Everywhere you go you will see a sign that has a warning on it. On this line will be the words at your own risk. They will say swim at your own risk, enter at your own risk or something like that. What the signs are actually telling you is that you are deciding whether or not to take the risk. The same goes for your journey through life.

Life is made of risks. Without taking any risks you have a boring and uneventful life. You also never get anywhere or do anything. Everyday life is a big risk. When you go out in the world what do you do?

You decide what to eat for breakfast at your own risk, where to go to school, whether or not to get married, whether or not to get a job and many other things. Your entire life are decisions made up of things that you're going to do or decide to do at your own risk.

Going out to the world and taking these chances is what makes us who we are. It shapes and molds us into the people that we are constantly becoming each and every day.

Life is full of people making mistakes every day. If someone tells you they don't make mistakes they are lying. What you need to do is give yourself permission to make these mistakes. Do not try and deny that you have made him, or try to cover them up. You have to face your mistakes at all.

People don't wake up every day and decide to go out and make mistakes on purpose. What you do each and every day, is go out and look for opportunities to better yourself in life. You try new things with you realize it or not. The world is your classroom.

You must give yourself permission to make these mistakes and learn from them. Some of the most valuable experiences in your life most likely came from mistakes you made. At the time of these mistakes you were probably a little distraught. In fact, the mistake you made may have even been painful to you. As you look back on what you did, you learn from this. You're probably a better person for it now.

In life people will be asking you to take risks each and every day. They may be your friends, relatives or an employer. What you have to do is assess what these people want you to do. In order to learn and grow from these things, you must evaluate and then make a smart decision.

In evaluating the risks you're considering to take ask yourself the following:

How will it affect me down the road.

What will be the effect of the risk that I've taken tomorrow.

Will it affect me and how will it affect me financially and emotionally and in my time.

Are things that I can do beforehand to help me make my decision.

If I decide not to take this risk, is there a risk of not taking it.