Kayt Sukel > Quotes

“Rutgers neuroscientist Mauricio Delgado, who studies how emotions and stress affect risk-taking, will be the first to tell you that risk-taking is part of normal decision-making. And, for him, successful risk-taking is simply about being willing to explore alternatives.”
― Kayt Sukel, The Art of Risk: The New Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance

“Russ Poldrack, a researcher at UT Austin who studies risk and decision-making, tells me that a good risk-taker is never brash or reckless. “We often talk about impulsivity and risk-taking in the same breath. But they are clearly different,”
― Kayt Sukel, The Art of Risk: The New Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance

“A small win is defined as a “concrete, complete, implemented outcome of moderate importance.”
― Kayt Sukel, The Art of Risk: The New Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance

“Risk is good; it can lead to glory and happiness. We need to find a bit of a happy medium here. Because, more and more, scientists are learning that risk is neither good nor bad. Rather, they’re finding that risk-taking is necessary. Remember that old adage “Good experience comes from bad judgment?” It’s more than just a catchy expression”
― Kayt Sukel, The Art of Risk: The New Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance

“Successful recovery in the face of adversity, whether it be due to your own missteps or not, can be helped along by careful preparation, focusing on small wins, controlling what you can, being aware of your own strengths and weaknesses, and then letting go of past mistakes.”
― Kayt Sukel, The Art of Risk: The New Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance

“Sure, safety is, well, safe, but will it help me achieve the things I really want for my life?”
― Kayt Sukel, The Art of Risk: The New Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance

“Preparation. Because of their consistent and often intense training, successful risk-takers are prepared for any contingency. And that’s because they have the requisite education to recognize exactly what the contingencies are. They are aware of the best way to respond to different risky situations. They understand how even the smallest change in the environment can change the entire risk-taking equation. They spend an inordinate amount of time training and practicing so what they do feels like second nature. All that learning—and deliberate practice—syncs up their fast- and slow-thinking systems, which leads to smarter decision-making.”
― Kayt Sukel, The Art of Risk: The New Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance

“I’ve learned that healthy, clever risk-taking doesn’t have to be complicated—it can be as simple as taking a new route to work, trying the new sushi place that opened up downtown, taking up a new hobby, traveling (even in your own backyard), or meeting new people. What risk-taking is really about is challenging yourself a bit so you can accrue wisdom and help your brain become a better, more efficient prediction machine. It’s about gathering enough knowledge and experience so you understand the potential ins and outs of any situation you encounter. It’s about keeping your brain sharp—and being prepared to deal with whatever life throws at you.”
― Kayt Sukel, The Art of Risk: The New Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance

“There’s risk in going out into the world. And there’s risk in staying home. Risk is everywhere. It’s time to acknowledge that very few decisions in life come with any sort of guaranteed outcome. Pretending risk is something than can be left to other people—you know, real risk-takers like professional poker players, firefighters, teenagers, BASE jumpers, community advocates, entrepreneurs, Special Forces operators, or brain surgeons—does none of us any favors. It makes risk seem like something out of the ordinary—and a lot scarier than it has to be. Over time,”
― Kayt Sukel, The Art of Risk: The New Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance

“Failure, when it comes to future risk-taking, is a gift. Successful risk-takers are often motivated by failure—it’s what tells them that they aren’t done preparing yet. It’s inspiration to work harder, to train better, and to learn more.”
― Kayt Sukel, The Art of Risk: The New Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance

“It’s about recognizing the importance of context, running collected data through both your fast and slow systems, and coming up with the best decision with the information at hand.”
― Kayt Sukel, The Art of Risk: The New Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance

“Our deepest (and fastest) yearnings can be tempered by reason and experience; our more prudent judgments softened by desire and need.”
― Kayt Sukel, The Art of Risk: The New Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance

“At the end of the day, high-risk surgery is simply a series of adjustments. But, you know, most of life is.” He makes it sound so easy. And I must consider that maybe it really is that simple, whether you’re talking brain surgery or baking. A calculation of risk, followed by an informed series of adjustments in response to any setbacks.”
― Kayt Sukel, The Art of Risk: The New Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance

“Risk-taking is an integral part of the brain’s learning system. It is there to push on boundaries and help us learn and adapt. Sticking with the status quo does us no favors. Risk offers us potential—the kind of potential that can help us grow, explore, and respond to the world around us.”
― Kayt Sukel, The Art of Risk: The New Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance

“They understand that mistakes have the potential to offer them as much, if not more, than success in the way of both data and experience. They don’t take failure as a sign to stop and set their sights on something new. Instead, they manage to regulate their emotional response to it, place errors in the proper context, and learn what they can from those mistakes to better reach their ultimate goal. Each of us has the power to do the same. Instead of making a mistake and throwing in the towel, we can review the circumstances around the failure. We can ask ourselves what we might have missed—or what factors we should have given more credence to. And instead of wallowing in our ineptitude, we can put those errors in the context of our larger goals. And then, if we let them, our mistakes can show us how to do better next time.”
― Kayt Sukel, The Art of Risk: The New Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance