Reading the example of IBM's risk taking made reminded me of the recent changes in the electronics field.
With South Korean companies prevailing and succeeding in the television field, Panasonic made the news with its intention of exiting the plasma television business. The company intends "to focus on higher profit margin products"(ZD Net: Panasonic to end plasma television business.)
I also came about an article by Bloomberg explaining how the decision of exiting the television field decided the future of electronics companies. (Sorry, Japanese article)
∟Bloomberg: Hitachi's road to regeneration - The exit from the television field that decided the future of electronics companies
I'm pretty sure that decisions to cut prospective fields and products are excruciating ones, and it can't come without greater risk. You can't know if your decision is going to let live or die the whole company.
Hopefully, Panasonic's "[r]isk tak[ing will] make things" - good things "happen" (151.)
On the other hand, it seems like some companies (McDona...never mind) haven't had so much luck.
Then, there are companies that haven't changed their ways. One example is Yoshinoya.
Yoshinoya is determined to serve U.S.A. beef on their rice for gyuudon.
Even during BSE, their stance has not wavered.
Actually, the reason that Yoshinoya didn't convert to other beef can be affiliated to past failure; it's profits plummeted when they changed to different beef because the taste of their gyuudon changed.
Another factor contributing to this inertia, I think, is that people around the globe, and not just Japanese people, know much about the scariness of BSE. My memories from when news about BSE was sensational is that everything was vaguely scary. What I am going to say is mostly second-handed information from "The Family That Couldn't Sleep" by D. T. Max which I borrowed from Narumi. As a disclaimer, it is also not aimed to be harmful rumor, but prion-related diseases are scary as hell.
Prions are misformed proteins which somehow becomes the culprit behind many critical diseases. One symptom of FFI, one prion disease, for example is insomnia to the point of death. Once the disease manifests, one will not be able get actual sleep until he/she falls into a comatose leading straight to death. Some prion-related diseases transcend species and some don't. Not everybody who have the misformed proteins get sick and die. But the difference between even the Nuclear Plant rumors and BSE beef, I think, is the fact that we don't know what COULD happen, and that the problem is still ONGOING.
In all, though I think the need to be "comfortable with the discomfort of risk"(153) is a great way of putting things. The thing you need is trust in yourself and your experience.
LINKS:
[Yoshinoya and Meat Safety]
CS Monitor: US is confident beef is safe, experts aren't
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2012/0425/Mad-cow-US-confident-beef-is-safe-food-safety-experts-aren-t-sure
Japan to relax ban on U.S. beef importation (Done this February)
(http://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXNASDF2800Q_Y3A120C1PP8000/)
Yikes—insomnia to the point of death! That would be a nasty disease. Yes, we are all at risk all the time, and you have chosen a good quotation—"comfortable with the discomfort of risk"—to capture how we basically just have to get on with things in spite of the risks.
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