Taking and Managing Risks
To laugh is to risk appearing a fool,
To weep is to risk appearing sentimental
To reach out to another is to risk involvement,
To expose feelings is to risk exposing your true self
To place your ideas and dreams before a crowd is to risk their loss
To love is to risk not being loved in return,
To hope is to risk despair,
To try is to risk failure.
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But risks must be taken because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing.
The person who risks nothing, does nothing, has nothing, is nothing.
He may avoid suffering and sorrow,
But he cannot learn, feel, change, grow or live.
Chained by his servitude he is a slave who has forfeited all freedom.
Only a person who risks is free.
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The pessimist complains about the wind;
The optimist expects it to change;
And the realist adjusts the sails.
William Arthur Ward
Risk
Our Learning Adventures are planned and delivered with due consideration of the risk benefits to our learners. We believe that recognising, assessing and managing risks are vital life skills that not only help young people to protect themselves but which also empower them to take advantage of increasingly challenging learning opportunities.
The benefits of overcoming a challenge, especially one that has involved a degree of uncertainty and struggle, whether it is mental or physical, not only help children to develop those dispositions that are transferable to the classroom and are necessary for effective learning, but also help them to become successful, fulfilled and proactive adults.
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We provide clear risk benefit assessments for all our Learning Adventures. We are happy for you to copy and adapt these for your own ventures.
Risk:
We aim to help children to feel comfortable about feeling uncomfortable.
We talk about not living life on a safe straight line, but to risk some struggle and some possibly disappointing lows in pursuit of the remarkable highs that stay with us forever and enable us to grow as people.
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We believe that in order to nudge learning forward we must take risks.
We must risk failing, we must risk the feeling of 'not be able to'.
We must learn to recognise and embrace the feeling of uncertainty, to be resilient and to take that risk again and again until we move forward.
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Being able to recognise, manage and feel comfortable with taking a risk is a vital part of the learning process. It is by risking our comfort that we achieve and grow and learn.
William Arthur Ward explains it perfectly.
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