First of all, before I get into the nature and value of risk, let me be clear. That it is better to burnout than to fade away is an absolute lie. In fact, if the writer of this line burnt out before writing it, no one would have ever read or thought about living hard and dying young. It is far, far better to fade away.
However, life isn't the either or proposition that this line sets out. There are alternatives. Alternatives which add value and significance to your life by allowing you to contribute to the lives of others. And to discover these alternatives, you will need to embrace risk. Just don't be reckless with life. It is too valuable.
One of my favourite songs is "Dare You to Move" by Swithfoot:
Welcome to the fallout
Welcome to resistance
The tension is here
The tension is here
Between who you are and who you could be
Between how it is and how it should be
I dare you to move
Movement is risk. We can't take one single step without risking something. However, all risk must be measured against the consequences of staying still. If you do not move, if you do not grow, if you do not change, you risk far more than you do embracing change. For stagnation and decay are the consequences of refusing risk.
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We are all in the process of becoming. Even at a cellular level, we are constantly becoming today who we
will be tomorrow. And more important than any other factor, we become the risks we are willing to take.
Whether the risks we take lead to success or failure, the act of taking them - of having the courage to face
our fears, of moving beyond the horizons of our own shadows into undiscovered country - forges our lives more than any outcome achieved as a reward for or onsequence of taking a chance.
However, own your risks. Don't roll the dice, but play your cards. Luck is of less consequence than decision.
So decide what is important enough in your life that you are willing to risk losing for it (but also keep careful
track of what you are unwilling to lose and do not take risks that jeopardize what you value most).
You are the sum total of the risks you take in your life. I would not have become a writer, a teacher, a husband, or a father if I hadn't risked a great deal. I owe my life to the risks that have led me down the path
I am on now.
Though you may not know where your journey may lead
- though each step down the path is fraught with consequences known and unknown -
risk being alive; fully, completely alive!
I dare you to move.
