People tell me I'm a risk-taker, but I don't feel like one. Yes, I surf cold, sharky waters, travel alone in Central America, and live a freelance life with no job security. None of this seems dangerous to me, however, despite strong evidence to the contrary: Surfing broke my neck two years ago, almost killing me. But put me in a close relationship with a lover, or at a desk facing the so-called novel I've been not writing for years, and I start to sweat. For me, intimacy and creativity -- things I've always craved -- are what pose the risks. And that, according to experts, is exactly why I should dive into them.

The ability to take calculated risks, it turns out, is actually an essential human trait, crucial to our development as a species and as individuals, say experts. Our risk-taking ancestors were the survivors, the daring ones who took chances to adapt to a changing environment. Today, the same principle applies, says social worker and family therapist Michael Ungar, Ph.D., a professor at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. "To grow, we need to experience challenges -- whether we're 4, 14, or 40."

Unfortunately, it can be a scary world out there, and we're not always ready to engage it. Ungar and other experts warn that we've actually become more risk-averse lately. In "Too Safe for Their Own Good," he cites evidence for this in our arguably overly protective, 21st-century style of parenting, which new research suggests may be stunting our children. "By bubble-wrapping our lives," he says, "we may inadvertently be taking away opportunities to experience the building blocks of psychosocial growth -- which may be the biggest risk of all."

The fact is, facing things that make us uncomfortable offers a cluster of psychological benefits that Ungar calls "the risk-taker's advantage." This experience is crucial for anyone who wants to be emotionally resilient, confident, happy, and engaged with life. You don't have to take up parachuting or gambling to reap the rewards, either. You just have to give more attention to those areas that feel challenging -- and intriguing -- to you, and embrace the adventure of uncertainty. "Do one thing every day that scares you," Eleanor Roosevelt once said. On the other side of that fear, opportunity awaits.