May will always be a special month for me. May 1st one year ago was the day I took a chance, the day I quit my old job in order to pursue my dreams of owning a successful company. All my life I have worked for someone else, and while I’m grateful for the opportunity that these people gave me it just seemed I wasn’t happy with what I was doing with my life. Looking back now, I realize that I had been chasing some invisible thing for years. I didn’t know what it was or where it was leading me at the time but I felt like I needed to keep searching.

When the idea of owning a company came to mind I just dismissed it as some crazy dream. I already had a family that depended on me to bring home a certain amount of money each week. I thought there was no way I could go from having a job where I was guaranteed to get a paycheck for a certain amount each week to one that had no guarantees at all. It would be unfair for me to put my family and myself into a situation where so much was at risk.

Over time my view changed. I came to realize that it is unfair for me to continue to put myself through the agony of struggling from one day to the next to make as much money as possible for someone else (while eagerly waiting for my meager portion of that at the end of each week). It was unfair to my family to spend so much time away from them working and have to hope that if I continue to do a good job my employer would keep paying me a little each week to make money for them. It was unfair to them for me to go several years without getting any sort of raise, while continuing to take on additional responsibilities which kept me away from them more. And it was unfair to myself to continue working at a company where we would hear on a regular basis that our company wasn’t making enough money and might need to downsize, yet none of the good suggestions that were made by employees to better the company were given any real thought or even attempted.

So I took a chance. To be honest it was probably one of the scariest things I’ve ever done. I had grown accustomed to knowing exactly what I needed to do, when it needed to be done, and how much I was going to make each week. It was exciting as well, wondering what the future would hold but knowing that it’s completely up to me now.

I’ve read countless articles from other entrepreneurs and bloggers who tell their readers to just take a chance and do what makes them happy. I wish it were always that simple, but unfortunately it’s not. I think that the uncertainty is so scary that many people put too much time and thought into over-thinking it and making sure that all of the possible scenarios that could happen are covered. I’m telling you that there is no way to plan for every possible scenario. From what I have experienced, the one thing you can plan for is that something you didn’t plan for will probably happen.

I say embrace the fear that comes along with taking chances. This does not mean to just jump at any chances that come along without looking to see where they might lead you. Find a purpose so you have a beacon to focus on and take the chances that might lead you to that destination. Just keep in mind that, as Margaret Shepard said, “Sometimes your only available transportation is a leap of faith.” When you reach these points along the way you will have to come face to face with certain fears. Acknowledge them, grab them with both arms, and take that leap of faith together. At some point between when your feet take flight and when they land those fears will start to transform into confidence.