The courage to take risks
By Taru Bahl

A MOUNTAINEER who opts for a high altitude expedition risks frostbite, sickness and infirmity. An Army officer guarding treacherous territory for long stretches of time, risks his health, happiness and life. A student who takes his architecture exam risks failure, loss of face and confidence. A girl who experiments with a new hairstyle risks looking lousy. An investor who puts his life savings in a new project risks making a bad investment. A suitor who proposes to the woman of his dreams risks being rejected.

If there is risk involved in everything that we contemplate doing, then why do we take risks at all? Why are we not like the farmer who neither sows wheat, afraid that it would rain and nor does he plant corn, scared that the insects would devour it. He chooses to plant nothing, since he believes in playing safe. Is it because we know that risk-taking is the essence of innovation and that if we don’t venture we don’t gain? The one ingredient which is prerequisite in the mental and physical make-up of any courageous person is the ability to take the plunge, to jump headlong into what his gut instinct tells him is correct. By overcoming fears of mind, body and heart he finds himself ready to take risks, to stretch, achieve and continually better himself.

Winners do take more risks than losers. This is why they appear lucky, scoring more wins than most of us. What the sceptics fail to see is that they also lose but since they risk so much, so often, it squares up and in the end winners get applauded for victories not failures. We remember Edison not for the thousands of bulbs that failed to light but for the one which worked. So each one of us has a choice.

It is the choice between really living and merely existing. Those of us who are not completely courageous hold ourselves back, build walls around our personas, create dual and even multiple levels to our personalities, scared that we would be hurt, rejected, ridiculed, and taken advantage of. Our fear, insecurity, low self-esteem and lack of confidence blinds us to the immense possibilities of good and happy things that could happen to us, if only we take those small and not-so-small risks.

When we don’t laugh uproariously at a funny joke it is because we risk appearing silly. When we hold back our tears, bottling up our resentment, it is because we risk appearing foolishly sentimental. When we wear a mask camouflaging our feelings it is because we risk exposing our real selves. When we refuse to admit our mistake and apologise, we risk appearing small. We go through life without living, feeling and experiencing real happiness. We don’t even realise our full potential. We forget that risks are meant to be taken. The greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing.

As children, we start life with a healthy attitude towards risk. We combine daring escapades with innovation, experimentation and a devil-may-care attitude. But as the years roll by we become cautious and guarded. "Playing safe" becomes the key word. Popular American churchman Rebert Schuller says that we become preoccupied with "taking care". He feels that people who take care, get nowhere.

He insists on everyone taking a chance, taking charge, taking control. According to him, taking a chance itself is a reckless risk. When you take charge you learn to manage risks and when you take control you surmount problems.

The trick then lies in taking calculated risks and in knowing the difference between intelligent risk-taking and the entire family of gambling, impulse, blind luck and bravado. Constructive risk-taking is always based on fact and preparation. It is guided by reason. Courage is not all about jumping headlong into a ball of fire like the typicalCowboy Western who dramatically throws caution to the winds. Impulsive daredevilry, killer instinct and ruthless ambition must be combined with the saner elements of foresight, planning, timing, wisdom and skill.

This potent combination is what will strengthen the resolve, conviction, efforts and, finally, the end result of whatever the courageous person embarks upon. When we embrace risks requiring immediate intervention like jumping out of a first-storey window in case of a fire, attacking a mugger on the street in self defence, plunging into the river to save a drowning child, we rely on our physical courage.

But when we get into a crazy joint venture, opt for a job which has nothing to do with our qualification or migrate to another country to try our luck, we take into account our intelligence and risk management abilities. All courageous people are fearless risk-takers.

They also minimise risks. Sure they enjoy the rush of adrenaline, anticipation of reward, chance to "play" and be part of the action but they don’t shoot blindly in the dark. They weigh the pros and cons and prepare themselves for their decisions. There are times when their native wisdom tells them to be in the passive wait-and-watch mode rather than in the aggressive attack mode. This in no way undermines their fiery courageous spirit.

On the contrary, by assessing the situation and planning their strategies they add value to their inner courage which gives them the winning edge.

There is this story about a pet mongoose who is the playmate of a boy called Ganesh. One day the parents Shankar and Sudha leave him to guard the infant. A serpent enters and inches towards the cradle. A fight-unto-death ensues between the mongoose and the serpent. On Sudha’s return, the excited mongoose hurries to greet her at the doorstep. Seeing his blood-stained body, she presumes he has killed Ganesh and in a fit of rage chops his body into two. While both of them are brave, it is the mongoose who is courageous, though he does not live to tell his tale. Sudha, on the other hand, converts her brave and courageous streak into impulsive foolhardiness.

Responsible risk-taking, therefore, has to be based on knowledge, training and careful study. This alone can give a person the courage to act appropriately in the event of calamitous and fearful situations.

We don’t have to wait for an emergency or momentous occasion to try our hand at risk-taking. We can incorporate it by standing up for what we believe in, by making firm decisions, not procrastinating and daring to do what we really wish to.We may make mistakes and errors of judgement along the way but the confidence and insights that we gain would add to our reservoirs of courage. Flipping a roomali roti in a frying pan seems deceptively easy. Rock the pan, create a momentum, allow it to slide up and down and with one throw in the air, turn it around to finally land it safely cooked into the pan. Now let us examine the psychology of the roti- maker. If he is too timid and concerned with whether the roti will fly too high and miss the pan, the result is that it will go up in the air a few inches but won’t have the height to turn. When it does, there will be a mess inside the pan. On the other hand, when he is too concerned not to allow the roti to turn over, he will end up using too much force making it land on the stove, outside the pan. When he finally learns to flip it, he explores his inner realm and is in touch with the state of mind that gives him perfect strength, control and detached courage.

This helps him cultivate his killer instinct which includes intelligent risk-taking. This he uses not just in bullfight arenas and tough boardroom meetings but also in the choices and decisions he makes, the manner in which he chooses to execute them and in leading the life he wishes to.