I was speaking today with a friend who is thinking of moving from his townhouse in Philadelphia to a biodynamic “Earthship” in Taos, New Mexico.

He mentioned that he had the financial wherewithal to manage it; that he had been out there to stay for the past two weeks and loved it; that he was going to move out there for a month before buying anything; and that he wasn’t going to sell his PA home until he’d been there a few years.

When I said I applauded his decision he was surprised, however.

“Are you putting me on?” he asked. “Everyone else thinks this is crazy.” 

“How can you not believe me? I said, “You are being completely risksponsible.”

Yes, that’s correct. It’s not a typo.

Risksponsible is a term I fell in love with this winter as I weighed options for a seeminglyfly-by-night decision of my own and I’ve found that the more I embrace it, the more I like it.

And the more I enjoy acting like it.

As you’ve likely realized, risksponsible can be applied anytime you are doing something that– although others consider it harebrained—you are confident about because you know you have checks and balances in place.

It’s greeting risk as a friend while managing it like an enemy.

And while it mainly shows up in obscure financial and insurance documents, I think being risksponsible is something we could all stand to applaud, embrace, and embody a bit more.