Shoot your shot? Take a chance? Society bombards us with messages, phrases, examples and stories of how taking risk is the key to success, but is anything ever that simple? We asked some of the brightest folks we know to tell us about how they think about risk. We’ve shared their responses below.

Shon Trail

I’ve learned that risk isn’t about being reckless — it’s about being honest about what staying comfortable is costing you. Some of the biggest risks I’ve taken weren’t flashy decisions, but quiet moments where I chose to bet on myself without guarantees. Real estate is full of uncertainty — markets change, deals fall apart, and confidence gets tested. Read more>>

Yue（Leah） Liu

To me, risk is closely tied to opportunity. It usually comes with uncertainty, but it also creates space for growth. Stepping outside my comfort zone has been an important part of my journey. Even when outcomes aren’t guaranteed, taking risks has helped me learn and gain clarity along the way. Avoiding risk often means staying where you are. Read more>>

Jarrett Session

Life is a risk, but entrepreneurship magnifies it. Comfort rarely produces growth, and staying safe often keeps rewards small. The fact that you live by “no risk, no reward” tells me you understand something many people don’t: nothing meaningful is built without vulnerability. Read more>>

Prajakta Patil

I see risk as a necessary step toward growth. It means choosing uncertainty over comfort to learn and create meaningful work. Rather than avoiding risk, it has often been the starting point for progress in my life and career. One of the most defining risks I took was changing the direction of my education and career. Read more>>

Kedrin Herron

I don’t think about risk as recklessness. I think about it as alignment. In journalism, media, publishing, and creative direction, I’ve learned that risk isn’t something to avoid, it’s something to evaluate. The real question for me isn’t “What could go wrong?” It’s “Who do I become if I don’t try?” That shift has shaped my entire career thus far. Read more>>

Taurean Cavins-Flores

As an actor, my life is nothing but risk, but the way I look at risk and my definition of the word itself has changed over the years. You take a risk submitting to projects, you take a risk submitting to agents, but I’ve found recently that the truest and most fulfilling risk is taking a chance on yourself. Read more>>

Boning Yu

Risk has been less of a personality trait for me and more of a necessity—and I’ve learned to treat it like a design problem: define what’s at stake, reduce the unknowns, then commit. A lot of my career has been a series of “non-linear” moves. Read more>>