Risk More

I don’t believe in making New Year’s resolutions. I prefer to make goals instead. When applied to the context of the New Year, the word ‘resolution’ bothers me because to me it is a big statement people make about changing their lives, minus a game plan to back it up. The word 'goal' sounds more serious, because it suggest that your willingness to change comes with a plan, thereby giving it more backbone. When I tell myself I’m going to set a goal, I find myself putting more time and energy into achieving it.

If I have one goal to make for this New Year (or resolution, if you prefer), it is to risk more. John Tesh writes about this in his book based on his popular radio show, Intelligence For Your Life. In his book, he describes in detail all the life lessons he learned before deciding to stop co-hosting Entertainment Tonight in favour of a lifelong dream to be a full-time musician and composer.

Tesh writes that several polls have been conducted over the years which asked senior citizens (between the ages of 80 and 100) what they would have changed about their lives. Nearly every man and woman polled said they would have taken more risks.

I’m now at the same age Tesh was when he decided to risk more by answering the call to do music full-time. The reason why most people don’t risk more is because they're afraid that they will fail, or that they will compromise healthy relations with family and friends. I’ve had my moments where I’ve preferred staying in a comfort zone, rather than take risks.

My fear of failure often leaves me feeling numb or paralyzed inside, and in hindsight I believe it has hindered me from moving forward. When I thought I had landed a comfortable place in my fledgling journalism career a few years ago, it ended up leading to a dead end. When I subsequently pursued working in other fields, they often left me feeling dissatisfied, even though the money was sometimes good. 

Tesh reminds readers that experiencing failure is not a bad thing. I’ve come to believe that ‘trial and error’ can provide an enriching learning experience. You can learn from your successes, but I’ve found that learning from failure can make you a wiser – and happier – person. Tesh affirms this in his book.

Failure is part of the process of achieving success, regardless of where you want to be.

 

So this is my goal for this year, to risk more. It may even open doors professionally to areas I may not have considered a few years ago, such as teaching. I plan to blog more about this and the risks I’ve taken (and am taking) in the weeks and months to come. Stay tuned.