My Riffs

The bigger the risk, the bigger the reward. Or failure. You cannot have a big reward without a big risk. The risk means you also may fail. A small risk can have a small reward or a small failure. But a small risk cannot have a large reward. The size of the outcome is determined at the beginning, not the end.

(I am borrowing this thought from Seth Godin) Are you a day trader or investor? Day traders want in and out quickly. They want to make a quick profit and divest. Some get good at this and make a living of it. Investors are in for the long term. They don't worry if the investment dips. Investors ride the waves and cash out when the investment is fully mature. Day traders don't really add the value investors do.

Is safety defined by legislation, boards and governments? Or is it defined by real world tests and experiences? What is safety mean to each individual person? Safety is challenging to define and legislate. Because you're told something is safe, doesn't mean it is. Because you're told something is dangerous, doesn't mean it is. People have had bad accidents with things deemed safe. Some people make a career out of doing the dangerous. Nothing is truly safe. Understand safety for yourself to the best of your ability and don't just accept what is heralded as safe.

I read something yesterday that hadn't occurred to me before. In short it said if you're journeying toward something, that means you're journeying away from something. In essence if your heading somewhere new, you have to leave something behind. It is important to note what may be left behind when you're heading somewhere new. Heading somewhere new is cool and exciting, just make sure you know what will be left behind.

No rewards come without risk. It's an impossibility. This should change the way we look at risks. Being foolish shouldn't be confused with taking risks. They're completely different things. Taking a risk is what must be done to get the desired reward. Risks sometimes aren't popular. Risks are usually scary. But to get reward risk has to be taken.