Recipe for Success: 10 Cups Risk, 1 Cup Caution

The willingness to take risks has been a defining feature of every successful venture in my life.

After graduating college, I took a huge risk. I bought a one-way plane ticket to Europe and decided I was going to figure out how to find work and live in a country that I knew nothing about and where I couldn’t speak the language.

I had never been abroad before. This was back in 2006 before the Internet had the wealth of information it has today. I didn’t even know how to get a passport and had only been on a plane once before on a family trip to Disney World when I was 13.

Jump and Don’t Look Back

I quit my jobs, sold or gave away a lot of my stuff, and then packed the rest into one 50-pound suitcase and headed off for the Czech Republic. I had no idea what awaited me out there, but I knew I had to make it work because I had nothing to go back to if it didn’t.

Needless to say the journey that began that day has led me to where I am now, running a six-figure business less than a year after launch.

It all began by getting certified to teach internationally in Prague, looking online for jobs while there, and then landing a job in Ankara, Turkey within 2 weeks of starting my search.

Mo’ Risk, Mo’ Problems

Let me tell you, that first day getting off the plane in a foreign country by yourself is incredibly nerve-wracking. I hadn’t slept the entire 12-hour flight. That was just the beginning of the problems.

When I got off the plane, I found out that my credit card was not working, so I couldn’t withdraw money from the ATM. Then I got completely lost and spent an hour and a half on a bus that ended up with me circling back to the airport because I’d gotten on the wrong one and didn’t know how to ask for directions.

No cell phone, no Internet, no access to money, and completely clueless. Back at the airport, I finally found an English speaker that could point me in the right direction.

Learning through Challenges, Setbacks, and Mistakes

As harrowing as that experience was, it taught me a tremendous amount. Through my experiences, I learned the unique skill set of being able to travel to any country in the world and figure things out.

It’s weird, but there are certain skills you simply pick up like the ability to adapt at a moment’s notice to unforeseen circumstances, the ability to identify helpful or dangerous people just by looking, the foresight to prepare for extenuating circumstances like lack of access to money, and the ability to travel light (I once traveled for over a year with just a 15-pound backpack).

I spent nearly a decade abroad, living in countries such as Turkey, Vietnam, and China and I took many, many risks in that time. All of them helped me grow both personally and professionally.

Take One Risk, Then Another, Then Another

Sometimes it was as simple as writing to a famous person in the field and asking for help, which is what got me my first international speaking gig. Or it may be volunteering to create and run a company-wide training where everyone hates you for making them come to a training, which got me my first school director position.

With each risk, comes a large possibility of failure. That’s where the caution comes in. Not all risks are smart. Gambling is a stupid risk for most people, but a well-reasoned one for world-class poker players, for example.

Caution: Danger Ahead

I’ve also taken risks in my life that led to bad decisions or failures. In 2013, I left my high-paying job with Disney in Shanghai and signed on to build an international immersion school with some Chinese partners down near Hong Kong.

While the experience of building my own school from the ground up was amazing, working with those particular Chinese partners was a true nightmare, led to untold amounts of stress, and finally resulted in me tearing my knee out after my third 80-hour work-week in a row from some very strenuous activities. (You can learn a little more about that here.)

Unemployed and Starting a Business

At the beginning of 2016, I took my latest risk, starting my own business. After being fired from the worst company I’ve ever worked for in my entire life, I was on unemployment, we had almost no savings, and my wife’s job brought in less than $18,000 a year before taxes.

I decided it was time to start my own business. I had been helping other startups grow and succeed for the past 7 years. I had been fortunate enough to work with some amazing leaders while also having the opportunity to work with some really poor ones. I figured, if these really bad leaders could start or lead businesses, I could do it and do it better.

Starting my own business has been frightening, exciting, challenging, and rewarding all rolled into one. We’ve grown from a team of just me to a team of 6 in less than a year (in no small part because we do damn good work — How We Got 300% ROI through Data, Analytics, & Strategic Content).

The reason many people don’t achieve large amounts of success is because they are afraid to take the risk. They are afraid to leap. But you have to.

Be smart. Have a bit of caution and go into something you at least understand or, more importantly, have a passion for. But remember the recipe — 10 parts risk, 1 part caution.

The Biggest Risk Is Not Taking One

Seriously, just adding a little more caution and most projects are stalled before they get off the ground. It’s what prevents people from asking the girl or guy of their dreams out on a date, asking for that promotion, or starting their own business.

Famous business guru Peter Drucker once said, “The biggest risk in business is not taking one”. I can’t tell you how true that is. I’ve lived it over and over again and so has everyone I’ve talked to that’s achieved their dreams.

The bigger the risk, the bigger the reward. You won’t get there right away. Setbacks are inevitable. Believe me, I’ve had plenty in my journey and I’m sure there are still some more to come. But you can’t let them stop you.

Taking risks creates the opportunities you need to succeed. So if you’re on that cliff looking over the edge and not sure if you should jump, take my advice and jump.

Nick Jaworski is the Owner and Chief Digital Community Builder for Circle Social Inc., a Strategic Digital Marketing Agency in Indianapolis. He writes in order to push himself and others to accomplish their dreams. He is also devoted father of a beautiful little girl that speaks Mandarin Chinese, Turkish, and English. Twitter & Snapchat: @NBJaworski