RISKY BUSINESS

“A ship in harbor is safe; but that is not what ships are built for.”
A friend gave me a bookmark twenty years ago with this quote on it. I have never forgotten the picture of that fragile little ship bobbing about on a vast stormy sea.
Sometimes the choices we make in life can put us on what seems like a fragile bobbing ship on a vast deep ocean.
The level of comfort with adventure, with risk, with extreme experiences varies in each of us. Some people seek out high adventure regularly to feel fully alive. Others get that same feeling at the top of a Ferris wheel.
One explanation for this is an amino acid in our bodies called catecholamines.
Regardless of the chemical motivation within us, I also believe there is a basic human need to stretch ourselves to greater or lesser degrees in different ways.
It can be enlightening from time to time to ask ourselves thought provoking questions. A couple of my favorites are, “What regrets do I not want to have at the end of my life?” And, “What is something I have never attempted because I was afraid?
What I know from my own experience and what I often see with my clients who are sitting at the brink of a new adventure, is that what gets in the way most consistently is fear.
Fear of making a mistake, fear of failure, fear of the unknown, fear of any negative outcome.
Yes, while it is possible for those things to occur, for the most part, when you look back on your life, I think you will agree that most of what you feared never occurred.
Or, as Mark Twain once said, “I am an old man who has had many worries most of which never happened.”
I don’t really know the psychology of catastrophizing but I do know it is a pretty prevalent way we have of staying status quo.
Given that fear is only imagined future negative outcome; really we have no idea of what is going to happen even in the next hour or how it will turn out, why do we hold such fear of bad possibilities occurring?
Or, as a coach once said to me, “Why lose in your own fantasies?”
So here we are eying the safe ship in harbor and also scanning the distant horizon. We decide to take the leap into the unknown.
Now we get to experience courage. Whether beginning a new career track, moving to a new city, ending an unhealthy relationship, starting a business, taking a long journey, or attempting a tough physical challenge, it will require confidence and courage.
Yes, it is risky!!
And, for most people it is enlivening, stimulating their creativity, testing perseverance, and challenging one to bring their best self to the commitment.
A ship is harbor is safe. Sometimes we want and need to live in that safe place.
But, when the spirit yearns for something more, ask yourself what is calling you, where it could take you, what would be the first step to start the journey and what beliefs you would have to let go of to experience success in your journey that will enable you to enjoy the ride and have some great sailing!

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