Why is leaving the comfort zone so crucial? We love to pretend we don’t know. It’s easier to pretend and hide. We are so uncomfortable with the work that we run away from it and pretend we don’t know. We pretend not to know a multitude of things so that we can stay comfortable.
Leaving the comfort zone: embrace the unknown
We generally try to avoid being uncomfortable. In fact, we often go to great lengths to stay within our comfort zones. For a lot of people, the only thing worse than continuing to suffer the same miserable life day after day is fear. Fear of the unknown. Sometimes we would rather stay stuck, unwell, or unhappy than risk venturing out of our comfort zones.
We don’t really do it consciously. It’s not like we make plans to stay stuck or miserable. Consciously, we desperately want things to be different, but subconsciously, we are just trying to stay safe. And in our minds, safety equals familiarity. The brain prefers the familiar because it knows what to expect. The brain prefers the predictable because repetition is comfortable. This is true even when the familiar and predictable pattern is not actually healthy or safe. To change habits, you have to go against your brain’s hardwired need for comfort, safety, and consistency. And to do this, you have to change your relationship with discomfort.
Success doesn’t result from being comfortable!
Anything worth doing is going to be difficult, and it’s not going to be comfortable. The true mark of greatness is when someone continues to show up and do the work, no matter how hard the journey is. Leaving the comfort zone isn’t a choice, but a necessity. They don’t allow failure or setbacks to knock them off course because they understand that they have to take the setbacks with the accomplishments.
Conclusion: Leaving the comfort zone
What separates the best from the rest are the daily decisions. They recognize that in order to get the results they want, they have to do the work. It’s the consistency in doing what they don’t want to do, developing habits, and learning to be comfortable with the uncomfortable.
The key takeaways for leaving the comfort zone to achieve greatness are:
- What can you do better tomorrow to really accomplish the result you’re looking for?
- Be so laser-focused on your desire that it consumes you, and work to make that desire truly become your reality.
- The ship doesn’t sink because of the water on the outside; it sinks because of the water on the inside.
- Stay so focused on your destination that you stay in your own lane. You’ll get there faster if you don’t cross into other people’s lanes.
