Taking Risk is essential, but how much, when and why? Taking risks effectively is as much of an art as it is a science and we’ve asked some of the brightest folks in the community to tell us about how they think about risk taking.

Ivanka Lawrence | Film Editor

I think about risk as a challenge in everyone’s life or taking an opportunity but sometimes you got to sacrifice something to achieve it. Being brought up in a conservative society, being out of the box, or not following the family tradition was shunned. They would say “Filmmaking, that’s a hobby “, Read more>>

Rachel Simanjuntak | Indonesian & Portuguese, Queer & Neurodivergent Artist, Community Organizer & Little Sister

I was the first in my family to choose an artistic career, so pursuing art was always risky. Success never felt certain and I filled that void by scouring artist blogs for advice and trying to ask as many questions as possible. I had to navigate certain crossroads like choosing which school to attend with very little guidance. Although I couldn’t ask my family for specific career advice, one thing I’ll never forget is when my sister told me I could do literally anything I wanted with my life. That reminder of my own agency was huge in opening me up to risk. Read more>>

Katie Southworth | Contemporary Abstract Artist

I have always been a risk-taker. From extreme sports throughout my youth, to investing in intensive masters degree programs, and now pursuing art full time, I love the feeling of challenging myself and getting the most of out life. The way I see it, with high risk comes high reward. And even when you fail you still get the gift of learning, improving, and heading into your next risk with more insight. Read more>>

Emilie Rodriguez | Birth & Postpartum Doula and Founder

When I think about risk and business, who better to bet on than you? Is that even a risk at all? I believe that if you can dream it and see it in your mind, then it already exists. You just have to get other people to see it too. So I follow my feet and lead with my heart to build something better for my community. Read more>>

Upasak Mukherjee | Musician. Tabla Player, Film Scorer, Composer, Music Producer

I was born a musician. Tabla lessons from my Guruji (teacher), Grammy nominated Pt. Subhen Chatterjee started at a very young age for me. Learning the art of playing Indian rhythms has impacted me deeply and is the source of my life’s energy. Even though I was getting really good at the Tabla and was thinking of taking it up as a profession right after my high school, I had to follow the conventions of the society at that age. I studied to become a dentist, as was expected by my parents, but, after completing the course, Read more>>

Floyd Marshall | Entrepreneur

In order to succeed at any level you must take risks. Things have to get very uncomfortable which signals growth. If you’re going into a new endeavor and your attitude and demeanor is one of calm and comfort, you’re not stretching yourself enough. Taking risks have put me where I am right now in my career. Asking for an interview, putting myself in front of people. Doing things that made me scared and nervous, but doing it anyway. Read more>>

Yihuang Zhou | Designer & Artist

As a designer and artist, I believe that taking risks is an essential part of the creative process. Whether it’s experimenting with new techniques or taking on challenging projects, I’ve found that taking calculated risks can lead to breakthroughs and new opportunities. Read more>>

Miu Haiti | Recording artist, Singer, Songwriter

I believe risk taking is a must in any endeavor. When I became concious of that, and realized that there’s no way around it, I had to work on getting as comfortable as I could with taking risks. The way I approach it is in baby steps, I start by taking small risks, low on consequences until I get confident and I trust my intuition enough to make big leaps of faith like moving to a new country to reach bigger impact in my career. Without taking risks I would stay stuck. Read more>>

Kbeautty | Public figure & entertainer

Taking risk is the way to success. You have to take risk in order to achieve things for your future. Sometimes you have to put it all on the line in order to go after what you want in life. Taking risk isn’t a bad thing, it just means your creating your own opportunities instead of waiting for something to happen. Read more>>

Tay Price | Photographer, Videographer & Entrepreneur

Risk-taking is tricky. It’s gambling in a sense, but no risk, no reward is a very true statement. I think the most significant risk people overlook is time. Most people think monetary when they think of risk, but time is more of a commodity than money because we can never get that back. So any time we invest our time into anything, that becomes high risk. I’ve devoted a lot of time to building my business to where it is now. It has always been a high-risk journey because you don’t have an absolute guarantee that if you put in the work the results will follow. Read more>>