Risky business

For most of us, it’s what’s stopped us making the leap from corporate to startup: risk. Financial, reputation, fear of failure, fear that we’re not up to it etc.

Some of you have written to me about risk, questioning whether you’ve done the right thing leaving the comfort of the corporate. My coach Miffa calls it the “veranda moment”, where you look back to the cosy workplace you’ve left, where everyone looks so happy and safe…and you look forward and gulp.

There’s no two ways about it: leaving a steady job is a bold decision; it’s a risk. It may not pay off. You might even regret the path you’ve taken. And, worse, those you love might regret it too.

But it’s happened and because of that you’re a changed person. Not because you can’t go back to a corporate job. But because leaping in the first place – or being pushed – changes you. Something breaks. But it’s your choice whether you view that positively, as options and freedom, or negatively, with fear and rejection (I’d recommend the former).

Change brings risk. And of course opportunity. And it isn’t exclusive to starting a new business. There’s plenty of change and risk and opportunity within a corporate.

My old company is probably going through the biggest change in its 100+ year history. And although the left-side brain of all those employees knows the company needs to change, their right-side brains no doubt feel anxious: can it change fast enough, can it make returns demanded by shareholders and will it survive?

There’s always risk staying put. Maybe even more.

For me right now as an emerging entrepreneur, I often feel surrounded by risk. Here’s my current Top Ten:

That’s actually quite liberating, seeing them written down. How silly (some of) them look. But you can see there are ones associated with failure, success and doing nothing. All sides. It’s a wonder I can sleep. Sometimes I can’t.

So if you don’t like risk you shouldn’t think about building a startup, right? Wrong.

When you google entrepreneurs and risk appetite, it’s staggering how many successful entrepreneurs describe how they hate risk.

From what I’ve read, entrepreneurs deal with risk in two ways:

1.     They accept risk if they are doing something new or different; they don’t see it as a reason to stop.

2.     They do whatever they can to mitigate as much of it as possible. Usually by throwing themselves into actively managing the risk: reading as much as they can, networking with people who know more, learning, experimenting, hedging.

I think this explains why I fight the urge to step off the veranda to beg for corporate comfort. Because for each of those ten risks (and the dozen others in my head) I feel like I am doing what I can to manage those risks. Even small things, like checking in on my finances each week, setting time-based experiments for Familiarize, or getting professional help on tax.

So here’s a few tips to try when managing risk:

1.     Describe your biggest fears. For each one, write down something you will do over the next month to make that risk less likely or less catastrophic.

2.     When you have those veranda moments, allow yourself time to think what risks you’ve traded off by leaving your corporate career: control of your own destiny, diversified income streams, work/life balance, finding a job you enjoy etc.

3.     Track how your risks change over time. What keeps you awake in three months’ time is likely to be different, especially if you’ve been actively managing your risks. For instance, I’ve picked up some interesting consultancy in the few months since I’ve left bp. That’s given me confidence in a Plan B, if Familiarize doesn’t work. So Risk #8, crawling back to a corporate career, feels lower.

4.     Talk about your risks and how you feel about them to someone you love and trust. Risks, like fears, multiply and layer up. A risk shared may not be halved, but greater understanding, transparency and fresh ideas can lead to new actions and a weight off your shoulders.

5.     Change your context. Us #corporateescapalogists may look at risk differently than entrepreneurs and small business owners. Read more, listen more and watch more from the kind of people you are becoming. The startup community is the most generous in terms of sharing what it’s learning. This is your community now; see your risks through their eyes and ask yourself what would they think and do.

I don’t need to spout platitudes about “the only constant being change” (ok I did). You know this. You’ve signed up for change. And it’s uncomfortable and has created some new risks for you. But..

If you don’t like risk, you’re in good company. Neither do the best entrepreneurs.  Do what they do, recognise risk and manage it.