The Risk Of Staying Put

When is the last time you saw an article or a quote or you talked to a friend about the importance of taking more risks?

Chances are it was a short time ago.

It seems like inspiration to go, go, go pops up all the time.

That’s not the subject of this edition of Miller’s Musings. Instead, I want to look at what happens when you stay put and play it safe.

Unfortunately, I speak from experience.

Here are four problems with playing it safe.

1. You feel less alive. – you forget what you’re made of.

Can you think of a time when you acted courageously? Do you remember how that felt? Sometimes summoning courage can mean having a conversation you would prefer to avoid. Or maybe it was the time you fought a bully who wouldn’t back down. (In either case, wisdom is required, of course.) Regardless of how you exercise your courage muscle, the sensations are similar. You feel the adrenaline pumping and clarity heightened. Those involved in your demonstration of courage might say something like
“I didn’t know you had it in you.” You might too.

2. You cease looking for opportunities and thereby don’t recognize them – you go through the motions

Is there a better feeling than waking up ready to seize the day, and make a difference? On the other hand, how about that feeling that you are merely going through the motions? It’s been said that we see what we’re looking for.

I have a firm belief that part of the reason we were put on the Earth was to test the limits of our capabilities. 

At some level, most, if not all of us believe we were born for significance. How much that statement resonates with you probably depends on how much you have settled for the notion that “it is what it is.”

What if the truth really is you were not meant to survive but to thrive?

How would that change how you went about your daily activities?

3. -You become disappointed and compare yourself to others

I admit that I’ve done this more than I should. On account of a lack of progress in my own life,

I’ve spent too much time complaining about what others have that I don’t. What about this?

What if they have what they have because they’ve done what I haven’t? There, I said it. The question is, what are you and I going to do about it?

4. -Instead of looking forward you’re constantly looking backward

Maybe you don’t struggle with comparing your life to others.’ Maybe your difficulty is comparing what’s happening (or not happening) in your life now to the “good ‘ole days.” Two thoughts come to mind in this case.

First, the so-called good ‘ole days probably weren’t as good as you recall.

Second, think about a rear-view mirror. The purpose of a rear-view mirror is to assess distance.

You can get an idea how far you’ve come in relation to your surroundings.

Other than that, a rear-view mirror doesn’t provide much helping moving forward. Perhaps it’s time you stopped relying on it so much.

If you’re like I am, all those reflections and thoughts can be overwhelming. Let me encourage you at this point. If all of that is too much right now, what’s one takeaway you can implement starting today?