Three Tools To Step Outside Your Comfort Zone

Setting a goal is outside your normal comfort zone.  A goal pushes you and challenges you to stretch yourself.  You have to do things that you’ve never done before.  Otherwise, you would have achieved this goal already.  All of these new things are scary because it’s outside your comfort zone.  Your comfort zone is meant to keep you safe.  That’s why you keep returning to your comfort zone any time you face a challenge or get scared. 

Fear Of The Unknown

Stepping outside your comfort zone is scary.  There is so much unknown out there.  Your comfort zone is meant to keep you safe.  But, remaining there means you don’t push yourself to fully experience all that life has to offer.  Instead, you’re paralyzed by fear.  Maybe you’ve stepped outside your comfort zone before and you’ve failed, made a mistake, did something embarrassing, etc.  These past experiences don’t make stepping outside your comfort zone any easier.  In fact, it’s more challenging.  You can’t allow these past experiences to hold you hostage in your comfort zone forever.  Even though it seems so much easier and less scary to do so.

Comfort Zone

Whenever you experience something scary, you want to run right back to your comfort zone.  It’s what you know and it feels safe.  You know exactly what to expect.  You don’t fear the unknown of failing or being judged.  You’re content in your comfort zone.  Yet, that’s not allowing you to live life to your full potential.

Something New

Start by asking yourself why something feels scary to you.  Decide if it’s just because it’s something new that you’ve never done before.  Perhaps it’s really pushing you outside your comfort zone and you’re just not sure if you can do it.  Remember that it’s very rare that someone knows how to do something perfectly on the very first attempt.  It takes time, practice, multiple attempts, and you have to keep trying before you master something.  Learning anything new takes patience.  But, when you do, you’ll expand your comfort zone.

Past Experiences

Next, is to think back to past experiences that were once scary but are now a part of your comfort zone because you’ve mastered the skill.  Recall how you felt when you initially started and then think about how you felt when you became an expert.  Good things can come from stepping outside your comfort zone.  You learn a lot and it allows you to grow.  Take into consideration those feelings from your past experiences.  Pull from those past experiences as proof that you can do difficult things.  Fear does not have to continue keeping you from stepping outside you comfort zone to go after your goals and dreams in life. 

Believe In Yourself

Lastly, believe in yourself.  You cannot let fear hold you back from going after your goals and dreams in life.  If you do, you’ll just remain stuck in your comfort zone with unrealized goals and dreams.  You can’t let that happen.  You have to be courageous enough to face your fears and take action anyway.  You’ll learn so much and grow in the process.

You can’t just go scurrying back into your comfort zone and say forget it anytime you get scared trying to achieve your goal.  You have to push yourself to feel the fear but courageously take action to keep going anyway.  Ask yourself if you’re afraid because it’s something outside of your norm.  Then, pull from past experiences as proof that you can do difficult things.  Remind yourself that there are good things that happen from stepping outside your comfort zone.  Lastly, believe in yourself that you can step outside your comfort zone.  It’s the only way you’re going to be able to live life to your full potential without regrets.  Challenge yourself to embrace stepping outside your comfort zone as an opportunity to learn and grow.  In order to achieve your goals and dreams in life, you must step outside of your comfort zone.