You need to be aware that there is a big difference between risk-taking and stupidity! You have to take risks, you have to try things, but you have to understand that there will always be repercussions. Some of you are natural risk-takers, but not everybody is. I am.

Whatever it is that you’re doing, playing it safe is not going to get you different or better results. You have to take risks to grow, stay competitive, and be successful. You have to try things, and you’re always going to make mistakes. There’s no way you can do anything that has a risk, that won’t eventually result in a mistake. Based on that, you have to evaluate if it’s worth it or not.

Risk-taking is a necessary and healthy part of decision-making. It is a great opportunity for you to stand out and show yourself as a leader. The bigger the consequence, the more thought you should put into the decision-making process. You also need to have money so you can afford to take the risk—especially if you are running a business!

Taking risks is not the same thing as making snap decisions. If you don’t consider different options, you will never grow, and neither will your business and personal life. But you need to work through a process before you make the decision to move forward. Consider the following:
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• Accept failure as an option. Calculate your odds. What are the odds? Accept that you might fail.
• Calculate your options. What are you willing to risk? How much is it going to cost? How much are you going to lose? Evaluate it.
• Prototype solutions. Try taking a risk on a smaller (not so big) project to see how it might work on a larger scale.
  

If you’re going to do something that’s considered a risk, whether in your personal life or in business, you have to evaluate it. Assume that if you’re taking the risk, the worst case is going to happen. Going in you have to accept that consequence.

I’ve taken huge risks in my life, banking my entire business, my entire career, everything, on my decisions. When I was in foreclosure on my house, I couldn’t even go outside and play with my kids on Christmas Day. I was writing my first book, paying for desktop publishers, and paying my graphic artist to work. My wife came in and she asked, “Do you really think this is a good idea to spend money we don’t have?” I said, “Yeah, because if I don’t get this book written, we are going out of business—that’s a fact. If I finish this book there is a possibility that the book will sell.” And look what happened to it. I took a lot of risks. I wasn’t happy, I was stressed out, I was done, and I felt like I had no other options. I evaluated the worst-case scenario and took the risk.
—Mike Holt