How do you think about risk? What role has taking risks played in your life/career? Check out responses from hidden gems from our community below.

Jenay Zhyrov | Freelance Writer

I’m an anxious person, but I try not to let that hold me back from taking risks, or rather, calculated risks. I’ve experienced some amazing life changes and personal and professional growth because of them. I manage the fear of taking a risk by developing a plan. First, I do a bunch of research and then mull over the worst and best-case scenarios before I plot my next move. Read more>>

AREN Bahia | Entrepreneur, speaker, coach

Risk taking was a huge part of my life, going from being a drug dealer and literally risking my life and freedom to leaving everything behind and selling everything I own, leaving the game, and moving to Bali to start my life over. Once I was aligned spiritually, I continued to take risks in launching businesses and learned that taking risks on myself was the right call. Read more>>

Manatsu Tanaka | Performer, Artist

For me, the risk taking comes with me being unapologetically queer and authentic through my art. In the dance world, or in any industry to be honest, we learn quickly that there is a ‘type’, a ‘style’ that is more accepted and favored because that is what the industry wants and it is ‘marketable’. To know what is seeked and know how to execute that from your own palette is indeed a skill, and as a performer, at a certain degree, is needed. Read more>>

Jesse Garcia | Voice for Health & Wellness

What’s life without risk? It’s what separates the ordinary from the extraordinary and the safe from the bold. As someone who grew up in the projects I have associated risk with life. The risk are an opportunity to make an impact in the world and elevate the people around me. Now don’t get me wrong, you have to be educated on the risk you take and make sure you know the ends and outs of them, I don’t encourage taking foolish ones. Read more>>

Bretley Roche | Commercial Real Estate Broker – Retail

There is an element of risk in every decision we make. When evaluating the risk level of a certain decision, we rarely stop to understand the risk involved in not doing the thing. The risk in not doing something can often be higher than doing it. I understood the risk in leaving my well-paying job with benefits, 401K, PTO, and venturing into a cutthroat, commission only business. It terrified me. But the risk of staying, and not pursuing this path felt worse. Read more>>