Step back in time and you’ll note that the risks that humans faced were real, eminent and physical. The elements were harsh, food had to be grown or hunted, medical care was rudimentary, combat was hand to hand.
Fast forward to today. Most of the developed world lives in climate-controlled environments. The only dangerous animals we see are in the zoo or fellow humans. We have access to a dazzling array of foods anytime on every corner. Medical care is sophisticated and available to those who can afford it. Combat is increasingly done by proxy.
Longevity has improved dramatically as a result. While risks still lurk out there (think salmonella, drunk drivers, natural disasters) – generally they are less likely to occur and we are more likely to be able to dispatch emergency measures quickly.
In this new world we live in, the risks have shifted. As information increases exponentially, there is a risk of not learning fast enough. As the world community becomes closer due to communication technology, there is a risk of building barriers rather than bridges. As everything becomes even more interconnected, there is a risk of staying insular rather than inclusive. As we face an unprecedented world of possibilities, there is a risk to withdraw in fear rather than reach out in hope.
Freed (for the most part) from the physical risks of our forefathers and mothers, we now face a world that asks that we adapt, learn, grow, reach out, build, connect, imagine, and create. The risks have shifted – from physical to psychological, from outer to inner.
Ask yourself today – what are the risks you are most afraid of? Are they real or imagined? What would happen if you overcame some of them? How do they hold you back? What are you ultimately risking in the long term by avoiding a risk in the short term?
Perhaps this poem (author unknown) might inspire you.
Risk
To laugh is to risk appearing the fool
To weep is to risk appearing sentimental
To reach out for another is to risk involvement
To expose feeling is to risk exposing your true self
To place your ideas, your dreams, before the crowd is to risk their loss
To love is to risk not being loved in return
To live is to risk dying
To hope is to risk failure
But the risk must be taken, because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing
People may avoid suffering and sorrow, but they cannot learn, feel, change, grow, love, live
Chained by certaintudes, they are slaves, they have forfeited freedom
Only a person who risks… is free
