Taking A Risk

Do you remember when you were a kid and felt invincible?   

Riding your bike down hills that would make your heart drop as an adult.   

Writing a love note to your 10-year-old crush asking to get married.   

Asking and begging for things you wanted and getting rejected a million and two times until you finally get your way. 

What happened to that?  Where do we stop taking risks and playing it safe in life?   

Is it after you had your first heartbreak?  When you broke your first bone? When you took out a mortgage and can’t imagine quitting your job that you hate just to pay the bills. 

When you had your first kid and realized that your sweet motorcycle had to go because you now have a kid that you want to be there for every day.  

 Taking a smart risk and being irresponsible are two different things.   

Being irresponsible is driving in the shoulder lane while it’s raining in the middle of traffic running late to your job at Buca Di Beppo’s because you were too busy hanging out with your high school boyfriend and this is your final warning before getting FIRED…and there goes your Hollister money. (not speaking from experience or anything)  

So how do we take a calculated risk responsibly? 

Like leaving an unsatisfying job or falling in love again.  How about starting a new fitness program when you’ve been sitting on the couch for almost a year now watching Game of Thrones and waiting for Stranger Things (5 More Days!!!). 

IS IT WORTH IT? 

Weigh out the pros and cons.  For example, avoiding your taxes is an irresponsible risk.  You might save money right now but in the end, it will cost you moments of bliss that were spent stressing, paying back taxes, and so forth.  Is it worth the risk? NOPE.   

Starting a new fitness program and embarrassing yourself when you struggle while doing push-ups…on your knees.  Risk?  NONE.  SERIOUSLY NONE WHATSOEVER.  Everyone started somewhere.  We all had to do pushups on our knees at some point and still do.   

Moving all the way across the country for a job, love, because you just need to live somewhere new to grow as a person?   

RISKS? You end up not liking the job, you end up breaking up, you end up missing the place you left. 

Reality…. All those things can happen BUT it’s okay because all of those things can happen right where you are right now.  You can live in the same town you were born in for the rest of your life and we can 100% guarantee you will experience all the things you are worried about that relates to moving somewhere.   

Risk? None.  You can always move back but you won’t gain the life experience and wisdom if you don’t go for it!  The hardest step is just making the choice to do it.  If you’re will to take the risk and MOVE, we have a feeling you can overcome anything that is thrown your way. 

Falling in love again?  Risk. You waste your time with said person.  You risk getting hurt all over again.  REALITY CHECK TIME.  Love is not a risk. Every relationship you have, you learn more about yourself and you bring forth a better you and you learn more about the type of person you’re compatible with.  We are only meant to be with one another for a short period of time.  A lifetime is also a short period of time.  At the end everything has its time.  Be present in the moment, give them your best and love wholeheartedly.  We highly recommend reading the “5 Love Languages”, by Gary Chapman. 

So, let’s circle back… Ask yourself, is it worth it?  If it is. Then go for it.   

Now that you realize it’s worth, what do you do? 

 1. Make a deadline.  I want to move April 23rd.  I want to start my own business in the year of 2018.  I want to do a pull-up by January 30th.  I want to ask that hottie barista out by the end of this month.  I want to lose 20 lbs by Spring 2018.  You get it. 

Okay.  Step one is now complete.  You set up a deadline.  GOOD.

2.  Now the how.  How in the hell are you going to start up a business when your savings account is $2.35 cents and you didn’t realize that health insurance is expensive.  First take a deep breath.  The money will come we promise.  Can you work from home?  Can you take out a small business loan from the SBA?  Can you put together a kickstarter?  Start reading on how businesses got started.  There are so many businesses that got started out of garages, from loans, from kickstarters, and so forth.  Sell your car and ride your bike for a while.  Cut out eating out, cancel the small stuff that adds up, and focus on the needs.  After a year you’ll have some savings.  Talk to people that have started their own businesses.  You’ll be surprised to know how little they started off with.    

Okay… I went on a rant of starting up a business.  You’re probably like, I’m here for fitness enough about business.  

Losing weight?  Talk to a fitness professional about putting together a program that works for you.  We can highly recommend that new studio on Newport.  It’s called Symmetry or Synergy or something.   

3. Stay accountable.  Share your risk with someone close to you that will make sure and hold you accountable to the crazy thing you want to do.  ALSO, be careful as some may not see it with your perspective.  That’s right some people may laugh at you, not believe in you, and tell you it can’t be done.  WE ARE HERE TO TELL YOU IT CAN BE DONE.  Once upon a time, people thought it was impossible to fly, to facetime with your grandma in Florida, or that Instagram would be profitable…   

4. With who?  You know that thing called Facebook?  We all know Mark Zuckerbrg but what about Dustin Moskovitz and the other three who cofounded Facebook.  We often see only one face not realizing it takes a village to bring something to fruition.  So, find your tribe.  Find a community within a fitness studio, find the right career by figuring out what type of people you want to surround yourself with M-F.   

The biggest risk is not taking a risk all together.  Towards the end of our journey on this beautiful Earth our biggest regrets are not working longer hours, skipping more of workouts to avoid the sweat and awkwardness in the beginning, not professing our love to that guy/gal.  Our regrets are not taking those risks because in the end we really do have nothing to lose. 

 
So, whether your goal is to be able to back bend, do your first pullup, lose your post baby weight, starting your own business, buying that one-way ticket to Africa, telling that cute guy at work that you know he’s on Tinder and y’all should just reality swipe right and go on a date already… GO FOR IT.   

Start saving and looking in small business loans to start up your dream… Heck call your mom and ask her for a loan.  Put on your best outfit and your best attitude to singles night even though you just had your heart broken into a million pieces late year.  

Go run that mile, go do that push-up on your knees, try that first backbend!   

So, trust us.  You got this.  Go out there and take some risks, feel alive, and pursue your bliss.  Happy Sunday!