Take Risks Is Not Advice
Take Risks Is Not Advice
I’ve heard this advice a thousand times:
“Take risks.”
And I don’t disagree with the sentiment.
But that’s exactly the problem.
It’s about as correct as saying:
“Go after your dreams.”
Which is to say — it’s always true, and almost never useful.
This Isn’t Advice
When I’m choosing between A, B, and C, I’m not asking:
“Which one is riskier?”
I’m asking:
“What am I doing with the next hour?”
That’s the actual decision surface.
Not:
- risky vs safe
- bold vs conservative
- dreams vs stability
Just:
time allocation
It Doesn’t Map to a Decision
Advice should help me choose.
“Take risks” doesn’t.
It doesn’t tell me:
- what to do next
- how to compare options
- what to prioritize
It doesn’t even tell me what risk means in this context.
Risk in what?
Without specifying the domain, the time horizon, or the objective, the statement collapses.
It Can’t Differentiate Between Options
If I have three options:
- A
- B
- C
I can frame any of them as:
- “the risky one”
- “the safe one”
After the fact, I can justify anything.
So the advice has zero discriminative power.
It doesn’t help me choose.
It Assumes a Decision Model That Doesn’t Exist
This is where it really breaks.
The advice assumes I’m making a big, discrete choice:
pick a path, take a leap
I’m not.
I’m making continuous decisions:
- what I work on today
- what I work on this week
- where my attention goes
There is no single “risk decision.”
There’s just:
how I allocate time, repeatedly
Even “Wasting Time” Isn’t Universal
People will often smuggle in an implication:
“Don’t waste time. Do something risky/productive instead.”
But that breaks down immediately.
- Watching game film isn’t a waste for an athlete
- Consuming movies isn’t a waste for a filmmaker
- Deep-diving niche topics isn’t a waste if that’s your domain
From the outside, all of these can look irrational.
Inside the system, they’re essential.
So even the idea of “better use of time” isn’t universal — it’s contextual.
So What Is This, Actually?
If I strip it down, “take risks” does one thing:
It nudges people out of complacency.
That’s fine.
But that means it’s not advice.
It’s motivation.
Call It What It Is
If someone says:
“Take risks”
and what they mean is:
“Stop defaulting to comfort”
That’s a valid message.
But then call it that.
Don’t present it as something that helps me evaluate real options.
Because it doesn’t.
tl;dr:
If a statement can’t help me choose between A, B, and C, it isn’t advice.
It’s just encouragement.
And there’s nothing wrong with encouragement — as long as we stop pretending it’s something more.