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.

Sonja F. Blanco

Let me start by prefacing that I am risk averse and yet every major accomplishment I have had has involved a significant amount of risk. Read more>>

Mike Costa

When I took a below-the-line job as a prop master, it was a chance I took so I could be in-the-can, so to speak – closer to the action. I was fortunate enough to land a position on Roseanne in the first season, on the first show. Read more>>

Ariana Williams

Everyday is a day where I take risks. Risks are important though, they allow you to grow and come out your shell and be the true you God created you to be. Read more>>

James Richardson

One of the biggest risks I’ve taken in my life was leaving my small hometown in Oregon for Los Angeles with no money, resources, friends, or family, all in pursuit of a better life. Read more>>

Daniel Bruce

First realized during the art world paradigm shift of 2020, Step Mother Nature was created by artist Daniel A Bruce in an effort to foster a new sense of community among artists looking to go beyond traditional institutional structures. Read more>>

Dan Blanchard

The risk I took that stands out vividly in my memory was the decision to send my manuscript to a publisher despite my doubts about my writing abilities. Read more>>

Max Leonida

Being an artist, a creative mind… it’s already a pretty risky thing in itself… Somehow we feel there are more “stable” and “secure” jobs in the world and we are afraid that pursuing a career in the entertainment business could eventually lead us to a path of starvation, compromises, miserable temporary gigs to make ends meet, etc. Read more>>

Darrell Scott

Prior to starting my podcast, I worked in radio and then in the computer field. I retired in January of 2023. From my radio career, I maintained my love of jazz. In the market where I live, jazz had disappeared. Read more>>

Vanessw Agopian

My greatest risk was in believing in myself when the bottom was ripped out from beneath me after an unexpected divorce and battle with severe depression. Read more>>

Reed Fields

In 2023, I retired early from my teaching career at Bath County High School in Owingsville, Kentucky, after twenty years of service to pursue a full time career as a singer/songwriter. Read more>>

Willow Rain

My name is Willow Rain and I am a self taught metalsmith and owner of Ramblin Soul Studios. I am from the PNW and have always had a goal seeking mindset and dream chasing personality. Read more>>

Liza Carden

As an entrepreneur I think we are already more comfortable with risks than what the average person is. Starting a business at all is a risk. However I think sometimes we loose the gusto. Read more>>

Christian Deaton

I’ve recently embarked on a new chapter in Shreveport, Louisiana, leaving behind my Michigan roots and my stint near my hometown after departing California. Read more>>

Byron Werner

Pursing a freelance career in the Film and Television business is an endless series of risks, the biggest being to make the decision to do it, which I did right out of college. Read more>>

Joel Cool

I definitely consider myself a “risk taker” but feel there is a negative connotation around that phrase. Some people are just a little more curious or excited than others about diving into something new headfirst. Read more>>

Javone Gratton-Jackson

The biggest risk was to put my story out to the world through poetry. I was in several dark places in my life that influenced me to write pain in poems, even though it isn’t traditional poetry that many people are used to. Read more>>

Hulu Ra

Hulu Amen Ra’s journey is a testament to the power of taking risks and the profound impact of the people we choose to work with. In a bold move, Hulu left the East Coast behind and returned to San Diego, stepping into ownership of The Hidden Spa Wellness Center in Ocean Beach, California. Read more>>

Jessie Goodall

In 2023, straight out of college, I decided to join Besa mi vino, an innovative startup aiming to revolutionize the wine industry by making organic canned wine accessible, convenient, and cool for younger generations without sacrificing quality. Read more>>

B.E. Boykin

Early on in my career, people told me that composition wasn’t for me because of a number of factors. It was a challenge to get publishers to be interested in my music and when I looked for mentors for advice in the field, I was met with so much resistance. Read more>>

Badd wolf

Starting my music career with no sense of direction. Learning that nothing is a loss and everything is a lesson Read more>>

CJ Janzen

Taking a Risk “…and the Winner of the Grand Slam is CJ Janzen!!!”
(and the crowd goes wild!!!)

Those are the words I dream of hearing. Read more>>

Sonja Marie

After graduating Hampton University in 1992, I had an adverse reaction to returning back to my hometown, Yonkers, NY, in hopes to find work and start living my “real” adult life….so I took a risk. Read more>>

Claudio De La Rosa

Big moment in my life came when I decided to move away from the comfort of my banking career and delve into the world of photography as a freelancer. Read more>>

Chara Klug

I intended to work for someone when I graduated from Chiropractic school. It seemed like the smart thing to do: Learn the ropes and then go out on my own. But I was a 100% single mom of a 3-year-old boy. Read more>>

Sunny Moza

Picture this: a master’s degree in computer engineering leading a double life as a Program Manager by day and a secret passion for transforming lives through personality coaching by night. Read more>>

Elizabeth Suggs

One of the biggest risks I’ve taken was starting Collective Tales Publishing. It began as a dream to create a platform where diverse voices and unique stories could find their audience, but turning that dream into reality required a leap of faith. Read more>>

Orneary Conley

On May 30, 2023, I decided to close my brick-and-mortar store. It was time to renew or terminate a five-year lease, and I had already decided that, since the owner refused to sell me the commercial building, I wasn’t going to renew. Read more>>

Laurie Boucher

Making the leap from a 30-year career as an attorney to attending culinary school and ultimately becoming a Pasta Chef was an extraordinary risk. Read more>>

Sabrina Dupuis

I would say the biggest risk I’ve taken was the leap to pursue photography full-time. I had a stable corporate ‘9-5’ at the time but I just wasn’t feeling fulfilled or happy with the work I was doing. Read more>>

Joshua Cole

Have you ever had that gut feeling that everything was about to fall into place? Last year, I experienced an overwhelming sense of certainty pulsing through my veins, compelling me to trust my intuition and follow its lead. Read more>>

Megan Penn

The biggest risk was leaving my profession after 12 1/2 years and stepping into a role I knew nothing about. After being in the Architecture and Urban Planning world for over a decade, it was scary to think about completely leaving it all behind to step in the role of Executive Director for Orange Home Grown (OHG). Read more>>

Heather Wilde

I grew up as the first child, a typical Type A personality who always needed to think through and control what was happening and the eventual outcome. Read more>>

Chris Sylvester

I took a risk at 19 years old while a student in Junior College. I was offered a Play By Play position at Cal Poly on the local ESPN Radio station. Read more>>

Dani Palavecino and Constanza Palavecino

The Palavecino Sisters, aka “Palave-Sisters”, like to live their lives boldly. One of the biggest risks they’ve taken is to move from their homeland Chile all the way to the US to expand their horizons and take their careers to the next level. Read more>>

Lorraine Pennington

I always knew that I would end up being a painter/artist . I had a hair salon for many years with the thought that I could explore other creative outlets while making an income from hair cutting. Read more>>

Leonardo Ledesma & Sea Zeda

Being an entrepreneur is fraught with risk. From day one, leaving architecture to pursue a career in the arts and taking calculated risks is what has propelled the business forward. Read more>>

Ilia Kavoukis

Ilia always knew she wanted to start her own business, so when she graduated from massage school, she took a big risk and moved to a small country town in Sutton, Quebec with her 5 year old daughter in tow from Montreal and opened a day spa. Read more>>

Linda Glick

I had the ‘Theatre Bug’ in me since I was quite young. I got the leads in camp and school productions, drama club, etc. Though well-meaning, my parents were not supportive of me choosing a life in Show Business. Read more>>

Danielle Kloberdanz

I took a risk when I published my book Inner Compass Mom, but I’m glad I did. It details the extraordinary and completely unexpected spiritual awakening that I experienced a few years ago. Read more>>

Joey Thurmond

Thank you so much for the amazing opportunity to be interviewed by Canvas Rebel! I’ve been super excited about this. I think all artists take risks each time they release their creative style to anyone else or even themselves.  Read more>>

Krystal Vasquez

The riskiest thing I have ever done was start an Wellness business during the Pandemic in 2020. With the huge risk of placing my bets and daily income on a new business, came a ton of small risks. Read more>>

Tiffany Kent

Growing up with my single mom in New Canaan, CT was a miserable experience. I didn’t have a lot of friends; I was small and shy; I was held back in the 2nd grade, and I was the only kid with divorced parents. Read more>>

Shrreya Sharrma

Belly dancing has long been a taboo in our society. Now imagine a middle-aged woman, from and married into a indian traditional household, weighs much more than your average dancer starts to show up on internet wearing nothing more than a belly dancing dress consisting of colorful bra and a slit skirt, things start to get interesting to say the least. Read more>>

Lauren Davis

I’ve always had this little fire inside me that whispers, almost inaudibly, “Leap Lauren…” It’s so quiet that it’s easy to miss. It’s shown up at some of the most instrumental crossroads of my life. Read more>>

Jody Maberry

My first job after college was as a financial analyst at a commercial bank. The job was exactly what I went to college for, and after a few years, I was not fulfilled and not enjoying the work. Read more>>