You’re working hard, things are going well, piece by piece you’ve built a life you are proud of, you’ve overcome obstacles and challenges, beat the odds and then you find yourself at the center of an unexpected dilemma – do you risk it all to keep growing? What if growing means leaving the job you worked so hard to get or the industry you worked so hard to break into? How we approach risk often has a huge bearing on our journey and so we’ve asked some of the brightest folks we know to share stories of risks they’ve taken.

Kayissa Green

I took the risk of becoming a full time business owner. Knowing that I had 3 kids depending on me, one day last year I decided that I wasn’t finding employment that was fit for me, Read more>>

Shabaz Playtime

This topic means so much to me because I took a huge risk by leaving Houston and moving to Los Angeles, CA. As much as I second guessed myself when I first did it Read more>>

Kevin Waite Jr

Early on I established the vision of one day working with professional athletes of the highest caliber. Coming from a small northeast state, I knew this journey would be an uphill battle. Read more>>

M.C. Victor

To be honest, I haven’t professionally ventured out on my own in the world as being a musical solo artist yet, which is why I was hesitant to do this interview. Read more>>

Ella Romero

I have always struggled with Impostor Syndrome. Despite having “been artistic” all my life, when it came to achieving the “legitimization” that I thought came with having an art degree, I fell short. Read more>>

Emmy Slaibe

I had been working as an occupational therapist since 2016. Up until July 2023, I worked for a system that focused mainly on productivity versus quality health care. Read more>>

Nicole & Christina Garrison & Lees

In 2021 amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, Christina and Nicole both took a risk quitting their 9-5 full time jobs with benefits to open their own practice. Read more>>

Dr. Anancia Stafford

Taking the leap into starting my own clinician private practice without any financial cushion and saying goodbye to my 9-5 job was undoubtedly a daring move. Read more>>

Rithiely Pereira Najera

I’ve always felt that my life has been defined by taking risks. From my earliest memories, I’ve never really had a safety net. I knew early on what my passion was, yet I had no clear path on how to pursue it. Read more>>

Jennifer Ettinger

For many years, I was a social media correspondent on the red carpet in Los Angeles. I was part of a team and grateful for my “seat at the table.” Read more>>

Sabrina Smith

When it comes to taking a risk, in regards to my art, I would say the biggest risk I have taken was starting a Youtube channel. Read more>>

Amica Hunter

In 2011 I decided to drop out of college to go enroll in a professional clown training program. I had a scholarship at the time, my grade were good, and I was on the track that I was “supposed to” be on, Read more>>

Kindall Tyson

Expats that move to China call their arrival date their “Chinaversary.” Mine is August 7th, the day I arrived at Beijing Capital International Airport from Houston, TX to begin a new job as a professional school counselor at an international school in Beijing, China. Read more>> 

Nora Pantoja

There came a point in life where I was at a crossroads. I was freshly divorced and in limbo. I had the option to go back home to Miami with family but instead felt called to move to New York. Read more>>

Tatiana Sitnik

I would probably go with the biggest one so far, which is moving across the world and starting my life over. Growing up in Russia the idea of being part of the movie business was something out of another realm. Read more>>

Bar Daniel

Throughout my journey thus far, I’ve found that embracing leaps of faith is a fundamental aspect of being an artist. Every day presents new opportunities that require risk-taking, and I’ve learned to thrive in that environment. Read more>>

Katya Rich

Imagine this scene: Once upon a time, there was a little girl who worked as an office worker for 40 hours a week in the cold Siberian region. Read more>>

Shauna Noel

I had been an executive chef in NYC for a while but somehow, I found myself at the end of that road and suffering from severe burnout. I also had a new baby and all that goes along with that. Read more>>

Damont Diggs

Certainly. One risk I took was deciding to leave a stable corporate job to pursue a full-time writing career. The backstory involves years of juggling my passion for writing with the demands of a nine-to-five job in finance. Read more>>

Andrea Camila Martinez Ariza

Taking risks, for me, means taking the first step in anything. That first step often feels like jumping into the unknown, and we adapt gradually as we progress along the path we choose. Read more>>

Annie Terrazzo

Pivotally in 2020 I had the unfortunate trappings of watching someone I loved very deeply die within a few short months. I was 40 years old, in the middle of a pandemic but It wasn’t the pain of losing my loved one that created a terrible void that stopped my productivity. Read more>>

Tony Macarena

I moved to Denver in 2019 with just a tax return check and 1 friend. Attended Denver startup week and met a friend whom to this day still helps me and we have grown in the Industry together. Read more>>

John Langford

After a 25-year career as a commercial photographer in Austin, Texas, I sold everything I owned: house, car, furniture, clothing, and lighting equipment, to fulfill a lifelong dream of traveling the world. Read more>>

Jane Bready

Risk-taking can be a daunting prospect. There is nothing safe about it, but I think the saying “without risk, there is no reward” is pretty accurate. Read more>>

Shelly Marshall

Being a business owner is not always what it’s cracked up to be especially when you’re going through growing pains in the very beginning. Read more>>

Kareema Riddick

In October 2023, I took a big risk by leaving my well-paying job in corporate America. I had worked there for 10 years, climbing the corporate ladder in the logistics field. Read more>>

Naomie Kremer

I’m not a physical risk taker, but creatively I always welcome an opportunity to do something I’ve never done before. This applies to my video set design work as well as my approach to painting, in which all my work is rooted. Read more>>

Paul Granger

I’ve been in ministry for the majority of my vocational life, so when I unexpectedly lost my job with a ministry in 2018, it was hard to know the next step. Read more>>

Staycee Pearl

For over 20 years, my husband & collaborator, Herman Pearl and I have been making art together. In 2012 we founded PearlArts Movement & Sound, a dynamic arts organization dedicated to honoring Black creativity through dance and sound. Read more>>

Kim Chesney

Back when I was a young mother with two small children (2 & 3) I took on my first fundraiser. The non-profit was for an organization that provided daycare for medically fragile children. Read more>>

Douglas Ridloff

I left my stable job as a teacher to go for film work and be an artist at the same time. Read more>>

Fairen Kia

I am a self-published author, podcast personality, graphic designer, motivational speaker, positivity influencer, and the creator, founder, of Love Thy Belly. Read more>>

Sharon Polsky

When opening a business, everything is a risk. I didn’t borrow any money to open my first fitness studio. Instead, I saved money and did it on a budget. Read more>>

Joe Akira

Ooh this is a good one. So last year marked a pivotal moment for me as I took on the monumental risk of writing, directing, producing, and starring in a deeply personal short film. Read more>>

Rhianna Basore

Leaving my professional creative career behind, my only full time employment ever, was a giant leap into the unknown! I had worked since before I left for college in bursts, like you do, but consistently. Read more>>