Are You a Risk Taker at Work?
By Graciela Kenig--©2008

Taking risks is part of life. But our ability and willingness to take risks may change according to the setting. In your personal life, for example, you may have no trouble choosing one fork over the other when you arrive at that proverbial point in the road. But at work, you may be much more cautious.

Because risk is involved in every decision you make at work, it is important for you to find out if risk-taking in your professional life is problematic for you.  While some of the decisions you may face are more important than others, all require dealing with ambiguities and often fear.  At work these could include whether or not to suggest a better procedure, apply for a new position, or tell a coworker what bothers you.  What you do in each situation may have a major impact on your career.

Here are some questions that will help you figure out your risk tolerance at work. Answer them honestly and you will get a good picture of yourself.

• Do you like to work in a predictable environment with established routines?  Or do you like experimenting with new ways to do your work?
• Do you worry that you’ll say or do the wrong thing in front of your boss?  Or do you talk to him/her frankly, whether alone or in front of others?
• Do you ever refrain from suggesting a good idea about a change to make?

Obviously, these questions are two ends of a continuum.  How close you are to either extreme will tell you a lot about your risk-taking behaviors at work.  In every group, the first question points to low tolerance for risk while the second favors high risk tolerance.

If you lean toward the low tolerance end, it might help to know that decisions are hard for most people. This is so because deciding usually means closing the door to other possibilities.  What if you don’t apply for that other position? What if you do tell your boss about your new idea? The truth is you’ll never know.  Some people, however, take less time to analyze the risks and worry less about potential consequences.

Here are some steps that may help you weigh the pros and cons of any decision.

• Define the career or business risk and ask yourself why you believe it is worth taking.
• Discuss with a mentor or trusted advisor why you see it as a risk.
• List the fears or barriers that might prevent you from taking the risk.
• Rank your fears and barriers in order of importance.
• What can you do to reduce or confront them?
• But don’t take too long with these steps or you’ll get mired in “analysis paralysis” and let others decide your professional fate.