Being an entrepreneur can be scary at times, but consider this:
From 2000 to 2005, I had the privilege of serving as a Special Forces Operator in the Dutch military.
It’s been a while since then, but some lessons from those days have stuck with me and continue to shape my 20-year journey as an entrepreneur.
In both fields, taking calculated risks is everything.
You weigh the possible gains against the possible losses and move forward knowing that outcome isn’t guaranteed.
But here’s where things differ, and it’s a big difference: in the Special Forces, the stakes couldn’t be higher.
Imagine these scenarios:
– You call in an airstrike but send the wrong coordinates: innocent lives are lost.
– You raid the wrong building: a high-value target escapes, with devastating consequences.
– The breacher miscalculates the amount of explosive: you’re locked out of a high-stakes mission—or worse.
– The sniper overlooks a small detail, is discovered, and is killed.
One wrong call can mean a total catastrophe, not just for you but for others.
And that reality is what fuels the intense, relentless training we went through in Special Forces.
Now, look at the stakes in entrepreneurship:
– You put in a year of online work that doesn’t gain traction—yes, you lose time, but you gain insight.
– Market demand changes, and your product doesn’t sell. It’s frustrating, but you pivot.
– Your business fails. Maybe a few people laugh, maybe some don’t understand.
But really—who cares?
– You hit rock bottom financially.
You pick yourself up, and it becomes part of your resilience and adds to your backstory ;-).
Do you see the difference?
Yes, entrepreneurial risks feel personal and can be scary, but they’re rarely a matter of life or death.
The potential upside, though, is huge. And you gain experience by doing—learning, adjusting, growing.
So go out there.
Take those calculated risks, learn, and keep going.
Because, in the end, what’s there to lose that isn’t worth the possibility of a huge win?
Don´t be scared.
Lighten up!
Live your Epic Life!
What Special Forces Taught Me About Entrepreneurial Risk…
