Your comfort zone: the place you feel safe, secure, and can fall back on predictable, familiar routine. But in order to grow in any facet of your life, you have to be willing to step outside of that cozy bubble. We’ve all experienced being nervous, or anxious, when it comes to trying something new – and that’s OK. In fact, it’s essential redefining boundaries. Your comfort zone should always be evolving, changing, and morphing – the thing is, it only happens when you put yourself on the line, look fear in the eye, acknowledge the nerves and march forward anyway (like Coach did in a recent episode of Coachified – watch it below).
Rise to the Occasion
Have you ever noticed that once you challenge yourself to something (and especially once you tell people who will hold you accountable), you’re more likely to rise up, face your fear, and conquer it?
Find something you want to do, or accomplish. Write it down, research it, and talk about it with friends. Doing these things will dull the initial overwhelming fear behind tackling your goal and start to turn the random thought you had into a real, attainable thing. While it may sound cheesy, knowledge IS power, and the more you know about your goal, the easier it’ll be to make a plan of action to tackle it.
Set a goal, get comfortable with being uncomfortable, and prepare to break down mental barriers.
Tap Into Your Inner Child
When you were a kid, you never thought about stress, anxiety, risk, or failure. You did what you wanted, and if you fell (literally or figuratively), you simply got back up. As adults in a highly judgemental world, fear of failure dictates just how far, and often, we’re willing to push our limits. Whenever you find yourself holding back, or letting fear takeover, remind yourself that without risk there’s no reward.
Use Stress to Your Advantage
One of the mental barriers of redefining your comfort zone is a 6 letter word you probably use regularly, S-T-R-E-S-S. Because we’re constantly trying to minimize stress, taking on a new (and possibly stressful) challenge doesn’t sound ideal – after all, who wants more of that in their life? No one. We wake each day on a mission to avoid this toxic feeling, not create more of it by choice. The thing is though, when you do something that scares you (even stresses you out a bit), and come out the other side with a feeling of empowerment, something amazing happens – you grow. In small doses, it’s healthy, it keeps you on your toes, forces you to blaze ahead, crushing goals and redefining boundaries in the process.
Find Balance Between Chasing Change and Living in the Moment
Once you experience the adrenaline rush and positive feeling of personal accomplishment, you may find yourself on a constant quest for change. Striking a balance between being content with where you are while working toward where you’d like to be is crucial to living happily in the moment.
The Cheat Sheet:
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Set a goal and ways to reach it
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Get comfortable with being uncomfortable
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Don’t let your fears hold you back
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Remember: No Risk = No Reward
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Find balance between pushing boundaries and enjoying the moment