Risks in my opinion, make life interesting. Taking them can cause good or bad, and could create more obstacles for oneself to conquer. Which may bring up new opportunities to learn and try new things. So thats why I believe taking risks are often necessary to get ahead/ succeed.


The theme {Taking risks are often necessary to get ahead/ succeed} is evidenced in my own life. Heres an example of a time I remember well. It was on a mind blowing blue sky day and I was skiing with some buddies of mine, Brooks and Riley. It was an absolute perfect day for skiing at Utah’s largest resort, the Canyons. Around noon, we’d just had lunch and headed up the Sun Peak chairlift, and skied down to the Sun Peak terrain Park. There are two parts of this park, an upper and a lower. The lower section is where there are massive jumps, and thats where we headed. I was so determined, and had been telling myself all day I was going to 360 the last jump. This jump had about a 40 to 50 foot gap I had to clear, to ski out safely. The time came, I clicked on my skis, fastened my helmet , and departed from the top of the hill. I skipped right past first jump to keep up my speed for the next. My friends clumped together, eyes as
wide as golf balls, glaring in amazement. I hit the jump and launched into the air. I spun a full spin, it was the slowest, most perfect 360 I’d ever done. In midair, I remember looking down at my friends and saying “Hey Guys,” with a slight wince on my face. On that day, I’d taken a big risk that turned out successful, brightened my day, and left me feeling proud of myself.

People have goals in their life and sometimes the only way to reach them is to take risks. In the movie Hot Rod, Rob Kimble a stuntman wannabe, attempts to jump fifteen buses on a motorcycle. His plan is to raise money for his step-father Franks, life saving heart operation. After many teeth grinding agility tests, Rob believes he’s ready for go time. Rob said “Hey Rico(stunt adviser/ jump maker) did you reinforce the jump?” Rico replied, “No didn’t have time.” Rob slurred, “Cool.” Its hard to find, but theres a chunk of love somewhere in Robs heart for his step-father Frank. Even though between the two of them it’s nonstop talk about how they wanna beat each other up, Rob is still willing to risk his own life for Franks. In the end, Rob survives his life or death, leap of faith, reaching his goal by gaining enough money to save Frank. Without having the guts and temptation to succeed by taking risks, there is no way on earth to be a successful stuntman.

In the novel The Hunger Games, Katniss has a situation in the wilderness where she has to take risks to survive. First off, a major risk Katniss takes on was, when her sister Prim was one of the 2000 kids elected to go into the games. “It was as if the impact had knocked every wisp of air from my lungs.”(Collins 21). Later on, after risking her life for her loving little sister Prim, she fights for food, her life, and to be the last person standing in the end. “I crash into the trees, repeatedly swiping away the blood thats pouring into my eyes...” (Collins 289). Katniss battles the pain from an axe wound gouged in her forehead as she enters the feast to gather her reinforcements. This obviously shows she is willing to take risks, that her bravery is overpowering and is destined to make it out alive to see her family again.

A risk is like gambling, it doesn’t always turn out the way you want it too. In the story Flowers for Algernon, Charlie is a mentally challenged man having to make many decisions. Researchers tested Charlie over and over against a mouse named Algernon. With enough data gathered, they had come up with an operation to preform on Charlie to triple his IQ, and make him smarter. This is a life threatening risk Charlie accepted, hoping to live a better life(Keyes 207). The operation was successful by making him more intelligent over time. Then things all just went down a rocky slope from there. His operation was only temporary, and things went back to what they were like before. “They did it 10 times with different mazes and Algernon won every time!”(Keyes 206). This made Charlie frustrated to think that he was losing to a mouse, and was tempted to get down on himself. Charlie risks everything by running away from New York, so no one would know of his past. “Thats why I’m going away for good.. I don’t want to do anything like that agen” (Keyes 224). All Charlie wants is just to go somewhere else where he can start over. In this case, risks are a part of life and everyone will most likely have to take one of their own.

I strongly believe taking risks is often necessary to get ahead/ succeed. This often apply’s to my own life, as well as many others. Unexpected events may challenge oneself throughout life, leaving one with no choice but to take a risk and hope for the best.




Collins, Suzanne. The Hunger Games. New York: Scholastic, 2009. Print.

Hot Rod. Dir. Akiva Schaffer. Prod. Lorne Michaels and John Goldwyn. By Pam Brady. Perf. Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, and Ian McShane. Paramount Pictures, 2007. DVD.

Keyes, Daniel. Flowers for Algernon. 2010. Prentice Hall Literature, Language and Literacy. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, 2100. 345-80. Print.