Entrepreneurs Are Not Gamblers
In our day and age, chaos and change bring disruption, as well as opportunity, to almost every area of your life. You are constantly being asked to make a choice among the many options and possibilities presented to you in your daily life.
Every choice you make, including the choice to do nothing, involves some kind of risk. There is always a risk. If you do not take a risk, you are taking a huge risk – of being left behind as the ship of opportunity sets sail. You need to take risks, not gamble but take calculated risks. Unless you take a risk, you will never know if an innovative idea you have will work or not.
There will always be something to lose; there will never be a ‘perfect’ time to take that leap of faith. Whether it’s your money, time, energy, health, reputation, friends, family, personal or career growth or reputation; there’s always something that could go wrong. What stakes are you willing to take? How much can you afford to risk?
You can learn a lot from the entrepreneurs who are not gamblers but calculated risk takers. Let us try to see the differences between a gambler and an entrepreneur who is a calculated risk taker.
A gambler wants excitement, blames others or luck when the outcome is bad, and has fantasies of what is possible. He/she takes risks more than they can afford to lose and makes impulsive decisions. He/she gets high and feels powerful when they win; gets low and feels worthless and insignificant when they lose. Losses often result in taking big risks in future to recoup and replenish the forgone resources of past misjudgments. Always looking for that one big win to make the ‘retirement’ dream come true.
Meet Joe:
As a calculated risk taker, “Joe” the entrepreneur contains and manages his emotions, takes responsibility for his actions and does not waste time with what might have been. He stays emotionally stable during both wins and losses. He resists taking risks that do not fit within pre-defined limits and parameters. Joe analyses the situation and makes realistic plans.
So which one would you rather be – a gambler or a calculated risk taking entrepreneur?
When you gamble, there is a high probability of loss. When you take a calculated risk, there is a much higher probability of a positive outcome. Knowing and understanding the difference is essential to your success. In taking calculated risks, you need to get your facts straight. You need to verify the facts, stats and market research before making a well-thought and considered decision.
Being a calculated risk taker, you use as much energy analysing yourself as analyzing the opportunities presented before you. In this way, you are able to appraise the possible choices you can make rather than be carried away by emotion, temptation or reflex like a gambler.
You should never regret taking a risk. Under the same circumstances and given the same knowledge and experience, you made the best decision. You made that decision as a calculated, risk-taking entrepreneur!
A quote before we go from @NatDuncan:
“I asked God for a bike, but I know God doesn’t work that way. So I stole a bike and asked for forgiveness.” Entrepreneurs take”good” risks!
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If we haven’t met before, I’d love to meet you! You can find out a little bit about me here and get in contact with me here. Are you on Twitter? You can follow me here: @mikeboyd
