My dictionary tells me that to
risk is "to expose oneself to
the chance of loss." I suppose
that is true. Another piece of literature
I was once given suggests that:
To laugh is to risk appearing the fool.
To weep is to risk appearing sentimental.
To reach out for another is to risk
involvement.
To expose feelings is to risk exposing
your true self.
To place your ideas, your dreams,
before a crowd is to risk their loss.
To love is to risk not being loved in
return.
To live is to risk dying.
To hope is to risk despair.
To try is to risk failure.
You may avoid suffering and sorrow
if you don't risk, but you simply cannot
learn, feel, change, grow, love, or
live. The greatest hazard in life is to
risk nothing. The person who risks
nothing, does nothing and has nothing.
Only a person who risks is free.
What causes individuals to shy away from taking a risk, even if it is a
low risk and will give them something
they really want? Well, certainly high
on most people's list would be fear of
loss, failure, and perceived humiliation
if the loss were to occur. Now,
why would we automatically think
that we would fail at something? Why
wouldn't we first try and see, and then
if we did fail, learn from that experience
and move on? What causes us to
have these thoughts of inferiority?
Since risk-taking, to my knowledge,
is not a subject that is taught in school,
it would lead me to believe that a person's
fear of taking risks might stem
from before they can even remember.
When you were a child taking your
very first steps, it wasn't uncommon to
hear one of your parents or guardians
say, "Be careful; you might fall." Or,
"Don't do that, you'll ..." Though some
of this is rhetoric and you don't really
pay it much conscious attention, it
begins the pattern of playing it safe.
Think of how much better equipped
we would be to face life's challenges
and succeed if we had repeatedly
heard, "Take a chance and don't worry
about falling, because you're going to fall ... probably quite often. Falling is
an important part of learning." Many
of the greatest lessons you'll receive in
life are going to come from falling ...
from your failures.
Failing will never make you a failure
unless you quit. Unfortunately,
very few people heard that when they
were small. The vast majority of our
population has been mentally programmed
to play it safe.
Young babies are natural-born risktakers.
They never consider the consequences
of falling when learning to
walk. Falling is simply a natural consequence
to learning to walk. I guess
you could call it a calculated gamble;
it's a prerequisite to mastering a myriad
of motor skills required to get you
on your feet and moving. It's a natural
progression in movement. Why then,
wouldn't we stop to consider that any
movement into uncharted territory
should be viewed with the same consideration?
What happens to us?
Why is it that we do not see the
process of reaching our goals as having
steps similar to the ones the baby must
take in order to learn to walk? There
will be some stumbling and falling in
the learning process, but success can
be reached only when we are prepared
to take those steps — all of them —
even the ones where we may fall
down. The real win is the confidence
and experience we acquire that translates
into new opportunities for
growth, enjoyment, and expansion in
all areas of our life.
When I was a youngster in school, I
participated in track and field. Polevaulting
was my specialty; it was the
one event I seemed to excel at. I clearly
remember knocking that bar flying
more often than I cleared it. I also
remember I was not very enthusiastic
when that happened. Knocking the bar
off left me with a feeling that because I had failed, I was a failure. I had failed,
and, as I remember, no one advised me
of anything different. In retrospect, it
would have been an excellent opportunity
for one of my teachers to help
me understand one of life's greatest
lessons. But, it never happened, and it
would be many years before I learned
the truth, the hard way.
While we're still on the topic of
children, I'll throw up another caution
flag. There's a four-letter word that
most parents use around their children
so frequently that the children pick it
up and — before too long — it is
buried in the treasury of their subconscious
mind. That four-letter word is
CAN'T. This word has done more
damage than a lot of other frownedupon
four-letter words put together. I
know of some forward-thinking parents
who have literally banned that
word from their children's vocabulary!
Can't is a word that paralyzes any
constructive progress. It switches your
mind into a negative mode. It is a fourletter
word that will open your mind
to a never-ending flow of logical, practical
reasons that will enable you to
justify why you are not able to do
something you sincerely want to
accomplish.
The only alternative to that four-letter
word is its polar opposite — I CAN.
I can is far more important than IQ. You
don't necessarily have to be very smart
to win ... but you must be willing.
Reaching the goal is not success;
success is moving toward the goal.
When I was knocking down the cross
bar, I was attempting to reach the goal.
I was stretching, giving it everything I
had. That could hardly be considered
failing. Every time I tried to clear the
bar, I was risking being ridiculed by
the other kids. I risked having them
laugh at me when I missed ... and they
did laugh. However, every time I ran down the field and lowered the pole
into the box, attempting to vault
myself over the bar, I was challenging
myself. Taking risks is essential when
you want to reach a goal, and the purpose
of goals is growth. When you
challenge yourself, you bring more of
yourself to the surface. If you knock
the bar flying today, at least you will
know you are challenging yourself;
you're a success!
If you dream of living your life in a
really big way, you must accept risktaking
as a very real part of the apprenticeship
you must serve. Make a decision
right now to change. Decide this
very moment there will be no more
playing it safe ... no more "saving it for
a rainy day" type thinking in your life.
When people get caught up in the
habit of saving for a rainy day, that is
generally what they get ... a rainy day.
I clearly remember the first time I
heard Earl Nightingale. Earl was
telling a story about a farmer who was
out walking in a field. He looked down
and saw a tiny pumpkin growing on a
vine. Nearby, he spotted a small glass
jar. The farmer reached down and
placed the tiny pumpkin inside the
small jar. The pumpkin continued to
grow until it filled the inside of the jar.
Beyond that it could not grow.
There are a number of people like
that tiny pumpkin. They limit themselves
with artificial constraints and
refuse to take a risk. They never truly
test the strength of their abilities and
they never step out and bet on the
surest thing in the world ... themselves.
If you hope to accumulate great
wealth or achieve high goals, history
shows us that it's the first few steps
that contain the highest degree of risk.
You must turn your back on safety and
security and take those steps. To make
it big, you must take big risks. You will
very likely have to put yourself in a
highly vulnerable position. It is also
worth remembering you cannot almost
take a risk.
Eleanor Roosevelt said, "You gain
strength, courage, and confidence by
every experience in which you really
stop to look fear in the face." Follow
her advice and liberate yourself from
the crippling emotional state of fear —
and enter into a world of freedom.
For 40 years, Bob Proctor has dedicated
himself to helping people create
lush lives of prosperity, rewarding
relationships, and spiritual awareness. Learn more about Bob Proctor.
