Not taking risks is by far the biggest risk
Every founder is, at their core, a gambler.
Not in the reckless, chips-all-in-on-a-bluff kind of way, but in the calculated, asymmetric-upside kind of way. Every decision (what to build, when to launch, who to hire) is a bet. Some look like sure things. Others feel like long shots. And some don't even make sense until you see them in the rearview.
Lately, I've been thinking about a few bets that paid off:
- A FAANG engineer who quit before AI made the decision for them.
- Founders taking risks and shipping before they feel ready, because the only real validation is market feedback.
- Entrepreneurs doubling down on what's working while everyone else chases trends.
None of them had a guarantee. But they knew one thing for sure: waiting for certainty is the safest way to lose.
Safe bets are a myth
Hindsight makes bold decisions look obvious. But in the moment, they feel risky. That's because real bets don't come with safety nets. Staying put feels safer. But that's just inertia masquerading as logic.
Amazon didn't look like a guaranteed win. Neither did Airbnb. Neither did the first person who slapped a $99 price tag on a PDF and called it a business.
But that's the point. The biggest wins tend to come from taking risks that, at the time, felt just a little reckless.
Bet on what you can control
Trends shift. Markets change. The only real hedge is your ability to make decisions with incomplete information.
Most people treat action like a high dive: standing on the edge, analyzing the angle, calculating the entry, waiting for the perfect moment. But great founders don't hesitate at the edge. They step off, adjust mid-air, and figure out how to hit the water right before impact.
If you're waiting for permission, for guarantees, for everything to line up just right, you're not betting. You're stalling. At some point, taking risks is the only way forward. And if you're going to bet on something, bet on your ability to land on your feet.
