Why It's Important to Step Out of Your Comfort Zone

Isn’t it great to be comfortable? I don’t mean comfortable in a specific setting. I just mean the general feeling of being comfortable with who you are, where you are, what you’re doing, and everything in between. We associate comfort with all things good: lack of stress, relaxation, consistency, and routine. But stay too comfortable for too long, and you might find yourself in a cycle that deprives you of growth, advancement, and excitement. That’s why I’m here today to talk to you about why it’s important to step out of your comfort zone, even if your comfort zone feels like the best thing that’s ever happened since the discovery of sliced bread.

Growth – When you’re feeling comfortable, you’re less inclined to take on risks or subject yourself to change. And I get it: why would you want to do any of that when you’re happy with where you are? But here’s the thing: getting too comfortable could stagnate your growth and harm you in the long run. Growing tends to mean trying something new, taking a risk, and in turn, stepping out of your comfort zone. Without that, you’re stifling your own growth, even if you don’t immediately realize it.

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Advancement – Imagine you’ve found a really nice job. It’s a bit tough at first, but you get the hang of it, and you get comfortable. The pay is fair, the PTO is reasonable, and the work is interesting and easy enough. And eventually, you find yourself at a crossroads: stay in your decent, comfortable job, or seek out new opportunities that challenge you but offer the potential for advancement – both professionally and personally. It’s easy to opt for option one because, after all, that’s the comfortable choice. It doesn’t require overexerting yourself, stressing yourself out, or getting out of the cozy bubble you’ve built for yourself. But when you opt for option one – when you choose comfort over advancement – you’re hurting yourself by subjecting yourself to a life of mediocrity.

Excitement – The more we get used to things, the more routine (and eventually mundane) they become. It’s human nature to be excited by the new and shiny things around us and to eventually lose interest in them once we get used to them. Chasing the next high by taking risk after risk is no way to go, simply because such an approach to life is unsustainable. But staying in your comfort zone is a surefire way to deprive yourself of the excitement that comes about from stepping out of your comfort zone, taking a risk, and trying something new.

At the end of the day, the best thing you can do for yourself is to get comfortable with being uncomfortable! Because when you stay within the confines of your comfort zone, you deprive yourself of so much more than you can possibly imagine. Have you ever struggled with stepping out of your comfort zone?