LET’S GET UNCOMFORTABLE!

Because that is where mediocre ends and extraordinary begins

There are days when it’s an absolute challenge just to get ready and leave the house. Part of me knows that in order to play bigger, to be productive, and to make a difference, I need to take action.  part of me wants to stay in and just be where I am most comfortable.

We have all been there, no doubt. It feels safe.

As an introvert, some days I need an extra push to stretch myself out of my comfort zone. It takes a constant reminder on my part that if I need to get things done I also need to do certain things that feel uncomfortable. For me, the best way to deal with my uneasiness is to make it a personal challenge; to make my box expand a little further out with each new experience, one day at a time.  To recognize my capacity, then make a conscious effort to move beyond it to a new and bigger potential.

Shawn Achor, psychologist and author of The Happiness Advantage, refers to happiness as “the joy you feel moving towards your potential.”

Key word: MOVING…

Moving is progress, progress is growth, growth is new potential, potential is achievement, achievement is happiness, happiness is moving towards your potential.

Keep moving…Keep growing…keep beating your own best…Repeat!

What is the comfort zone?

The comfort zone is simply the place that you are most comfortable in. It is where things aren’t that great and they are not all that bad. It’s the state of ‘blah’.

It is where nothing of significance happens in life. It’s an area most people spend a lot of time in, because they are used to life as is. Sometimes, appropriately so, it is called the gray zone, where nothing is bright and exciting and yet not bleak and dark enough for things to shift.

It is where you are ok with what you have and don’t have and you really don’t pay much attention to anything else that might be possible for you. Most people are so used to their little comfort zone that if an opportunity comes their way to make things better for them, they get consumed by fear and reject it or create excuses not to take a step out of their comfort zone. Sadly, some even get comfortable at being miserable.

Why is it often difficult to move beyond our comfort zone?

People tend to stay in their comfort zone because it is safe; it provides a mental safety net. There is no fear of failure, no chance of rejection, no disappointments, no stress, and no risk. AND…on the flip side, there is no growth, no meaningful accomplishments, no excitement and no motivation to move forward in life.

By staying in the comfort zone we allow life to happen to us; we give our power to create our own lives up to chance and to the unknown.

In order to have amazing results and magical relationships, one must step out of their comfort zone. When we are ready to push ourselves to the next level and accomplish something amazing, we begin breaking the walls of our comfort zone and are suddenly willing to do what it takes no matter what obstacles exist.

If you are absolutely happy with where you are in life, if you don’t have any goals or ambitions, and you don’t want anything to change in your life, now is a good time to stop reading the rest of this blog. And, if you like to thrive, reach your highest potential and live a life of your dreams, then continue on…

HOW TO BREAK OUT OF OUR COMFORT ZONE

Realize what is out of your comfort zone

• A comfort zone is relative; relative to the person occupying the zone. What might be scary or uncomfortable for me, might be a routine daily activity for you. So it is very important to identify what lies outside of your comfort zone. Be in competition with no one else but yourself.

• Make a list of the things you have been procrastinating on. Anything you have been putting off for some time and know it needs to get done; it doesn’t matter how small or big. If it’s on your procrastination list, more often than not it’s because it is somewhere outside your comfort zone.

• Write down 10 things that make you uncomfortable or even better 10 things that scare you. Now, I want you to take action and challenge yourself to complete this list within a month. Then, after that is done, REPEAT, come up with a new list and keep on going.

• Start small. Do one task and allow the momentum to build. As long as you are consciously making an effort, you are building energy and confidence and getting yourself mentally ready for the next task.

I promise you that after accomplishing the first task on your list, you will feel so liberated that you will want to tackle the remaining items. Once you step out of the comfort zone, you start to realize that it’s not scary to be out there, it’s rather empowering.

Stepping out of your comfort zone does not mean you have to compromise your true identity.  So the first step does not need to be drastic and earth-shaking (although, it can be! If you choose it to be). Stepping out of your comfort zone is a skill to build. The more you do it, the easier it becomes. Take it slow in the beginning and make simple changes. It is in small and consistent changes we make that we see the greatest results.

Remember, as long as you keep doing what you have always done, you will continue to get the same results.

Stop saying “I WISH”…

Stop limiting yourself with “WHAT IF”….

Do you have what it takes to turn your life around and break the walls of your box?

If you’ve read this far, I would say the answer is yes. There is a reason you are here reading this post right now; I can’t tell you what your exact reason is, but if I was a betting woman, I would say you want something better and more fulfilling in life.

So, let’s get uncomfortable!

Because when you are comfortable for too long, you lose your drive to do incredible things, to create things, and to be the best that you can be.

Staying comfortable brings stagnation, it kills creativity, it makes your life BLAH!

It’s ok to be comfortable if you like an ok career, an ok relationship, and a mediocre life.

But I know you!

You were not meant to settle.

You were meant to find your passion and become the creator of your life.

You are worthy of all that is good.

If it scares you…do it
If it feels uncomfortable…do it
If it feels unfamiliar…do it
If it is challenging…do it anyways
Because the only way to grow is to move out of your comfort zone.

This passage by Dr. Martin Luther King sums it up perfectly:

“You may be 38 years old, as I happen to be. And one day, some great opportunity stands before you and calls you to stand up for some great principle, some great issue, some great cause. And you refuse to do it because you are afraid….

Well, you may go on and live until you are 90, but you’re just as dead at 38 as you would be at 90. And the cessation of breathing in your life is but the belated announcement of an earlier death of the spirit.”

I would love to hear how you are choosing to step out of your comfort zone. What are your wins? What challenges are coming up for you?

Share your thoughts with me, and get comfortably comfortable!