Last week I talked about how I think regrets are stupid. This, among other things, lead to a discussion with a friend about taking risks and when is something a risk worth taking.
My friend has seen how me make some choices that had a high probability of blowing up in my face. And they did. She asked me that if I had known then what I know now, would I have made those same choices. And I told her, much to her surprise: “Absolutely.”
I’ve told you before where I stand on this subject: I would rather risk getting hurt than live the rest of my life wondering “what if”. This holds true for me in work, dating, family, friendships. Basically, I’m willing to take a lot of chances in the pursuit of happiness. The way I see it the outcome will either be what I hope for it to be, or a good story over Friday night drinks, or a lesson (and input for this blog). And this process actually makes me happy.
But of course what works for me, might not work for everyone else. We all deal with risk differently. Some people are a lot more comfortable not leaving their comfort zone and have all they need (or think they need) within reach, and if that makes them happy, that’s fine.
However, to me the real risk is in not taking any risks. If you play it safe all your life, never get out of your comfort zone, you’re gonna look up one day, be 45, and have no clue on how to deal with any real, deep situations. You’re not gonna know how to deal with unexpected loss, or with uncertainty, or big changes in your economic situation. And worst of all: you’ll have missed out on so much, it might actually create a distance between you and your peers, as you simply can’t relate to a lot of things that they consider fundamental. Because as much as you’ve succeeded at avoiding pain, the truth is: there’s growth in pain.