What do you think when you hear the word “comfort zone”? I think of something that is like a restriction. A blockade to something that is unknown. Quite frankly it triggers my anxiety. The thought if the something unknown is just scary. Kind of like my future. It is blank when I think if it. That topic is a post for another day. Comfort zones is like our safe space. It is something that we stay when we are scared or worried of what could come of something. Most of them correlate to social spaces or instances. But really we have them in every part of our lives.
Recently, I just stepped out of my comfort zone socially. Don’t get me wrong, it was nerve wrecking. Each time I spoke up, my back was sweating like crazy. Either way, by the end of the social interaction I was glad that I took that step. It helped me along and made me realize something.
I have never pushed myself out of my comfort zone like that in YEARS.
It felt good. It felt freeing. I met new people…and I’d do it again in a heartbeat. We need to start pushing ourselves out of our little bubble. And quite frankly, I wanna talk about why. While I still am on this high of happiness.
Change = Growth
Listen, I’m not the biggest fan of change. The biggest changed I have ever faced in my life was when I moved from Michigan to Texas. It impacted my life in more ways than one. Starting at a new school in a new state meant I had to go out of my comfort zone. It was all on me to make new friends and talk to to different people. Trust me, I didn’t like it one bit. But without that change , I wouldn’t have grown in to the young adult I am now . I wouldn’t have met the people I have in my life right now. The progression of me as a person would never exist. Honestly, I’m a bit curious as to how I would be if I never left Michigan.
Would I still know the things I do?
Would I still act the way I do?
I guess we will never know.
Change is needed in order to grow. But in order to change, we have to take the initiative. You’ve never seen a road get fixed over night. In Texas, a road will be worked on for MONTHS before it is fully fixed. But when it’s done, we are immediately grateful for the construction and happy with our new road. Nothing get fixed overnight.
Pushing yourself out your comfort zone is just that. Sometimes we don’t want to change because this is all we have known. The life we have, the people we talk to and the place we call home is all we have known for however long. But growth and change isn’t a bad thing. It is needed in order to become the person you need to be for that new stage of your life.
Comfort zones are just excuses
Just to be clear there is a difference in situations with comfort zones. There is a fine line between comfort zones and feeling uncomfortable. A unwanted sexual advance is pushing your comfortability. Peer pressure is another Not going to a social event because you’re anxious to mingle with new people is a comfort zone. Doing things that will bring us a sense of anxiety or trigger an emotion of standing out scares us.
It makes us not want to ever try to get ourselves out of the bubble that we create for ourselves. Those bubbles aren’t necessarily bad. Usually, they were made as a response to certain events and as a way for our brain to keep us safe. But that doesn’t mean we have to stay in them forever.
We often let ourselves just weasel our way out of something new. Now, yes, not all of us are like that. There are some adventurous and daring people out there. But I’m talking to the people that refuse to go to a friend’s party unless there is one person that they know. Or the person that orders the same thing at the café they go to scared that they won’t like anything else. It could even be not sending your application for a promotion at work because it scares you of what it could mean for you. It may seem small ,but you’re denying yourself from new possibilities. From new opportunities that could just change your life. Don’t let the excuses hide you away from potential happiness and success. Just jump out of that comfort zone and enjoy the other side.
You’ll learn how to take risks
Have you ever been in a situation where your gut was saying to go for it ,but some voice in your head was telling you to back out? That gut feeling is the risk taker in you. It’s the part of you that wants to go out and try new things. Maybe a new restaurant, say hi to that classmate, go to that one social gathering. Taking risks is something that just challenges you. It challenges how you react to situations. How you perceive life. It helps you become more brave and courageous. Now risk taking doesn’t mean you got to go bungee jumping off the side of a cliff. It could literal be a small interaction. Nothing too crazy. Your comfort zone is the standard. Now lets try and push that standard a bit. There’s nothing wrong in trying something new right? Like we said before, change = growth.
Leaving your comfort zone is gaining self-confidence
By getting yourself to push out of your comfort zone , it is like adding trust with yourself. Trust that can now be turned in to self-confidence. Instead of being timid and cautious you can now know that you have your own back. You know yourself better than anyone. That’s just a solid fact in this world. No matter who loves you the most. You know what goes on in your own mind 24/7. So, with that it’s not like you would ever try to steer yourself wrong. Your limits are set and you know when you’re reaching them. Leaving your comfort zone is about pushing your limits and also discovering new ones. Having the confidence to say “I am going to do X,Y,and Z today.” Even if you only did two out of the three you had the confidence to even go ahead and execute that plan.
Lastly, it’s okay to go slow
Going out your way to be like “Hey, I wanna try somethign new today.” is nerve wrecking. As an anxious person myself, even at work I’m constantly in a state of anxiousness because of this. But I choose to keep trying and doing new thigns. Once those new things feel more comfortable and common , I begin to think of ways to try again. It’s daring, trust me. When I recently decided to try this new social interaction, like I said, I was sweating bullets. Multiple times I wanted to back out. I had all the excuses ready in my head.
“Oh, they won’t like me.”
“What if we all just don’t share the same vibe.”
“They’ll just think I’m weird.”
Nuh-uh. Those excuses are just holding me back. They are holding you back. As scary as it is. When you get over with it. You just realize how much fun you actually had. Then all that worrying seems silly in the end.
THANK YOU FOR READING!
I hope you guys enjoyed this week’s post. Honestly, it was a fun one to write mostly because I’m still on the high of social interactions. This pandemic has taken a big hit on that. Comment down below any other topics you want me to write about and maybe I will! The comment section is little ways down if you scroll. I’m thinking of starting a friendship “series” of sorts. If you have any questions on the topic of friendships, comment them down below. Don’t forget to follow me on my socials to be updated when I post something new. Welp, until next time!