Stepping Outside of Your Comfort Zone

Don’t worry I’m not to just tell you to do something completely different from what you’ve grown accustomed to doing. I’m going to give you some strategies on how to do it.

1. Do some research. 

One of the reasons stepping outside of your comfort zone is a challenge is because of the unknown. When you have no idea what you’re getting into or what will happen when you do, that can cause fear and anxiety. It’s perfectly natural to be afraid of the unknown but rather than shrinking away from it, you can work to make it less of an unknown. Thanks to the power of the internet, it’s possible to gain knowledge about a topic from the comfort of your own home. Once you’ve identified your calling, do some web searches on it. Read some magazine articles or books about it. If possible, talk to some people who do it. Do your best to familiarize yourself with it.

2. Take a class. Taking a class is a great way to not only learn more about your area of interest, you can also meet other people like you. Deciding to step outside of your comfort zone can be an isolating situation. It’s tough to take people with you when you decide to try something new. You will most likely end up doing it alone. But if you take a class you will meet other people that share your interest. It gives you an opportunity to expand your circle while allowing you to actively explore your interest.

3. Join an organization. 

There are organizations and groups out there for virtually any area of interest. Find an organization dedicated to your calling and join it. This has a similar effect to taking a class. You find other people with a similar interest while joining a community dedicated to that interest. Not only will you have a space where you can openly explore, you will also learn how different people do the same. It definitely helps you gain perspective on how to follow your calling when you can talk with other people that are doing it too. 

4. Create something. Now that you’ve tapped into what interests you most put that knowledge to practical use. Find a way to do a project. If you’re in an organization or a class, you will most likely have a project that way but if not, you should find one. You need some time to work within your interest in a focused way and a project is a great way to do that. Plus it gives you a viable reason to allocate time in your life to this interest. You can also use the project as a way to incorporate other people in your life as you embark on your journey.

Stepping out of your comfort zone is never easy. People appreciate routines and stability whether they’re self-imposed or not. It’s helpful to know what to expect on a day to day basis so when you shake up the status quo, it shakes up that feeling of stability. 

Depending on the type of comfort zone that you are living in will affect the challenges you will encounter stepping outside of it. There are three different types of comfort zones and each one offers a different amount of stability. 

1. Societal comfort zone 

We all deal with societal expectations as we go through life. Many of us fall in line and work to meet those expectations without ever realizing that they’re not our own. An example of a societal expectation is that we are expected to get married and start a family. Depending on culture and family structure that expectation may take on slightly different connotations but it’s a prevailing one. If you live your whole life and never get married or start a family, you become a societal outlier. Many people will wonder why you chose that path. You may even get questions from total strangers about it. But by not sticking with that societal expectation, you are stepping outside of a comfort zone. It’s so much easier to find a life partner, get married and start a family than it is not to. Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that it’s easy to do those things. What I’m saying is that society has a clearly defined comfort zone that makes that the path of least resistance overall. If you choose to do something different, you encounter a different type of resistance that can be uncomfortable. 

2. Family comfort zone 

Our parents, grandparents and relatives often have an idea of where they see our lives going. If you have a large extended family that is very intertwined, you will most likely have more family members with a vested interest in your future. Their thoughts about your life path are often developed before you’re even born and will be used to create the initial blueprint of your life. As we grow up and have life experiences that fall outside of our family members, we may decide to alter that initial blueprint. This can cause a level of discomfort in your life. Often that discomfort will come from your family not responding well to your decision but its discomfort nonetheless.

3. Self-imposed comfort zone 

This is the comfort zone we tend to create for ourselves. Like I said, people appreciate stability and familiarity. Because of this we create habits. Sometimes these habits are an extension of our family comfort zone but even if your family life wasn’t stable, you will still create your own habits. This comfort zone can be the toughest to step outside of because it means going against yourself in a sense. We all create comfort zones because they make us feel safe and stable. When you step outside of a self-imposed comfort zone, you are changing something you created for your own safety and stability. You are essentially working against yourself in a way. Not only can that be uncomfortable, it can be painful depending on why you created the comfort zone in the first place.