Tony Robbins says the #1 human need is certainty, but do you know what the second need is? It’s uncertainty. This tug of war between the competing needs of safety and risk are at the heart of so many dilemmas we face in life and for most folks the goal isn’t to eliminate risk – rather it’s to understand this core human need. In our view, the best way to understand or learn is through stories and so we’ve asked some very talented entrepreneurs and creatives to tell us the stories behind some of the risks they’ve taken.

ANTONIO DI IORIO

It is a highly competitive field to become a film composer. Composing film scores isn’t just about fame and compensation, which is what draws many people in. People must be aware that every year not a lot of films are produced, with the biggest ones always handled by the top composers who dominate the scene. This is all normal. Read more>>

Sid Baar

Risk-taking is such a rewarding way to move through the world. It’s helped teach me that failure is not what it seems. Or maybe it’s better put that risk-taking has helped me through my avoidance of failure. Starting my own business and betting on myself was a big risk. Read more>>

Shweta Patel

In March of 2022, 2 years after the onset of the pandemic; I stopped practicing in a traditional ” Brick and Mortar” office. Instead, I launched Gaya Wellness-Telemedicine Exclusively for Women’s Health. What started out as a way to continue providing care to my long term local patients-quickly developed into a bigger vision-to transform how women are taken care of. Read more>>

Joana Coli

I believe that one risk I took that ultimately shifted my life, was the risk of believing enough in myself to pursue a career change in tattooing. I knew from a young age that I wanted to freelance in some creative way. Read more>>

Chloe Campbell

Reflecting on my journey, I embarked on numerous small yet calculated risks, progressively paving the way to my current position as the founder of Cloud Studio. Perhaps the most significant risk I undertook was the decision to attend art school and fully commit myself to a career as an artist. Read more>>

Mahesh Sriram

The modeling and acting industry functions very differently in the global market than in India. I think the primary reason I have become used to the manner in which the US production houses work, is that it’s more structured and there is clear communication and direction throughout each and every step. Read more>>

Sherrie Robinson

For me getting married was an ultimate goal, so when I met my ex I was head over hills for him. Having grown up in a Christian home I was taught the value of commitment and longevity. After the nuptials however everything went downhill quickly and the long awaited love ended abruptly leaving me with heartache and despair. Read more>>

Payal Sud

As a south Asian female, I started my mental health private practice to help medicaid, medicare, Queer, Kink and ethical non monogamy communities. I took the risk as a POC female to start this. These are all communities that my own community turns away. Read more>>

LeAnn Vipperman

Not sure where to start but basically we have been married 22yrs now and have 9 kids. Number 10 will be here in September. In February of 2013 I started buying products from dōTERRA to help my daughter who has a lot of medical history. I got thrown into the business side when the products worked. Read more>>

Erin Oostra

Imagine taking a leap of faith to pursue your true passion and live a more fulfilling life. This is exactly what I did when I quit my corporate design job to become a full-time artist and gallery owner. It was a risky move, but the rewards have been immeasurable. Read more>>

DP the Unknown

As an artist, taking risks in my music career is both exhilarating and nerve-wracking. Releasing my music to the world is a vulnerable experience as I am exposing my innermost thoughts and emotions to the public. However, at the same time, it is an incredibly liberating feeling as I get to express myself in a way that feels true to who I am. Read more>>

Karen McBride

I’ve always dreamed of starting a business of my very own. I even started little hobby businesses throughout my young adulthood. Always hoping and dreaming that one would take off, but never really knowing what it would take for that to happen. Read more>>

Nick Willis

When I graduated with my bachelors degree I decided to go work in the oil & gas industry. I was making very good money but my heart wasn’t In it and I hated the fact that I had to be away from my family and everything I loved doing something I didn’t enjoy. It was stable and the money allowed me to do somethings that I wanted to do but I would be miserable everytime I had to go back to work. Read more>>

Laura and Luke MacLean

We took a huge risk by going “all in” when my husband left his job as an activities director to join me. Luke left a great job in a great district but a large piece of that is we have 3 young kids who are involved in a lot of sports and activities outside of school and he wanted to have more time with our kids while they are young. Read more>>

Gene Myers

I am a green homebuilder in Denver, Colorado. In 1992 I launched my company, long before people knew the “green” I was aspiring to. I am a part of a huge industry, dominated by very large builders. It is also a cyclical industry that ebbs and flows with mortgage interest rates and economic trends. An interesting paradox that I have learned is that sometimes taking certain perceived risks actually reduces greater ones. Read more>>

ZaNaria Bowens

Taking Risks involves doing the work when you are unsure of where it will take you. I began building my media platform, and myself as a multi-media journalist covering community and entertainment stories. Nobody noticed me until I was noticed, but this only happened with consistency and the grit to keep going. Read more>>

LuxuRay Raymon-Walker

I never imagined that I would actually leap into a fashion career, especially as an entrepreneur. Going into the fall of 2022 it seemed like the perfect storm. I was no longer working my six figure corporate job, I loss my eleven year old beagle who was my best friend, I had issues in my relationship, nothing seemed to be going right. I had began the framework for my luxury curation services and for my clothing line in August of 2022. Read more>>

Andrea Shipley

For the last 5 or 6 years, my life has been one risk after another. Read more>>

Candice Gonzales

Starting a business is a risk. You are risking your time; your money; your safety net; your peace of mind. Read more>>

Lindsay Ellis

In 2018 I left a six-figure job that I loved to find my bigger purpose. I had no plan or idea of what I was going to do, which was a huge risk, but I knew it was my time. 5 years later I am SO glad I made the move and although it has not been easy, it certainly has been worth it! Read more>>

Maurice Watson Jr

I believe taking a risk in life is necessary but, it can be scary at times as-well as making sacrifices, and for me the biggest thing for me was moving not just a state apart but almost across the entire nation of the United States to help further my passions and dreams in podcasting, photography, and music. Read more>>

Geoffrey Dicker

A few months away from turning 30, a lot of opportunities had dried up for me in Los Angeles so I decided to take a huge risk and move to New York. As a going away present, a friend gave me a set of paint brushes. Read more>>

Allie Perry

The biggest risk I’ve ever taken was making the impossibly huge decision to work for myself full-time while battling what would be my first bout with long covid! Read more>>

Sydney Turner

Risk has so many definitions and meanings behind the four lettered word. One of the definitions I have chosen is an act or fail to act in such a way as to bring about the possibility of (an unpleasant or unwelcome event). I would like to interchange the word risk with leap. Read more>>

Kemone Hendricks

The biggest risk I’ve taken was leaving my corporate job of 8 years. I don’t recommend this to everyone because it’s something you will feel in your gut called divine discontentment when the time is right. Read more>>