IELTS Essay Question
| It is important for people to take risks, both in their professional lives and their personal lives. Do you think the advantages of taking risks outweigh the disadvantages? |
Plan your answer
Sample Answer
Taking risks is a normal part of life and it presents us with both opportunities and challenges. This essay will detail the reasons why the benefits of taking risks far outweigh the drawbacks.
In the business world, taking risks can open up the opportunity for unexpected growth. The website called makingsenseofcents.com is a great example. The owner of the website made a risky decision to quit her job and turn her blogging side hustle into a full-time career several years ago. This decision to step out of her comfort zone into the unknown has helped turned her blog into a multi-million-dollar business, which was something that she never expected when she started blogging. Taking risks also helps people conquer their fears in their everyday lives. For example, if someone afraid of public speaking took the opportunity to give a presentation in front of a crowd, it could help them to confront their fear and turn it into faith that they are capable of doing anything as long as they put in enough effort.
However, doing something risky might lead to failure if the risks involved are not properly calculated. Many people spend several years trying to turn their part-time blogging job into a successful business but fail and have to return to the nine-to-five rat race. Those years could have been better spent honing their skills at work, which might have helped them to climb the corporate ladder or be offered a pay rise. In addition, the courage to speak in front of a crowd in the above example might turn into a disaster if the speaker does not take the time to carefully prepare for the presentation. In some cases, this might be an opportunity for others to make fun of them and make them lose the courage to try public speaking again. However, these risks can be minimized if people carefully calculate the risks involved.
In conclusion, the benefits of taking risks, including exponential business growth and overcoming fear, outweigh any drawbacks because the chance of failure is reduced if people take calculated risks.
Useful vocabulary
- present somebody with something = to cause something such as a problem, threat, or opportunity
- side hustle = a part-time job that a person does as well as their regular job
- comfort zone = a situation in which you feel comfortable and in which your ability and determination are not being tested
- the unknown = a place, situation, or thing that is not known about or understood
- conquer something = to succeed in dealing with or controlling something
- be afraid of … = feeling fear; frightened because you think that you might be hurt or suffer
- be capable of … = having the ability or qualities necessary for doing something
- the rat race = a way of life in modern society, in which people compete with each other for power and money
- the corporate ladder = the proverbial climb up a company’s employment hierarchy, where career advancement is likened to climbing rungs on a ladder
- make fun of somebody/something = to make a joke about someone or something in a way that is not kind
