Fun with Risks
Y
ou do not have to be a daredevil to make it in
business. However, you’ll likely be pressed to
step out of your comfort zone in order to truly make
a go of your venture at some point. It might require
that you put yourself on the line to win the faith of
creditors, investors, and other stakeholders. While
I am all for taking risks, I truly believe that they have
to be smart risks.
Consider the outlook of skydiving enthusiast and
San Francisco-based branding and packaging
entrepreneur David Becker who I interviewed in my
book The Everyday Entrepreneur. “As a skydiver, you
focus on what you have control over- your training,
your judgment about when to go or not, the
equipment you choose,” Becker explains. The same
outlook applies to business: Stay measured, be
prepared, and understand how much you can afford
to lose before you take the plunge.
As a 20-something, I had very little to lose- no family
to support, no mortgage to pay. So taking risks, such
as investing in a business, was not as scary as it
might have been later in life. I’m now in my forties
and I haven’t given up on taking risks; in fact, quite
the opposite.
Simply being in business requires a certain amount
of risk.
But in order to truly soar, most
entrepreneurs need to embrace risk. Risk should not
necessarily prompt fear.
With the proper
assessments, you can understand how far to push
the limit before it is time to change course. Here are
some strategies to help you better understand and
prepare yourself to take risks:
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You should take on risk understanding exactly how much you can afford to lose.
Know that while you may not see any return,
you can also win big- really big.
Understand that there is leeway with risk, so
determine your options from the outset.
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Risk, with all its exhilaration, can fuel creativity like nothing else can.
Undergo some training- whether in school
or, even better, through a mentor- to help
you learn how to mitigate risk.
Build a track record of wins so that investors
are more comfortable betting on you.
Stay nimble enough to take on chance.
Become comfortable with the way risk feels.
It can lead to your greatest successes.
Realize that caving in to fear can lead to
more of a failure than taking a chance.
Remember that risk can also prompt growth.
Risk often brings with it the thrill of the kill,
which can be more rewarding than any kind
of cash incentive.
Small
business
and
Entrepreneur
Advocate,
Expert and Author Robert
Basso is founder and
president of the New York
region’s largest independent
payroll processing firm,
Advantage Payroll Services
and a regularly sought out
small business guest speaker,
mentor and media expert.
For more information visit http://www.RobBasso.com
Strictly Marketing Magazine September/October 2016
17