What is the opposite of Risk? Protect.
The definition of Protect—to keep safe from harm or injury; to preserve
We must protect our children from evil, danger, disease, their own foolishness, and a thousand other things on this planet. But protection is more than just being safe. If you always play if safe, you never risk. We have to take risks in life in order to be happy and successful. How do you begin to balance playing it safe—protecting—versus taking a risk?
When do you risk? How do you make risks? How can you teach your kids to take risks. Dad Bill Treasurer gave me on the Father Nation podcast the 5 P's to think about when taking risks:
Passion: are you passionate about this risk? Do you get energy thinking about doing this thing?
Purpose: does this risk align with your goals and where you are trying to go in life?
Principal: does taking action on this risk uphold some value that you want to embody?
Prerogative: am I taking this risk by choice or because someone else is pushing me to do it?
Profit: what do I stand to gain, and what do I stand to lose?
To determine risk you need more than just a pro/con list. "What will I gain should be the last question you ask, not the first. As you think about risks, take into account the 5 P's and help your kids understand them so both you and them can make the best risks possible.
You want to protect your kids, and part of that is teaching them how to take risks.