Guy Reams (00:01.87)
This is day 239, paved trails don't lead to treasure.
Here's the thing about risk. You actually have to take it. That's right, you can't just talk about risk, imagine risk, or think about risk. At some point, you have to take the risk. And that means potentially losing something important to you. That's what risk is, putting something meaningful on the line in the hope of gaining something greater.
There is a likelihood, in fact a definite possibility, that you will lose. If you make a decision that doesn't have the potential to hurt you significantly, then you're not really taking a risk. Pretend all you want, make loud bodacious claims about your great risk taking, lie to yourself, but it's obvious who takes risks and who doesn't. Those who do fail spectacularly, but they also win big.
They are the home run hitters. Speaking of which, I've been thinking about baseball lately. Some of the most famous personalities known for their clutch home runs were also known for their tremendous failures at the plate. Reggie Jackson hit a lot of home runs in big games, but he also holds the all time record for strikeouts. Sammy Sosa, Jim Thome, Alex Rodriguez, Mike Schmidt, and even Babe Ruth.
Many of the game's best power hitters struck out lot, and that's increasingly accepted in today's game. The trade-off for elite power and run production often comes with more widths. Historically, teams have accepted that risk if the player produces enough value elsewhere. Swinging big has consequences. That's the reality. You cannot hedge against failure.
Guy Reams (02:00.342)
Sure you can have a failsafe or a way out of things if it goes badly, but if you don't burn the boats so to speak, you're not going to win as big as you could have. Speaking of burning the boats, Hernan Cortes famously ordered his ship scuttled and burned to prevent mutiny and force his soldiers to face the reality of the Aztec Empire or perish. How dramatic that actually was is debatable. Cortes was indeed a risk taker.
but also known for his dramatic embellishments. That brings me to another point. Those who take real risks earn the right to talk about it with all the flair they want to. They're the ones who threw it all on the line and came out victorious. No one can take that away from them. They will go to their death bed knowing they faced impossible odds and still managed to win. They get the spoil, so to speak.
Cortez spent most of his later years in legal battles and died of natural causes sometime in his 60s. He didn't die on one of his flamboyant journeys or in the middle of one of his many failures. He was eventually buried in Mexico City. He was a brutal colonialist, yes, but also a ruthless, ambitious, bold risk taker. Someone many consider to embody the spirit of what would eventually become Mexico.
I certainly don't condone most of what Cortez or many of other explorers did, but I can appreciate the idea of risking everything despite the countless perils of a long voyage. This persona, the world explorer seeking treasure and conquest, is the metaphor for real risk. You can't ease yourself into lukewarm water and call yourself brave. You have to plunge into the unknown.
potentially risking everything for something unexpected. If you spend too much time thinking about it, weighing the odds, considering every consequence, evaluating every possibility, then you're not taking a risk. By the time you reach the summit of whatever hill you're climbing, someone else will have paved a walkway, installed a handrail, and made you pack your waist out in a plastic bag. Reaching the summit of something extraordinary
Guy Reams (04:23.266)
and new requires an early start before the Sierra Club figures it out and starts to quote unquote protect it. The world of risk is uncertain, scary, uncharted and mysterious. It isn't mapped out, planned or well lit with guardrails and emergency SOS buttons. Yes, you can take a risk, but it won't be the easy path. It's definitely the hard one. Riddled with the wreckage of those who have tried and failed.
Yes, you are capable of great things, but are you willing to risk what's necessary to achieve them? That is the question. What is your answer?