The chapters in our stories are often marked by wins and losses. Getting a new job, getting fired. Getting a life-threatening medical diagnosis, beating it and getting a clean bill of health. Too often, due to a societal expectation of modesty and humility we are discouraged from talking about the risks we’ve taken that led to those ups and downs – because often those risks draw attention to how we are responsible for the outcomes – positive or negative. But those risks matter. Those stories matter. We asked some brilliant entrepreneurs, artists, creatives, and leaders to tell us those stories – the stories of the risks they’ve taken, and we’ve shared them with you below.

Brittany Noble

There is no greater risk than jumping and hoping you will fly. Photography is a passion that has given me the wings. Let me tell you how I jumped one day. I was a technology sales representative in a call center for 12 years. I loved it! In fact, I was amazing at sales. I would get a high from making people fall in love with my personality. Customers would come to me for my knowledge, trust, and friendship. All of this “training’ was really getting me ready for the job I was made for. Read more>>

Daniel Olexa

Earlier this year, I decided to jump out of a perfectly good airplane for my birthday. Skydiving has been on my ‘Life List’ for close to 30 years, but I up until this year, I left the box unchecked. What I experienced and learned that day changed my understanding of human action and hesitation. Read more>>

Gabby Moore

All of being creative involves risk but the risk doesn’t necessarily need to be dangerous or irresponsible. Just the action of sharing your work or creating work in general involves risk. Taking a chance on yourself and your work involves risk. There are a lot of uncertainties of whether or not you’ll succeed but not trying will always lead to a guaranteed failure. Read more>>

Tajonyx

I started out as a lot of us do in our young adult years; Going to college. Once I graduated, I did what everyone expected me to do. I started teaching music at an elementary school. I did that for 5 years, but I always knew I wouldn’t stay a teacher forever. Singing and making music was heavy on me, and I knew I could really do it. During those 5 years of teaching, Read more>>

Chanti Miller

The biggest risk I’ve taken is leaving the corporate world and venturing into entrepreneurship. I had always been raised to go after what I want as long as it fell within certain guidelines to make sure that there was a safety net to catch me. Creating a professional world where I could bring my vision to life and make my own rules never seemed like a possibility and I was in denial for a long time that I even had the entrepreneurial spirit. Read more>>

Anneliese Elder

Being a wedding photographer that primarily photographs destination events, I have always been told my business can work from anywhere. Throw in three moves and scaling up in the industry, and the expected growth in my business can create challenges that caused me to reconsider my journey. Read more>>

Zara Rojas

Being a teen mom my life has been nothing but taking many risks. Taking a risk is our first step on getting out of our comfort zone, and although I feel like I’m a pro at taking risks, i am human, and i do still get very nerve wrecked. Read more>>

Andrea Rivera

Starting our business in 2020 amidst the pandemic was an unexpected challenge. However, this difficult period became an opportunity for us to shape our company. While confined to our homes, we dedicated our time to developing and structuring our business model. By pooling together our resources, knowledge, and inspiration, we aimed to assist companies in succeeding during these trying times. Read more>>

Angela Lenhardt

I intuitively knew I needed to share my Faith-based life’s experiences. And I also knew I had to share them authentically to inspire others to follow their soul’s path. But to put myself out there, in my memoir, felt like a huge risk, as well as overcoming the fear of criticism. Read more>>

Kitty Norton

I’ve made my living as a professional musician my whole life. My husband Jack and I have toured the United States…and the world. We’re not famous – far from it. We’re simple folk musicians…but somehow we made a nice living playing bars and clubs, festivals and events…touring almost nonstop. I loved it. What could be better: see the world with your best friend and get paid to sing while doing it? Well, all that stopped during the global pandemic of 2020. In fact, we had around 275 concert dates all cancel within a few week period during that early lockdown. An entire year of work…gone! Read more>>

Jordan Mohr

Some say I’m taking a huge leap of faith and risk by not following the traditional college path. Instead, I’m investing in myself and my dreams of becoming an independent music artist. It’s definitely not easy because there are no guarantees that it will all pay off, but I’m willing to take risks to achieve something incredible. Some days, I feel like I’m at a crossroads, but traveling a different path in life comes with certain risks. I’ll admit, it’s scary sometimes but I would much rather ride the roller coaster instead of the merry-go-round, any day. Read more>>

Rose Grant-Robinson (Wiseman)

The biggest risk was hiring individuals straight out of college. No strong prior work history, but they showed dedication to the client population that our agency served. I was told that I must be crazy to hire someone fresh out of college because they did not have the experience. I agree to a certain point, but I found out that those individuals were eager for the challenge. They brought new ideas and innovations that others seemed to lack. Read more>>

Morgan Hebert

Some of the decisions we make are about bettering ourselves in numerous ways. A risk is defined as a situation involving exposure to danger. Taking a leap of faith on starting a statewide support group for Body Focus Behaviors and advocating world wide for this mental disorder was one of the hardest decisions that I had to make. My story starts in the year 2018 when I self discovered that I had a anxiety disorder called dermatillomania. Read more>>

Gianne Darla Villaverde

I love risk taking. I was pulled to share this one! I consider myself to be an adventurous individual and I LOVE to travel. I’ve thought about doing a solo travel for the longest time and I finally did it. So this is how it went… Read more>>

HAZMVT

Taking risks is one of the most important aspects in a life. There is a difference between taking calculated risks and dabbling in risky business. A personal risk I’ve taken was to recognize goals in my life that were, other’s desires for the outcome of my life. Walking away from college, relationships, and career opportunities that the world would call stable, to pursue a life of creating audio and visual arts, would be insane to most. Don’t allow risk that will destroy everything you’ve built, protect yourself. Read more>>

Tailored Truth

Will you risk looking like a fool – for love – for your dreams – for the adventure of being alive? Life itself is a risk. Every choice I ask myself, “Am I willing to take that risk, if not just for the adventure of being alive?” That is where art took me, and graffiti, well that type of art is a total risk. Trains, tracks, police, unsound structures, roof tops, bandos, the wrong territory, beef, buffs, gangs, razor wire, dogs, narcs, racking, running, and a whole lot more risks. Read more>>

Melissa Berton

I have taught high school English at Oakwood School in North Hollywood for over fifteen years, and as you can imagine might be true of any teacher of literature, my idea of “risk” ran somewhere between spilling a hot cup of tea, neglecting the prologue of The Scarlet Letter, and favoring the Oxford comma. Read more>>

CJ Kale

Life is about Risk. And success is often directly related to the risk you are willing to take on. It is risky photographing lava, surf, sharks, lightning, tornados, inside ice caves and traveling to remote parts of the world to capture unique perspectives. But the risk taken to photograph these things, often in dangerous areas that others will not attempt has great reward. Read more>>

Kelley Amstutz

Taking a risk is scary and we’ve all been in a situation where sometimes it is literally fight or flight… but leaving the security of the corporate world and literally LEAPING, feet first into the unknown … it is terrifying. That is exactly what I did. Life was spiraling out of control and I knew something HAD to change because I was not living a life that fulfilled me any longer. Read more>>

KingCyborg

In the realm of my artistic expression, I fearlessly navigate uncharted territories, embracing risks as stepping stones towards greatness. I am a daring trailblazer, fearlessly venturing into uncharted territories where creativity knows no boundaries. When it comes to my music, I embrace risks as catalysts for growth, fueling my insatiable thirst for innovation. Read more>>

Heather Nardi

Taking a risk can be a daunting yet essential aspect of personal and professional growth. It often involves stepping out of our comfort zones and embracing the unknown. While risks can lead to challenges and failures, they can also result in significant rewards, new opportunities, and valuable learning experiences. Read more>>

Kat

Each time I opened a new restaurant, it was a huge risk! There’s always the unknown, did I figure the number’s right? What if this doesn’t work out? And making sure you have the right amount of head and heart into it. Each time I opened a new place there was always the excitement, then the question of did I make a mistake when the real hard work began. Read more>>

Caroline Stump

A lot of the amazing experiences and successes would not have happened if I hadn’t taken risks. The first stand out risk I took was moving from my hometown of Des Moines, Iowa to Denver, Colorado to go to college for a degree in songwriting and music business. Going to college across the country is a risk in and of itself, but moving across the country to pursue a degree in music was something that was both terrifying and exciting. I have absolutely no regrets taking that risk. Read more>>

Jamila Williams

Taking risks can be scary at times, but they force you out of your comfort zone. The biggest risk I’ve decided to take is betting on myself. When I decided to put myself out there more, be more consistent and get out of my own way, doors began to open and more opportunities presented themselves. When I started blogging over 12 years ago, I never would’ve imagined that I’d be doing celebrity interviews and hosting my own styling events at a national department store. Something that was once a hobby has opened up a new career path for me. Right now I’m currently the lead stylist for Polo & Pretty Women. Read more>>

Soniyah Robinson

Audre Lorde said, “When I dare to be powerful, to use my strength in the service of my vision, then it becomes less and less important whether I am afraid.” These words embody how I felt when taking my first momentous risk as a business owner: relaunching Boundless Blackness with a new focus and vision. Read more>>

Tiffany Renee’

The work I do isn’t what most would consider traditional or “normal” whaterver that really means. I get the oppurtunity to hold loving space for people and bare witness to the beauty of their soul and it”s journey, their ancestors, celestial team, whatever healing need take place for them, and so much more. Read more>>

Rebecca & Paul Leser

We’ve owned sailboats for 11 years now and have always enjoyed taking our boat out for an afternoon in the sun on the Chesapeake Bay. In 2018, we chartered a sailboat for the first time in the beautiful British Virgin Islands and spent a week living aboard as we island hopped from one tropical beach to the next. It was on that vacation that we first dreamed of the idea of living on a sailboat. We then spent the next 2 years wavering on the idea, not because we didn’t think it would be an amazing way to live, Read more>>

Nicole Freeman-Kirkland

I reached a point in my life where I was feeling unfulfilled, overwhelmed because I was working a full time job as a Chief Financial Officer, and running my Accounting Practice full time which was growing but not making the income to cover my household expenses. I was going through a divorce, working around the clock, traveling from Detroit to Atlanta for business, no time for self care, no time for family actvities, I was constantly juggling my daughters school activities and falling short. Read more>>

Heather Clark

Becoming a Bookstagrammer has been on of the biggest risks I’ve taken. When I decided to start my account back in 2019 Bookstagram was just starting. Putting myself out there for the whole world to see was pretty scary. In my mind why would anyone want to follow a Instagram book account from a girl in Utah. I wasn’t popular and at the time wasn’t reading the latest books. Read more>>

Shechinah Butler

Starting a podcast was my biggest risk because the platform itself allows me and others to be vulnerable. My first episode was my toughest because I told my own story. It took a couple of takes because I cried through most of it. I’ve never fully told my story to anyone other than those closest to me. Read more>>

Tony& Kathy Demaio

Opening our shop was a huge risk. The market in our area is saturated with tattoo shops so we needed to do something different, something to stand out. First was the design of the shop, the aesthetic in the shop is very different from other shops. It’s very soothing and almost spa like. Getting a tattoo, especially for a first timer is nerve-racking, we wanted people to feel at ease as soon as they walk in. Read more>>

Becca Elder

From modeling, to photography, to piercing, everything I do is a risk. People say don’t judge a book by its cover but the truth is, they do. From how I dress to what I choose to do for work I constantly have eyes on me and it’s not always necessarily a good thing. As for modeling my main scene has always been boudoir and artistic nude. To some they just think it is for male attention or that I’m just showing my body to the world and don’t have any self respect for myself. Read more>>

Aline Boulgourjian

Five years ago I leaped into the staging world without much experience. I had extensive education of the marketing and advertising worlds and a passion for design and home decor. Most stagers are advised to strip homes of personality, making them look beautiful yet emotionally detached spaces. My marketing background told me otherwise, Read more>>

Cindy Skocik

After a long and relatively successful career in business operations and financial management (being a CFO, COO, and the like), I found myself growing restless and unsatisfied. I was weary from almost a decade working in healthcare, in a 24/7/365 highly regulated environment where the way we ran the business could literally mean life or death for patients. Read more>>

Jennifer Heidrich

I have always been interested in the beauty industry. In 2014 decided to learn how to spray tan and opened my own sunless tanning salon business out of my vehicle. I enjoyed a sunless tan and wanted to help people feel comfortable and confident in their own skin. Little did I know that this initial endeavor would pave the way for an even greater opportunity. Read more>>

Bonnie Gandy

I feel like the biggest risk you take as a business owner is the first one- having your own business. There are so many parts of the risk: most people risk their career at the time or risk the path of building it through someone else’s business. You risk courage daily as you continue to believe in yourself and goals and dreams and desires when you may be the only one doing so. Read more>>

Katy Gish

Last summer I spent a month learning abroad in Ghana with the University of Utah. Living in another country for that long, let alone a third-world one was taking a risk, but little did I know that it would improve my life. Even though we had no hot water, no stable internet or service. I knew there were stories to tell, and people to meet. I brought all my camera equipment with me for an adventure of a lifetime. Read more>>

Savannah Broeren

I think the biggest risk I’ve taken is no longer charging money for my services, but if someone insists on paying me, I charge a very small amount. I know it sounds crazy, but I am in college so I need to put more focus into my education. That is such a small component though. I remember when I was 20 and wanted to surprise my mom with family photos for mother’s day. I did research on photographers and finally realized how expensive it is to hire and prepare for a photoshoot on both ends. Read more>>