What role has risk taking played in your life or career?

In our experience, most folks, including ourselves don’t have enough of an understanding of risk and the role it plays in our lives and careers and so we have made a concerted effort as a team to have conversations about risk with our interviewees. We’ve shared some highlights below.

Javier Salamanca | Production Sound Mixer

Taking risks is an inherent part of daily life, especially for those who are self-employed or business owners. This principle has been pivotal in my career development. Embracing every opportunity, regardless of less-than-ideal production rates or working hours, was crucial. I always strived to deliver high-quality sound, no matter the circumstances. Read more>>

Daja Hartman | Makeup, Hair, Grooming, Creative

Risk is a key component to growth and success. Uncertainty is the main ingredient in the space we create, because all creative work is a collaboration between mind and nature. It’s a practice of constantly preparing for the opportunities that present themselves. Read more>> 

Alex Dezs | Fashion Designer

As a Haitian American, taking risks was somewhat taboo, at least from what I understood growing up. My guardians kept us quite sheltered, so we found other ways to take risks, like expressing ourselves through our style and hair. Our classmates would either make fun of us or praise us, but we didn’t care. We took control of ourselves in that way. Read more>>

Benjamin Diedering | Marketing Expert & Founder of BDX Media and NewTrend Society

Reaching my current professional standing has been a journey marked by challenges and growth, especially in a place like Los Angeles. LA is a magnet for ambitious individuals, and no matter how successful you were in your hometown, it doesn’t automatically translate here. Read more>>

Jesus Chavarria | Musical Theatre Actor and Performer

Where do I even begin? Well, I’m a first generation college graduate and first time performer in my Mexican family. It is important to say that a life as a performer or anything having to do with the arts was never in the cards for me, that is until I decided to take a leap of faith and audition for a performing arts college. Read more>>

Laura Bibbs | Musician / Creative

My relationship to risk is constantly evolving. There have been times where I’ve found myself methodically calculating the risk and reward of certain choices I could make, fearful of making the wrong decision. Read more>>

Kristen de Guzman | Nonprofit Professional & Creative

As a Business Development professional who raises capital full time to grow and scale a nonprofit, I have become comfortable with risk. To me, risk means asking bold questions and pulling up chairs to tables I have never sat at. Read more>>

Alex Lazaris | Creative Director & Brand Designer

I believe the best businesses and brands need to take calculated risks in order to gain market share and stay ahead of their competition. My experiences as a professional downhill skateboard racer, amateur motorcycle and car racer have taught me how to assess and manage risk effectively and toe the line between success and failure. Read more>>

Christina Xue | Graphic & Visual & Branding Designer

For me, I consider risk one of my best friends in life. Facing significant problems at every stage of life is inevitable, and “risk” is the bridge to overcoming them. Every time I enter a new phase, I see risk waving at me, signaling the next challenge. Read more>>

Vana Ashdjian | Speech Language Pathologist/Private Practice Owner

Personally, I am not a natural risk taker. I prefer to stick with predictability, as I know the outcome and find comfort in that. However, much of the decision making regarding the success of my business has been a result of taking risks. As a business owner, taking risks is part of growing. Read more>>

Galina Slavova | Founder & President

From a young age, risk-taking has been a part of my life. I began playing judo at the age of six and excelled in the sport. In my early twenties, I took a major leap by leaving my home country and have been living independently for the past 25 years. These early experiences laid the foundation for my approach to risk in my career. Read more>>

Erika Gilmandinova | Entrepreneur

No risk, no reward. I am a risk taker and I love the rewards. Growing up in a family of entrepreneurs I am very familiar with taking risks and do not shy away from them. I embrace risk and belive its a part of any exciting journey. Read more>>

Varnell Hill | Musical Artist/Producer & Creative

My whole life has been about taking risks. Growing up, moving from place to place in a military family taught me how to adapt quickly. Adaptation is a risk in itself—sometimes it leads you to fit in, and other times it makes you stand out. Read more>>

Ross Canter | baker, cookie shop owner

I don’t think of myself as a risk-taker. I’d often look with envy at other people who seem to just go for it, leap in, take no prisoners — the opposite of how I see myself. I am definitely a thinker (sometimes, too much maybe).  Read more>>

Danielle Rubenstein | Home Baker

Life is all about taking risks! If you take risks in life you are one step closer to your life purpose. An example of me taking a risk in my life was to start making desserts and treats for people. My biggest fear was people might not like my product. I really strive to perfect my recipes until they taste perfect to me. Read more>>

Jason Vaughn | Jason Vaughn a.k.a. Mamba ( Dancer x YouTuber )

I think about risk the same way I look at life in general, there’s no guarantee that you’ll see the next day, week or paycheck so you might as well take a leap of faith. Living in a fear mindset was never my jam, that just keeps you on the hamster wheel… Read more>>

Laishan Ito | Graphic Designer & Artist

I think risk is an important factor in my career. Taking risks allow me to discover my strengths, my weaknesses, and my limitations. Read more>>

Yevheniia Mizevych | Footwear Design Student

Taking risks is essential for personal and professional growth. It pushes you out of your comfort zone, fostering self-discovery and development. By embracing risks, you gain valuable experiences, learn from failures, and build resilience. Read more>>

Samantha Geracht | Artistic Director, Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble

I think about risk in my professional life in two ways. The first is that I have spent my entire career with preserving an important dance legacy. There is no museum for dance, and I have passionately devoted myself to creating what is essentially a living museum to Anna Sokolow’s body of work. Read more>>

Joe Killinger | Real Estate Entrepreneur and Founder

Risk can be a brutal enemy or a beautiful friend, before you even begin down a path you must consider how risk can affect the path you are choosing. I always consider my downside before taking on a new project, I look at every variable I can come up with and plan on a few I am currently not thinking about, over the years I have learned there are almost always some outlying variables I did not consider.  Read more>>

Bernd Skorupinski | Bernd Skorupinski | Multi-Asset Trader & CEO Online Trading Campus

Could you estimate for me what percentage of our society you would guess is financially independent. Financially independent in the sense of they don’t need a job. They don’t need social security. They don’t need a pension in order to meet their financial needs. Read more>>

Jackson Banks | Comedian and Filmmaker

Risk is necessary for an artist. Risk has played a major role for my career and life. If you don’t take risks in your life, it will grow dull. If you don’t take risks as an artist, you will be forgotten. Read more>>

Austin Liu | Pro MMA Fighter & Stunt Actor

I think where most people see risk in a slightly negative light, and try to mitigate it in their lives; I personally love risk. I feel that taking risks are where you’re usually going to see your biggest payoffs. If it doesn’t pay off in the way you had anticipated, there’s always a lesson to be learned or some growth to be had from that experience. Read more>>

Angelina Sol | Published Author | Growth & Greatness Specialist | Organizational Psychology Practitioner | Growth & Greatness Specialist | Writing Consultant | Musician/Vocalist

Everything worthwhile that I have done has involved some level of risk and I think it is necessary if you want to accomplish a goal that’s outside of the box. My first risk involved moving to Spain right after college without knowing exactly how I was going to survive. Read more>>

Tania Raduenz | Brow, Lash Artist & Educator

Risk-taking is definitely scary, but I’ve learned that overcoming this fear is essential to achieving our dreams. Taking risks involves betting on yourself, trusting your abilities, and stepping out of your comfort zone. Throughout my life and career, I have found that the most significant accomplishments come from those moments when I took a leap of faith. Read more>>