Your future success and happiness likely depends on your willingness to take calculated risks, says social scientist and Harvard University professor Arthur Brooks.
Fortunately for the naturally risk-averse, you can nurture and develop your ability to take big leaps of faith — after doing the necessary research and soul-searching — Brooks writes in his newest book, “The Happiness Files,” which published on August 12. The trick, according to Brooks, is to think like an entrepreneur and treat your life like a startup.
“If you treat your life the way a great entrepreneur treats an exciting startup enterprise, your life will be happier, more meaningful, and more successful than it otherwise would be,” writes Brooks, who teaches courses on the subject of happiness at Harvard.
Starting a new business is inherently risky, and many end up failing. But the courage and confidence you need to launch a new venture can also result in financial reward, greater control in your career and overall fulfillment if it’s successful, Brooks notes.
The same logic applies outside of entrepreneurship, he writes: People must be “willing to take and manage appropriate risks in an effort to build a life of outsized rewards.”
