In February 2003, a group of tourists excitedly waited to embark on a hot air ballon trip over the beautiful Californian wine country. One tourist decided to help out the ballon crew by holding unto the basket as they were about to light the ballon's propane burner. As soon as the burner was lit, the ballon un-expectantly soared high into the air carrying the helpful tourist with it. In seconds the ballon went upwards, 10…100…and finally to 300 feet in the air before the tourist could no longer hold on and fell to his death in front of 30 other people.

As tragic as this story is, it is not the first time this has happened. In fact ballon crews are trained never to let both feet leave the ground.

This rule is not limited to the world of ballooning. We see this analogy in many other areas of life. The entrepreneur who finds himself deeper and deeper in debt and feels that sales will soon pick up and he'll be out of the red. The gambler who is in the hole and thinks his only chance is to continue betting in order to get that big win. The person who is married to an abusive partner and tells herself that her partner will change his ways.

As human beings, I think we all need a level of optimism. Lord knows I live on it. But we need optimism that is balanced with reality. How the situation really is…one foot on the ground. Our ideas, aspirations, and thoughts should be looked at in an objective manner, or better yet, seek input from someone who will. The old rule, safety in numbers is good to remember here as we may unconsciously seek out the opinions of those who we feel will support our ideas or stroke our egos. Look for several trusted sources to review your plans and ideas with. The more objective the individual the better.

There is always a certain amount of risk in any new venture, relationship, or path in life, but limiting your risk and knowing when it's time to cut your losses (or maybe not to start at all) is invaluable information. We need to be willing to take at least one foot off the ground if we want to grow and improve our environment, but having a clear cut off point or a turn around time is essential.

Once you get more information, experience, and stability in your new endeavour, then you can swing that foot on the ground into the basket and enjoy the ride.