Are you a risk taker? Do you think you have a stronger appetite for risk relative to your friends and family? We asked some folks from the community about their approaches to risk and have shared their thoughts below.

Brenna Skattebo | Wedding + Portrait Photographer

While my journey into a career as a photographer has been a slow and steady burn, risk has still played a huge role in getting to where I am. I started second shooting and being mentored by a photographer when I was just fourteen, bought my first DSLR camera a year later, and spent nearly the next decade shooting here and there for friends who were graduating, getting married, or having babies. I really never considered a career in photography and found myself working in marketing after I graduated college. A few years post-grad I had already worked three different jobs in various marketing roles and none of it felt right. I felt like I was waiting for my passion and drive to kick in — to really start caring about the work I was doing. I felt doomed to a desk job that I wasn’t fit for and didn’t care for and that’s when I really started to consider other paths. Read more>>

Michael Marlowe | Writer, Musician, & Artist

Taking risks is everything. You can achieve anything you want if you are willing to take the risk. When you think about it’s core, what is it that you are risking? Nothing. Material things yes, but in terms of life impact and purpose, nothing of significance. Risk-aversion is rooted in fear. Fear of the unknown, fear of things outside your control, and ultimately a fear of failure. The unknown is nothing to fear, because it is outside your control, just like the past. Spending energy on either will distract you from what you can do in the moment. Failing is nothing to fear. Read more>>

Matthew Basulto | Entrepreneur

Entrepreneurism is all about risk, if you were to look at it as a path then you would literally be building the path as you go. The path might crumble some days or you might take a wrong turn. However, at the end of the path you will have experienced things that you may have never experienced in a traditional path. Taking risks has been apart of my life since I can remember. At a young age, I decided I wanted to be my own boss. This risk is not so easy to take. There will be days where you feel like a bottom dweller and you feel like things are not going your way but there are also times where you feel amazing and on top of the world. You need to find a middle ground and be able to improve every day no matter your emotions. One day I hope to be a household name and I will continue taking risks until then. Read more>>

Dionna Alverson | Wedding and Elopement Photographer

When I think about risk, I think about the opportunity that’s behind it. One of the biggest risks I have taken on my journey to become a professional wedding photographer, was committing to this full time. Being a full time photographer means running all the behind the scenes such as legal aspects, contracts, payments, marketing, client relationships, and so much more! It’s more than just finding a cool couple and a pretty place. But taking that big risk, has lead me to be here! So I continuously take risks in my business if I think it will be beneficial to my clients. This includes new poses, new locations, new props or artistic additions. Read more>>

Ryan King | Bass player and singer

Risk is an inevitability. There will always be decisions to make, in terms of “playing it safe” or choosing the riskier option. It’s all about looking down the line and being realistic about how you’re going to feel at the end of the day. The decision to pursue a career in music is risky, from a financial perspective. Certainly not a lot of money in the arts. After making that already-precarious decision, making the further decision to try to do it by being in a band? Even riskier… And then – the cherry on top – to try and forge a career in the jam band scene, which is a relatively niche subset of music-listeners…. Well, that takes quite a leap of faith. Read more>>

Tiffany Storrs | Hearing Health Warrior

Life is short – take risks! “Take Action Tiff” is my personal mantra. When I suddenly lost my hearing in 2007 as a first-time mom, I knew I had to act quickly and adapt to using hearing aids and sign language to keep up with my family life and my career. I had no family history of hearing loss, so this was completely unexpected. I was adamant about continuing to live my Rocky Mountain lifestyle, which includes mountain biking, skiing, paddle boarding, and running, so I underwent surgery to receive a Cochlear implant. Little did I know THEN that in time, I’d consider my disability to actually be my SUPERPOWER! I’m able to tune-out the world when I go to sleep and “sound off” Read more>>

Jessica Bidwell | Photographer

I still remember the knot in my stomach. I was embarking on a new journey, one that was unmapped, one that didn’t offer the safety net of a guaranteed paycheck that I’d come to rely on. But I recognized that I needed something more, something more than the drudgery of a 9-5 that drove me to seek perfection and left me gasping for air once the weekends came. And yet, walking away from such a refuge, it was harder than I could have ever imagined. Read more>>

Loerkace | Devoted – Husband, Father, Musician

Calculated Risks are pivotal when constructing my visions, The choice to be a Risk taker is just that. A choice. In my opinion, there are certain situations in a individuals life/career where they approach a “cross road”. Each route has its own risk involved, always. When choosing a path, I always ask myself, Who will I meet along this path? What possible obstacles are there? When can I expect to see results from walking this road? Why are there other options & How can I continue to pave this road once I’ve reached the “end”? Seems kind of simple when I put it like that. Read more>>

Aurica Halter | Family and Children Photographer, also specializing in Maternity, lifestyle Newborn and High School Seniors!

For me, risk taking is part of our everyday life. Sometimes all you have to do is to look at the positive outcome of your risk and just Go For It. I never was the person who will do anything drastic. I was more in my own safe bubble and do things that does not involve too much risk or lost! My biggest risk I took was In 2009, when I decided to come to USA over the summer all by myself (I came with a program for students called “work and Travel”) I could not speak English very well, and I had a hard time understanding people talking! I had no idea how to navigate in an Airport, but somehow I made it to my destination! I start working as a housekeeper at a motel in NewCastle, Wy. Read more>>