As 2009 finally approaches the last stretch of its existence, a few words constantly pound our eardrums. CREATIVITY and its siblings, INNOVATION, ENTREPRENEURSHIP, IMAGINATION, top the list. And very recently, perhaps foreshadowing the main idea of 2010, is assessment of risk. Now that almost all of us have been burned to some degree, we try to understand how we could have been better prepared for events that were and will be in the future, beyond our control. There is a pervasive intuition among us that old ways won’t work any more; we really are in a whole new world and in a very real sense, back to Square One.
In a weird way, many of us enjoy this challenge. It’s our one and only opporunity to leap over a chasm on a motorbike or walk a tightrope in a circus. However we perceive it, to each of us it presents a different dare. If we can pull through, we win and potentially raise our stakes to a whole new level. If we lose, we’re done. End of story. Repetition of what has failed in the past is not an option.
For the more conventional ones among us, those who are not quite ready to toss centuries of business wisdom into the trash, the September issue of The New York Enterprise Report presents a couple of interesting articles on hidden risks and mitigting risks in daily business life. Even the daredevils could benefit from a small dose of tried and true methodology. See nyreport.com, article numbers 367 and 592.
