Risk Taking and Leadership

Risks are an inherent part of everyday life, some risks are large and some are small. When you get into a vehicle and drive to work, you are taking a risk. Although it does not seem that risky as I write this, it is. After driving for years, it has become second nature just as brushing your teeth or tying your shoes. This is not to say I am over confident in my driving. Yet, because it is done every day, it has become part of the routine you forget the sheer gravity of driving. Last year during a snow storm, I found myself far from home and needing to get home. During the slow ride trip home I really had time to think about the fact that this is dangerous and the risks versus reward is huge. In this day of texting and using our cell phones while driving, the risk is even more than we think. We have laws in place to protect people and rules of the road to keep everyone safe. We can be involved in an automobile accident where the car is ruined or we’re injured and so on. And the point is that risks are everywhere in life and unavoidable.

Risks happen all around us, not only in our personal life but our professional life as well. It is easy to compartmentalize risks as the example above. Yes there is real danger in driving and we see on the news almost daily the outcome of these risks. As leaders of a team or staff it is important to know that there is risk taking involved. I recently sat down and had lunch with a man local business owner. I asked him why after so many years he was successful and still loved what he does. I was not all that surprised at his response, “I may not be successful at something I try today, but you better look out I will be back tomorrow.” As a business owner he thrives in the challenge of trying to succeed every day. He makes decisions and reviews the outcomes. This sometimes is taking on a whole new product line or carrying a new vendor that no one has heard of. Either way he is taking business risks. One of the personality traits I admire the most is the fact that he will take risks and loves every minute of it, and yes he has failed more than once with some of those chances...

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Risk Taking and Leadership