Risk
Sunday, 2nd December 2007
Risk. There is a Chinese saying "Everything done is either done out of love or out of fear. There is no other human motivation."
Hmmm...I ponder the saying while trying to figure out where risk fits in the bigger scheme of things. Love moves us to risk. Fear keeps us from risking. It is the love for someone or something that moves us to take that leap of faith, and leap over the cliff.
Regardless of the danger of taking the plunge or tasting defeat. Sometimes we do not fear disappointment or failure the most but the cutting remarks of those who rejoice to see us fail.
Denis Waitley says "Failure should be our teacher, not our undertaker. Failure is delay, not defeat; it is a temporary detour, not a dead end. Failure is something we can only avoid by doing nothing, by saying nothing and being nothing."
Life demands risk from us. In our work environment, in our relationships, it even demands risk from us by being open to new ideas. Every day is a risk.
Living is a form of not being sure, not knowing what next or how. So how do we move in love to overcome fear?
To embrace risk responsibly ...if ever there is such a thing!
Do you just close your eyes while standing at the edge, hope for the best and jump?
Although one might consider sound judgment and gut feel too before making a giant leap of faith, the unknown provides no comfort. There's simply no guarantees that things will work out fine. Still... it's the same unknown that brings the thrill of anticipation, gets our hearts pounding and makes us feel alive. It brings a small piece of hope. Faith that all will be ok.
With risk there is always the hope of some kind of reward. It's a gamble we are willing to take because we believe the reward outweighs possible losses, or that the reward will improve our current circumstances.
To all those who face risk along with us daily: "Reach for the moon. Even if you miss it you will land among the stars." ~Les Brown
I consider that while thinking about the cliff scenario. "Yeah right!" I think. "What if the landing is really hard? Even fatal? How do you survive a blow like that?" I guess you pick yourself up from the floor and try again. Holding unto the true source of strength, and drawing strength from the assurance that you are loved regardless if you succeed or not. After all love is stronger than fear.
One of my all time favorite quotes summarize this beautifully: "It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly.. who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who have never known neither victory nor defeat." ~ Teddy Roosevelt