Life is about choices. We choose to take risks or we choose to live
under the radar. There is no middle
ground, no straddling the fence. We
either risk applying for that promotion, or we sit in the same seat year after
year. We either risk asking that person
on a date, or we wonder ‘what if?’ We either write that book or we dream about
writing that book. We dream about taking
that vacation, or opening that business we think about every day; or we just
exist until we die.
They say the cemeteries are filled with unrealized
dreams. We will one day become one of
those unrealized dreams or we can take the risk. What drives risk takers, what pushes us to
take the risk? It’s that voice in our head and our gut that says ‘I don’t want
to turn 90 and find myself sitting in my rocking chair wondering ‘what if?’ Don’t get me wrong, an integral part of
taking risks is failing. I believe that
is what keeps many people from taking risks.
What if you ask her out and she says no?
What if you apply for that job or promotion and someone less qualified
gets it? What if you did not conduct the
proper research before opening your business or maybe you did, and it fails
within two years of opening? What if you
just break even on that book you decided to publish? Hey, what if you take that dream vacation and
you come back with a stomach virus or worse?
But what if you succeed? What if you succeed beyond
your wildest dreams? What if you have
the vacation of a lifetime with memories you will cherish forever? What if the success of your book is that it
touched one soul, or 10, or 10,000? What
if it takes your business three times before it is successful. And in the meantime you have to work for
someone else during the day and work on your business at night, until it is
successful? What if the person you asked
out said no and then you met the person of your dreams? Risk, what if?
Many years ago, I worked for a brokerage firm for
more than a decade. The last seven of
those 11 years I was a Registered Representative—aka a stock broker. It took me several years to get to that
level, and I have to say I loved my job.
I loved, and still love, the energy of the stock market. But some days I hated my job! I would find myself staring out the window,
wondering ‘what if?’ Then the layoffs
happened. 250 of us in one day! My life
changed immensely after that day. I
vowed never to go back into the world of finance and thought I would try the
healthcare industry.
My first job in the healthcare industry, an entry
level position, I lasted two and half years.
Then I was fired! I was taking
too much time with the patients. I had
never been fired before! The next employment opportunity, same job different
company, I took that entry level position again; hoping to get in and move up
in the company. I seriously wanted to;
thought I would, stay there until retirement! I tried for six years to move up,
but to no avail. I sat in an entry level
position making thousands less than I had made as a broker, but thankful for a
job. We all know the stories of how many
people are under-employed. After six
years however, I could not take it anymore.
I resigned. It was now or
never.
The months preceding my resignation, that was all I
heard, ‘it’s now or never!’ I heard it
in church sermons and conversations with strangers who did not know my situation. Everywhere I turned, I heard the warning, ‘it’s
now or never’. I kept thinking ‘I have
to do this. I may never get another
chance’. But I would push the thought
out of my mind because it just was not practical. It was not the right time!
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