Shoot your shot? Take a chance? Society bombards us with messages, phrases, examples and stories of how taking risk is the key to success, but is anything ever that simple? We asked some of the brightest folks we know to tell us about how they think about risk. We’ve shared their responses below.

Christian DiMaggio | Fashion Photographer || Entrepreneur

I am an absolute firm believer in the age-old saying “No risk, no reward”. Naturally, as human beings, we avoid situations that we are unsure of. If we are not absolutely certain of the outcome we tend to not go after that venture, that business opportunity, that job. We fear the unknown and innately want to protect ourselves. Read more>>

Lori Arbel | Artist, Creativity Coach, & Publisher

You will get a YES if you are have good intent and are lovingly persistent. I am an artist, creativity coach, and the publisher of Macaroni Kid Fort Lauderdale & Miami East. I tell my children that I keep calling that client if you know it’s a good fit, they usually say yes! Keep sharing your purpose, your field of expertise, your artistry with the right community. They will find the right moment to share your gifts. Read more>>

Shari Warner | Mental Health Therapist and Attorney

If I were to answer off the cuff, I would say, and have often said, that I am not a risk taker. Except that when I look back over my life and the major decisions that I have made…all of them have involved taking a risk of some sort. When I decided to relocate from New York to Fort Lauderdale the day after graduating law school, with no job prospect and having to take the Bar Exam…that was a risk. When I decided to return to school 13 years after practicing law to earn a Master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy…that was a risk. Read more>>

Phoenix James | Artist/Musician & Producer

Risk has definitely become my best friend. I think that risk means trusting yourself, it means believing in yourself when nobody else does. The first big risk I took was in 2020, when I turned down a 20k scholarship from my dream school in order to dedicate all of my time and energy into my music. All of the opportunities I received throughout the past two years would not have found me if I had decided to go to school, and I am extremely proud of myself for taking that leap of faith. Read more>>

Isiah Harris | Musician

When it comes to risk I believe everyone should take them, when it comes to doing something you love because life is so short ya know? You don’t want to live your life wishing you did something it’s better to know you tried than did nothing at all. Read more>>

Courtney White | Artist

For the past decade, I have balanced my creative endeavors with full time work in technology. While this was able to sustain me and provide me with a sense of security, over time I also found that this safety net prevented me from taking risks with my work. Even with this discovery, the thought of not having built in protection from failure was terrifying. So I stayed. I repeated the routine until it was broken for me in the form of a global pandemic. Like most of the world during that time, my world was shaken in more ways than I could even count. I only had myself to reflect on and it was clear – I didn’t like who the corporate world was making me. Read more>>

Andres Irias | Director, Screenwriter & Producer

I believe that not everyone is fit or used to taking risks. Many fear it and decide to live their lives or taking actions that are not risky, for the sake of stability, because we all understand and know that not risking things creates a larger sense of stability, or at least the possibility of it… because that is more tangible than the unknown factor that risk provides, that roll of the dice, the 50/50 which is my addiction. Read more>>

Christina Foss | Contemporary Visual Artist

I strongly believe that risk is a necessary ingredient in the recipe for success. Like my mother always told me, ¨Nothing ventured, nothing gained.¨ It was a huge risk for me to resign from my 13-year career as a high school teacher in Massachusetts to move to Miami and pursue my art fulltime. Taking a risk is scary and uncomfortable, but nothing good ever comes from your comfort zone. Being uncomfortable promotes growth. Within the first six months of my art journey here in Miami I have accomplished more than I ever thought I would and met some heavy hitters in the art world. Without taking that initial risk to completely change my life, none of this would have been possible. It’s only up from here! Read more>>

Cynthia Garnier | CEO of Radiance Cake Artistry

“Do it scared” has been my motto and driving force. I find it necessary to push past the fear and doubts if I am to achieve anything, particularly anything of purpose. When that internal voice tells me that I can’t or shouldn’t do something, I answer it with “Do it scared” because courage is not the absence of fear but being able to push past it and taking the risk nonetheless. Risk scares us because of the unknown outcome but sometimes all we need to know is the intense desire we have and the work we are willing to put forward to satisfy it. We don’t always know if it will end how we hope but we can always give it our best. Read more>>

Annette Newman Newman | Florida Employment and Labor Law Attorney

I believe that we have to be willing to take risks in order to be truly successful and build confidence in ourselves. With risks comes rewards. When I hung my shingles over eleven years ago right after passing the bar exam, it was high stakes risks for me, because I had no first-hand experience working for a law firm as an attorney, Practicing law was a fourth career for me. I relied heavily on my work experience in the human resources field, in management and administrative positions as well as my formal education to guide me along the way as I learned how to manage a law firm, litigate legal claims in court and the overall practice of running a law firm. Read more>>