Many of us enjoy actors who do their own stunts. Harrison Ford, Mel Gibson, Tom Cruise and, of course, Jackie Chan have done most if not all of their own stunts for years. And sometimes, youll even get to see a news reporter as his or her own stuntman.

I was a presenter at the local Emmys here in Atlanta last weekend. Lots of very talented people from our area, most of them in the news business, competing for this very prestigious award. One of the nominees was a local reporter who did a special report on police use of taser guns. As part of his report, he took a shot from one of these tasers on camera. It was pretty stunningpardon the pun. This of course got quite a reaction from the audience and also from the voters because he won the award for that story.

Call it crazy or call it gutsy, instead of using a stand in, this guy took the shot himself to demonstrate what these guns really do. By doing it himself, did he become the story? Maybe, but I think theres a lesson here. Do your own stunts.

How many of us are willing to put ourselves out there and be the example of how things are done? How many of us tell others what to do, especially when it comes to doing new things, instead of taking any personal risk? Doesnt it add to the credibility of movies you see when the actor is doing the stunt instead of a double?

Risk a tough thing, but no real reward comes without it. If you want to achieve something, you must be willing to put yourself on the line and do whats required. And if your job involves leadership and motivating others, whats more motivating than watching your boss doing the same thing he or she is asking of you?

Life is like a turtle - you can't get anywhere unless you stick your neck out. Take the risk and dont push it off to others. It makes a much bigger impact on your audience when you do it as opposed to a stand-in.