Risks and Rewards

Everyone has heard the phrase “risks and rewards,” and most of the time people associate it with money and riches. Please don’t get me wrong, though; it does have its place with money and riches, but that is not always the case.

Every day we have to take risks to get rewards. Some of us think “I am not a risk taker,” but that is not really accurate. Think about what your average day looks like, how many risks do you take each day to get simple rewards.

Most of the time it does not stop us, is fact most of the time we don’t think about it.

• Odds of getting hemorrhoids – 25 to 1… but we don’t stop using that part of our anatomy do we?
• Odds of getting in an transportation accident – 69 to 1, but we don’t stop driving.
• Odds of slipping in the shower – 1 in 2232, and please, PLEASE don’t stop showering.
• Odds of having an accident using fireworks – 1 in 19,556, but it does not stop most of us from blowing stuff up.
• Odds of getting hurt in an amusement park ride – 1 in 257,000, and we still do it.

Every time we step out of our house we have risk. But, we also have reward.

Everything in life has some kind of risk vs reward.

The question is, how many opportunities do we have in our lives that we choose not to step out a take a risk to achieve. Many of us live in fear, and we may not realize it, but we let it control us.

Here are 5 tips to moving forward despite risks:

1. Stop and breathe. According to an article at www.livestrong.com “Why Does Deep Breathing Slow You Down?”
   Deep breathing relieves stress and anxiety due to its physiological effect on the nervous system. Breathing slowly and mindfully activates the hypothalamus, connected to the pituitary gland in the brain, to send out neurohormones that inhibit stress-producing hormones and trigger a relaxation response in the body. The hypothalamus links the nervous system to the endocrine system, which secretes the hormones that regulate all activities throughout the body.
2. Look at the options. Weigh out all the risks. Much of the time when we slow down and look at the options, some of the risks really are not as scary as we think.
3. Write it down. Look at the reason this is a concern. Even making a positive or negative list may work. Just sit down and write it.
   I once read a University of Chicago study that shows that writing down our negative thoughts or worries about an upcoming important event has a calming effect on us. The actual act of writing our thoughts down forces us to give coherence to stressful thoughts, which not only lessens the intensity of these thoughts but can even negate them. The study has shown that pressure-filled situations can deplete a part of our brain’s working memory and make us less effective to remain calm and think clearly.
4. DON’T over analyze it. We can get very caught up in the “what ifs”, but if the “what ifs” take over, then you will never launch. That’s why the 1st three points are crucial. If you are over analyzing, go back and do one of 1, 2, or 3 again.
5. Pull the trigger. If you have ever fired a gun, you know that when you have a gun all lined up, there is a point where you say “I’m pulling the trigger now,” and your brain releases chemicals that rush through us, and now you feel yourself pulling that trigger. This “rush” happens the second you make a solid decision to make a move.

What reward are you looking for today that you need to evaluate the risk on?