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.

Ruben Salazar | Entomology Artist

Risk taking has been a big part of my career. Most of the big boosts in my buisiness have been because I took a risk on something that seemed too hard or impossible at the time. Our art business Bug In The Box was started by Tristan Erickson and myself. We work with exotic insects, butterflies and beetles from around the world and display them as art in shadow boxes, domes and displays. Read more>>

Jamie Rivers | Portrait & Event Photographer

I believe I’m taking a risk everyday with my business. Especially when I’m not compensated for it. We live in a world where everyone respects a 9 to 5 job, and doesn’t feel as if people can survive on freelancing. What sets me apart from other people is how passionate I am about my photography. I always make sure my clients feel confident and comfortable. Anything you truly want won’t come easy. but as long as you have faith in yourself others will soon see it as well! Read more>>

Erin Burton | Baker & Sugar Artist

I have always tended to be a somewhat cautious person in most areas of my life. Risk can be scary! For a long time I was afraid to take risks for fear of failure…but that fear meant sitting on the sidelines and watching awesome things happen for other people because they chose risk. I had a pipe dream of being a pastry chef and owning my own bakery that started 15 years ago. For so many of those years I played it safe and talked myself down. Read more>>

Haley Bowen | Artist

Risks for me are opportunities I am presented with that I’ve never tried before; from start to finish, and when doing them, every single part of the process is unfolding and new. I feel like the growth in my career, as of yet, is all based on me taking risks, going out of my comfort zone, and pushing myself past doubtful thoughts in order to take action knowing I am capable. Since becoming a full time artist nearly three years ago, the largest risk for me was diving all the way in, and letting go of my part time job at nonprofit and from teaching yoga. Read more>>

Lesley Humphrey | Artist, Writer, Teacher

Over these 63 years if I’ve learned one thing, it’s that the whole of life involves taking one glorious risk after another; Everyone I know who leads a truly ‘successful life’, and I don’t mean that in terms of finances, are risk-takers. Risk involves leaving the programmed path, the status quo, and even your family. Imagine the risk I took when, at 23 and dissatisfied with the opportunities and life I was living in the industrial Northwest of England, I moved to L.A. to live and work in America for a while, and I am still here 40 years later! Read more>>