Nicole never takes an unnecessary risk. She checks her gear three times. She trains for 1,000 hours. She knows the statistics.
Nicole has missed seven birthdays, three weddings, and a funeral. When you work in 21-day shifts with zero cell service, your partner either becomes a saint or an ex. The divorce rate for first responders and military contractors hovers near 75%. Nicole’s biggest fear isn’t the fire line—it’s coming home to an empty house. nicole risky job
In a world where most of us are terrified of making a mistake in a spreadsheet, Nicole is terrified of not living fully . You don’t have to jump out of a helicopter to appreciate Nicole’s story. The lesson isn’t “quit your job and become a daredevil.” The lesson is risk assessment . Nicole never takes an unnecessary risk
Here’s a blog post inspired by the idea of a high-stakes, “risky” job, written from the perspective of someone like “Nicole.” She knows the statistics
So here’s to Nicole. And here’s to the rest of us learning a little bit from her: Look at the risk you’re taking by staying comfortable. Maybe the safest path is the most dangerous one of all.
Every person in a high-risk job keeps a mental ledger. On one side: the saves. On the other: the losses. Nicole can tell you the exact number of people she couldn’t pull from a wreck or the faces of the crew she left behind on a mountain. You don’t forget those numbers. You just learn to sleep next to them.
But what does that actually mean? Depending on the week, Nicole is either a parachuting into remote canyons, a maritime crab fisherman in the Bering Sea, or a conflict zone journalist . (For the sake of this post, let’s assume she wears all three hats—because people like Nicole often do.) The Real Risks (It’s Not What You Think) We usually assume the risk in Nicole’s job is purely physical: falling debris, explosive fires, hypothermia, or gunfire. And yes, those dangers are very real. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the fatality rate for loggers, fishers, and pilots is nearly 20 times higher than the average office job.