Why is it that we are all so afraid of risks? Are we all pre-programmed in such a way to shun risks and take the safest road possible? Ok, take a moment and reflect, when was the last time you took a really huge risk on something. I try to think about my risk-taking behavior and I don’t seem to come out with many answers.

Most of us here have followed the conventional path. We work hard, yes. But that’s because it’s the safest alternative to failing exams. We work hard to be the top student because it offers the path to scholarships and top universities.

So imagine now that if you have achieved all that - rewarded by the system in getting a scholarship and a place in a top university as a result of being a top student - what else is up for in life? No risk taken. Perhaps done all the things that we have been trained to do by our parents and making them proud at the same time.

This post is getting more unstructured and chaotic. I can’t sort out my thinking here either - it’s just too convoluted.

Tony Fernandes says

“Believe the Unbelievable
Dream the Impossible
Never take No for an Answer”

What exactly do we dream of? And given different circumstances, would we compromise our dreams and lower our expectations?

Or is the main problem really about having too high an expectation in life? Or are we simply given too many choices? I recently quoted on my Facebook and MSN the following - “Having too many options is sometimes not a good option”

Philip Loh was kind enough to post a link to this YouTube video on the Paradox of Choice. I think it’s a good video that sums up things rather nicely. Thanks dude.

Given two choices, how do you make a decision? The decision you make will decide how you life will be in the next decade. Robert Frost in his poem The Road Not Taken sums it up nicely.

“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-
I took the one less traveled by.
And that has made all the difference.”

It’s a risk when you have to make a decision. How do you decide which decision is better. You would normally do a cost-benefit analysis. The problem here is, how do we account for non-monetary benefits and the opportunity costs of decisions?

Life is simple without decision. You are stuck, there is only one way to reap rewards - work hard. But life is unfair. It has never been fair and will never be fair. We just have to play with it. It’s a game. In fact it’s a game of risks. Like a game of poker at times. You just have to be smart and play it right. So do we take the risk?

Great achievements never come by without taking any risks. I always tell myself to look how I picture myself 10 and 20 years down the road. Where do I see myself. What am I doing. How am I leading my life.

Are they in congruence with my dreams and aspirations? It’s time to make a decision and time to take risks. But we are all so pre-programmed to be risk averse. It’s never easy to take the unconventional road because the potential downside is just so high.

*Disclaimer: “We” in the most part of this post refers to the perception of the hardworking student with a slight kiasu syndrom in them.

This entry was posted on Monday, May 18th, 2009 at 12:50 pm and is filed under Diary, Thoughts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.