"You're alive. You might as well take chances."

Actor and comic Tig Notaro was diagnosed with cancer. What did she do? She made it part of her stand-up act one night.

Her audacity startled her audience and her raw honesty blew the minds of her friends who were there that evening.

Later in an interview, she said:?"You're alive. You might as well take chances."?

Amen to that!?

Can you apply that philosophy in your own life?

If you are a job hunter, and you've been trying every strategy you can think of, and you are getting nowhere, no traction...maybe it's time to take chances?

Here are several ideas that may seem audacious, but if you are at the end of your rope, maybe it's time to take some chances?

Organize a group?- You've heard the phrase "There is strength in numbers" right? Get together with others and start something!. Form a mastermind group to brainstorm new ideas and provide mutual support. Find a worthy cause and support it. Start a wave.

Put yourself out there?- I often tell the story of financial guy Charles Pixley who turned his resume into a sandwich board and stood at the corner of Wall St and Broadway to draw attention to his capabilities and passions. Would you have the nerve, the chutzpah, to do a stunt like that?

Teach?- Are you an expert in your field? Why not teach it to others? Put a presentation together and offer it to your professional association. Test it out and expand it. Write an article. Write a book!

Give your skills away?- When Charlie Hoehn graduated from college during the Great Recession, he could not find work.?What did he do? He built a career by working for free. He gave his skills away on interesting projects. It paid off. Listen to his story on this?interview .?

Start a company?- Do you have an idea for a business? An inkling? A dream? Seth Godin puts it like this: "Start your first business this way: Begin with the smallest possible project in which someone will pay you money to solve a problem they know they have. Charge less than it's worth and more than it costs you. Repeat. You don't have to wait for perfect or large or amazing."?Just start. You can thank me later.

Take your skills to a new field?- Tired of what you have been doing all these years? Thinking about something new? Take some time to identify what you are best at. Your core competencies. And then ask yourself, What other areas could use these skills? If you are great at customer service, but do not want to go back to (Fill in the blank), ask, what other sectors need great customer service??Who else could use the skills you possess?

Consider a portfolio life?- The Irish philosopher Charles Handy coined this idea some years ago when he forecasted that more and more of us would choose to work for ourselves and "sell" our expertise to multiple organizations, creating a portfolio life.

Remind yourself that You are alive!

You might as well take a chance.

About the author: Terrence "Terry" Seamon has been living a portfolio life for quite some time now, and loving it! He encourages his clients to think outside the box and explore new possibilities.

This article was first published in 2015.