“The Power of Leadership”

More thoughts from the late Paul J. Meyer and his last book A Fortune to Share…

 Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained – The importance of taking risks!

You mention “taking risks” and the hair stands up on some people’s necks and their breathing becomes labored.  They almost have a panic attack!  “I’ve been burned before,” they say.  “I can’t afford to fail,” they say.  “My spouse won’t let me,” some others say.

I don’t understand what all the stressing is about.  Taking risks is nothing more than taking calculated steps toward your dreams.  Sure, you learn by experience and you get smarter, but those are by-products of taking risks.  You cannot buy them in advance.

Taking risks comes down to taking action

It all comes down to taking calculated risks.  You must think things through, set goals, and plan.  And then you must take action. 

Have you ever met people who say, “I tried that once and it didn’t work.  So, I’m not going to do that again.”  My reply is “I once had a pair of pants that shrank, but I didn’t quit wearing pants.”  In other words, it is not what happens to you, but rather it is your attitude about what happens to you.  The old saying “nothing ventured, nothing gained” is literally true.

Learn as you go

I learn from past mistakes and previous risks.  My judgment gets better, which obviously comes from experience.   I make fewer “wrong decisions” each day of my life.  You cannot learn before you go, you must learn AS you go.

Today, I would say that around 90% of the businesses I start now, or invest in, succeed.  In my 50’s, around 75% of my ventures worked out.  In my 40’s, only about 50% worked.  In my 20’s and 30’s somewhere around 35% of my ideas worked.  I am getting better with age, I guess, but consider this:

In my lifetime, I have started or invested in over 100 companies.  Of those, 65% did not work.  But the remaining 35% succeeded!  This brings my lifetime batting average to something like .350, if I were playing baseball; I’m in the top 1% of all batters!

And one more thing: the 35 companies that did succeed, they succeeded in grand scale!  It took 65 strike outs to hit 35 home runs and a couple of grand slams, I’m a very happy man!

The real value of taking risks and moving into the unknown in any area is not how much money you are going to make or how big or how small the result.  The most profound value lies in the fact that this decision is yours and that it gives your life deeper meaning and provides a wellspring of added strength.

Identifying promising opportunities, studying them, and making sound decisions – taking calculated risks – makes you feel more alive!  It makes you in control.  Don’t let anything hold you back!

“The key that turns risk taking into success is called action.” – Paul J. Meyer

Have a great day!

Shawn

Russ M. Miller, LLIF – Chairman & CEO
Performance Institute (Human Capital Development)
Global CEO Academy (Management Training)
Sunny Hong Zhang – Managing Partner – China
Shawn M. Miller – Managing Partner – USA

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