I was listening to a podcast where a listener had asked a question about how to avoid risk. And while I appreciate the sentiment – of course we want to avoid risk! – I think it misses the point.
We are never really afraid of the risk itself. We are afraid of not being able to handle the consequences if things don’t pan out how we think they will. So we don’t take risks in order to avoid those undesirable consequences.
The irony, however, is that by taking risks, and subsequently experiencing undesirable consequences (which WILL happen, because we just don’t win them all), we build resilience. And building resilience means we build confidence in ourselves to be able to deal with unforeseen outcomes. Which makes us feel more confident in the face of new risks – which we then engage with, and subsequently either get what we want or build new resilience muscles while also learning things that can help us handle future risk. And around and around we go.
Risk can be a virtuous or a vicious cycle, depending on how you decide to engage with it. Will you let risk – and undesirable consequences – keep you locked away from your life? Or will you get in the game, learn from every move, and play your heart out?
When you learn to surf, you risk taking a mouthful of salt water. Or several. I would know…
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