Out on a Limb

Hello Business Family,

OUT ON A LIMB

As a 10 year old, scooting out on the limb of the massive oak tree in our neighborhood was terrifying. However, in order to secure the rope in the proper place we had to tie it far enough away from the trunk. As I looked down and saw my friends urging me on, I knew I must continue because the promise of swinging freely through the air outweighed the risk of falling. That old rope served us well through those idyllic childhood days.

The rules today are much same except the stakes are higher. We must take some risks in order to enjoy the rewards and fulfill our destiny. Risk must be taken everyday, as Douglas MacArthur said “empty your days of the search for security; fill them instead with a passion for service.” As you reach out to others today in your business, perhaps the words of this anonymous poem will speak to you:

To laugh is to risk appearing the fool.

To weep is to risk appearing sentimental.

To reach out for another is to risk involvement.

To expose feeling is to risk exposing your true self.

To place your ideas, your dreams, before the crowd is to risk their loss.

To love is to risk not being loved in return.

To live is to risk dying

To hope is to risk despair.

To try is to risk failure.

Be it our business or our personal relationships, risk must be taken, because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing. Jesus, the ultimate “risk taker” said this: “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains by itself alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. He who loves his life loses it; and he who hates his life in this world shall keep it to life eternal.” I would say He was rewarded well for His “risk.”

See you out on the limb,

Mike