Most of us are pretty happy in our comfort zones. We like them. They feel safe and secure. We don’t worry because we’re confident that we can handle things…because they’re comfortable. But there are benefits to stepping outside of our comfort zone that might encourage us to do just that.
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“Out there” isn’t as scary as we think it is
The problem is that we often imagine that anything beyond our comfort zone is harder and scarier than it likely is in reality. It’s often our fear of the unknown that is really the problem.
For example, if I have a dream of being a public speaker, then I’m going to have to overcome my fear of speaking in public. Obvious, right?
But the fear of public speaking is one of the big ones that scare people the most (right up there with dying). We’re afraid that we’ll look stupid or that people will laugh and make fun of us.
We end up running scenarios through our mind that are just horrible, and frankly, most of them are likely pretty ridiculous if we stop to really think about them.
It’s the fear of the unknown, more than the unknown itself, that holds us back. But that’s something we have total control over. We don’t have to let outlandish imagined results keep us back from pursuing something we want.
The real secret here is to realize that (most of the time, anyway) things are unlikely to be as bad as you imagine. A benefit of stepping out of the comfort zone is that once we take a step, we figure out that we’re the only ones preventing us from trying or doing something new.
We’ll learn from our mistakes
Yes, we’ll definitely make mistakes. It’s inevitable.
After all, no one starts anything new as an expert. We all start as novices, armatures, and learners. And that’s okay.
In fact, it’s to be expected.
You wouldn’t expect a small child to be able to read the first time they sat down with a book, would you?
Of course not! But we often don’t give ourselves the same grace we’d easily give to someone else. We’re harder on ourselves, and have higher expectations for ourselves, than we do of anyone else.
Unreasonably high, in fact.
Perhaps it’s a wide streak of perfectionism or a fear of failure, but we often don’t want to suffer through the learning phase that’s required to become experts…or at least to develop basic skills and competencies.
So what’s the worst that can happen when you start to learn or do something new? You make mistakes.
That’s it…mistakes.
But no one dies from making mistakes.
No one dies from embarrassment.
No one dies if people make fun of us (which they probably won’t) for making a mistake.
But we DO learn from those mistakes – and that’s a major benefit of stepping out of the comfort zone.
And that’s the point. No one learns anything without making some mistakes. Even experts started as amateurs and had to master the learning curve to become proficient.
We learn to take calculated risks
This is an important point. No one is suggesting that someone go out and do something dangerous or life threatening or stupid.
That would be…well, stupid.
But once we start stepping out of our immediate comfort zone we begin to find ways to take small, calculated risks.
These are the kinds that have some measure of safety built in to protect us.
But more importantly, we also learn that failing at something does not make us a failure.
Now we don’t want to be the type of people who catastrophize everything. You’ve probably known someone who turns every situation into something life or death. They’re melodramatic and everything is a humongous “my life will never be the same” deal.
Those people are exhausting!
And a bit ridiculous, to be honest.
We’re all adults and as such we should learn that most things really aren’t all that dramatic in the first place. WE are the ones who determine how much importance something does – or does not – have over our lives.
Failure is something everyone experiences. At least, everyone who tries anything new, that is.
And while we could sit safe in our comfort zones and never experience failure, we’d miss out on all of the learning opportunities that go along with failure.
The only to learn is to be willing to fail. It’s that simple.
It’s where we learn what we’re really made of
Most of us think we know ourselves pretty well.
We understand our skills, our talents, and our abilities.
But have you ever considered that perhaps there are parts of you that remain dormant until they’re called upon and needed?
Take resilience, for example.
We may either think that we are…or are not…resilient in the face of adversity. but how do we know for sure?
It’s when life tests us that we learn what we’re really made of. It’s then that we learn how well we cope when life throws curve balls at us (and it throws them at everyone if they live long enough).
Until we have to call upon reserve strengths or develop skills, we’re (at least a bit) unsure how we’ll cope and react.
Don’t they say that iron is only forged in fire?
Now I’m not suggesting that we all need adversity and bad times in our lives. It would be nice if those things never had to happen. But the fact is that most of us are going to face some tough things whether we want to or not.
And when we do, we learn that we’re more capable than we thought.
So why not take some of that knowledge that we’re capable NOW and step out and try something new by pursuing something we want?
One of the benefits of stepping out of the comfort zone is that we go ahead and build up that courage muscle so it’s already there when we do need it.
Conclusion
So there you have it. Four benefits you’ll gain once you take the leap and step outside your comfort zone. You’ll find it’s not as scary as you thought and you’ll learn so much. It’s definitely worth the (small) risk.
So what step do you need to take to get outside your own comfort zone?
For more information about dealing with and escaping your comfort zone, check out this book The Comfort Zone: Create a Life You Really Love With Less Stress and More Flow by Kristen Butler
More for your mindset:
I help older women get past their fear and mindset issues so they can create a plan to pursue their goals and dreams.
6 Reasons To Step Outside Of The Comfort Zone