clinic. This is an excellent example of how taking one small risk can quickly snowball in exciting, new ways.
For some people, eating alone feels like a huge risk. Maybe it’s the discomfort of being alone or the fear that others judge you. But it can be empowering when you realize that you’re good company all on your own. If you’re nervous about doing this, try eating breakfast or lunch alone first. It’s less intimidating than dinner by yourself.
Taking a risk is all about pushing out of your comfort zone a little bit. If you’re a hermit who rarely leaves the house and is terrified of heights, don’t decide to travel for three days and go skydiving in the same weekend. Instead, aim for something smaller like an afternoon trip into the city. Doing this will help you associate taking risks with positive feelings!
Erin had enjoyed her job as a corporate accountant for years. But she’d always longed to be a photographer. She’d spent years taking classes from the local college and she even picked up a few freelancing gigs.
Now, she was playing with the idea of starting a side-hustle. She knew she could shift her hours to make it possible. But she wasn’t sure if she was ready to take the risk. If you’re like Erin and you’re worried about taking a risk, ask yourself if one of these beliefs is holding you back…
There are always going to be a million reasons not to go after a dream. You just had a new baby. You’re waiting for the kids to grow up. You’re too busy or too stressed. You just don’t have the time.
But the truth you must remember is this: you are not guaranteed tomorrow. If you wait, you may never get the chance to chase your dreams. It may not always be easy or convenient to go after what you want right now but it is worthwhile.
You know what you want—whether that’s to travel the world, write a novel, or become a comedian. But you’re too busy with other life commitments so you keep telling yourself that you’ll get to it “eventually”.
The problem is that if you put your dream on hold for too long, you’ll begin to resent the people around you for your unhappiness. Dreams are great but you need a deadline, too. Sure, you can’t write your first novel or go to Rome in a day but you can commit to picking out your heroine’s name or researching to see the first step you need to take to get your passport.
Failure isn’t fatal. It’s simply part of the learning process. You wouldn’t teach a toddler learning to walk that it’s the end of the world if he falls. You’d simply encourage him to keep going. That’s the attitude you should take when you’re contemplating going after a big goal.
When Tina considers the possibility of failure, she decides what she’ll lose from the failure then she plans for how she’ll bounce back. By doing this, Tina feels in control and can confidently take on new risks. If she succeeds, she’s delighted. If she fails, she knows what to do next.
Everything finally seems to be coming together. Your marriage is in a good place. You’re happy in your career. Your child just got accepted into their ideal college and your life couldn’t be better.
Believe it or not, this is the perfect time to take a risk. That’s because trying new things keeps you from stagnating during seasons of rest and abundance. It’s not that everything will work out perfectly but that you’ll feel more confident and more energized to go after what you want.
When Erin thought about it, she realized her fear stemmed from her belief that her life was good right now. She was worried she would “ruin” things by starting a side hustle. But a friend pointed out that she wasn’t feeling fulfilled and her company was in flux anyway.
Understanding the beliefs that are holding you back will allow you to overcome them. You can think through these mindset issues and create a plan to tackle them now that you know what the root cause is.
Taking a risk sounds fun and exciting. You’re jazzed up to go do something but you’re not sure what. When it comes to risk-taking, try to look at what you fear and how you can conquer those fears. Here are a few ideas to get you thinking…
From the time she had been a child, Lucy feared heights. When she went on a spring break vacation with her friends, she didn’t participate in climbing the mountain or exploring a waterfall because of these fears.
After seeing a documentary about fear, Lucy decided she was tired of being afraid of heights. In order to overcome her fear, she decided to challenge it in small ways. She took an escalator up to the second floor of the department store instead of her usual elevator ride. When a customer needed an item at work, Lucy volunteered to climb the ladder to retrieve it. At a local carnival, Lucy went on the Ferris wheel with a friend.
In college, Cheryl nearly drowned while playing in the ocean. The experience scared her so much that she didn’t go back into the water for two decades. It wasn’t until her teenager expressed an interest in swimming that Cheryl decided it was time to deal with her fears.
Instead of starting in the ocean, Cheryl purchased a season pass to her local water park. She also brought along a supportive friend that was a strong swimmer. While she was there, Cheryl began using the kiddie water slides. But after a few visits to the park, she was able to successfully navigate the adult water slide.
Nancy climbed the corporate ladder in her company quickly and she managed to do it for years without speaking publicly. But the business was hosting a large annual celebration and Nancy was expected to speak.
Since Nancy needed to tackle her fear of public speaking, she thought about joining a group like Toastmasters. But a friend suggested an acting coach who offered improv classes. As a class clown, Nancy liked the atmosphere and the relaxed nature of the coach.
What Are You Afraid Of?
Make a list of what you fear—these can be big and little things. Do you fear spiders or lizards? Do you dread public speaking like Nancy? Do you avoid new adventures that have to do with heights like Lucy once did?
Once you make your list, choose one fear to tackle. Then begin challenging that fear in small ways. For example if you fear putting yourself out there, go to karaoke night at your favorite restaurant and get on stage.
Remember, the more you work on conquering your fears, the more adventures you’ll be able to take!
