Posts
“Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go.” – T.S. Elliot
What risks have you taken? What are you willing to risk? How far are you willing to take it? The T.S. Elliot quote above strikes a chord with me and I’m sure with many others too. We all take risks, but some are more cautious than others. Are you willing to risk a marriage or relationship to experience something that may never come along again? Are you willing to risk your life, and who are you willing to risk it for?
I have no doubts that when it comes to risks, the ultimate risk takers are the ones who risk their lives for people they don’t know, i.e. our Armed Forces, and other faceless/nameless heroes. Sometimes you’re risking a way of life, a comfort zone that is easy and safe.
I used to lie in bed at night scared to death about divorcing my husband and ending a familiar way of life (On the other hand, there were times I’d wake up panicked that my husband was gone and have to touch him to make sure he was alive). What if I don’t make it? Where will I live? How can I afford it? What about the other people it may impact i.e. my Boy, my Niece? Now I look back and think “what if I didn’t take the risk?” Although scary and challenging, I know I made the right decision. I dared to believe that I could have a life different from the one I was living.
What about jumping out of a perfectly good plane? I am a bit of an adrenaline junkie, and skydiving was a perfect opportunity and risk. Was I risking my life…yes. But it was a calculated risk and the odds were in my favor that I’d make it back alive. I have every intention of bungee jumping off the Foresthill Bridge one day…another calculated risk. I love heights and hanging half my body over the edge to get a really good look and that weird feeling in the pit of my stomach.
I think that people who are willing to take risks make excellent change agents (a PM term). They may have a healthy fear of the unknown, but they welcome the challenge to shake things up and experience the new, the different, the change. Not everything has to change and I’m not saying that if you’re in a good spot, relationship, whatever, that you need to take a risk and change it. If you’re lucky enough to be in a great relationship, that in itself is a challenge, i.e. to keep it and keep it fresh, fun, fucking fantastic. The right person is the best risk.
I stayed far too long at a particular job. I loved the perks, i.e. travelling, meeting tax practitioners, getting up on stage and talking to 300 people about something you believe in, something that’s an actual benefit to them, to taxpayers and to the State. But after 9 years, I was getting complacent at my job. I wasn’t going to get promoted because there were no further opportunities with this group. Some of the people I worked with had no clue what I did or how much I did, and I could tell by the comments. It was fear of starting over, being the new person, making mistakes, but I did it. And I’m glad that I did.
Wouldn’t you know it, right at the same time of switching jobs, I finally had enough of the extra weight I was carrying around and decided to do something decisive about that too. So I doubled my stress level and in retrospect, don’t think I would’ve done it that way if I could change it. However, it seems I was capable of both. It seems like the last 4 to 5 years of my life has been risk and change. I wouldn’t mind a little smooth sailing and calm for the next year, but I’m beginning to believe that I may have an attraction to risk, to seeing just how far I can go, or how far life can take me. I just couldn’t have said it as succinctly as T.S. Elliot.
No comments:
Post a Comment