Greetings, friends! Imagine an ordinary situation. A person lives in peace, goes to a decent job, after which a beautiful wife and healthy children are waiting for him at home. On weekends he spends time with friends or lies peacefully on the sofa; in the summer he can afford to take his family to the sea for a week or two. He had a stormy youth, and a prosperous old age awaits him. In general, everything is fine. But psychologists and personal growth coaches unanimously insist that he urgently needs to leave his comfort zone. Why do this if it is so comfortable? Why disrupt the idyll of a planned, safe life? In fact, there are reasons for this. Today we will talk about how to get out of your comfort zone, why to do it, and what a personal comfort zone is in general.
Description
The concept represents a physical space or state where a person is securely settled and feels “at ease” - this is a familiar habitat, a sequence of actions, situations, the result of which is calculated and predicted in advance. The person is emotionally safe.
The decision to radically change your field of activity means going beyond comfort. Along with a new position and higher financial remuneration, an employee’s mental load and responsibility increases. Additional time is required to adapt and complete newly assigned tasks. Sudden but expected changes cause stress and anxiety in the individual. Discomfort will be felt until the individual “gets involved.” As soon as he gets used to it, stability in business will be established - the stressful state changes polarity and calmness is restored.
Negative influence
Stress is pushed into the comfort zone. All the negativity of the surrounding world looks threatening and frightening. And the comfort zone itself also has a negative impact.
- She doesn't let go.
- Limits a person in his actions.
- Strong inertia develops, as a result of which a person simply does not find the strength to get out of the familiar and comfortable.
- The fear of going beyond the boundaries of the comfort zone develops. And this is fraught with psychological discomfort, complexes and phobias.
- There is a limitation in communication. A person makes less contact and withdraws into himself.
- Often, staying in the comfort zone is facilitated by bad habits: alcoholism, gambling, smoking.
All this can be avoided if you introduce a little chaos into your usual routine life.
What is the harm of staying in a familiar state for a long time?
If a lake frog is placed in a container of cold water, which is then heated over low heat, the amphibian will slowly begin to adapt. How? She gradually increases her body temperature, trying to make her stay in the new environment as pleasant as possible for herself. Soon there comes a turning point, when the liquid warms up so much that it is no longer bearable, but the frog still will not jump out of the flask and cook. This is due to the fact that she has already spent her reserves trying to adapt (by changing the temperature of her body).
An identical situation occurs with a person. When deterioration comes gradually, the person practically does not notice them or tries to pretend that he does not see the harmful changes. At first she makes concessions to her own detriment, then the situation worsens. Thus, one gradually comes to terms with the troubles that are occurring, consciousness changes, and as a result, a habit is formed.
A person can clearly understand everything, think for a long time about what does not suit him, want to change it, but alas, does nothing, postponing the solution to the issue “for tomorrow.” As a result, circumstances are already so pressing that everyday life turns into hell, he has neither the physical nor the moral ability to change anything, since all efforts were wasted on forming a habit. The longer an individual does not resist, the more his situation worsens, and he can no longer take drastic measures.
Many people ask the question: is it necessary to leave the established comfort zone? When a person lacks the motivation to change the situation, life itself presents him with problems that stimulate him to take action. Troubles push a person out of his familiar routine, and he is forced to look at what is happening in a new way and react appropriately. It is thanks to an unforeseen combination of circumstances that consciousness makes a sharp turn.
Psychologist Daria Milai
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If a specialist loses his job during layoff, resulting in severe stress. Over time, he opens his own business, which gives him something he could never have dreamed of. Many have hidden potential, but to unlock it, a tough shake is needed.
When a breakup occurs, a man or woman is forced to remain alone. They experience emotional shock and depression may occur. But after a while, a person looks at what happened differently, finds new love and even rejoices at the separation.
If you take a closer look, those things that were initially considered normal were most likely not so. We often get used to work with low pay, bad attitude from loved ones and believe that this is how it should be. Don't wait until life hits you so hard that you have to jump out of boiling water.
Tight cage
The bear at the zoo was kept in a small cage where he could only take four steps. All day long he walked back and forth, measuring his living space. Visitors said that they felt sorry for the bear and believed that he was dreaming of freedom and space. Then the zoo expanded, and all the animals were moved into spacious green enclosures, and even a swimming pool was built for the unfortunate bear. When the “lucky one” was transported to a new habitat, he continued to count the usual four steps in close transportation. And finally he was released into a large enclosure. The bear looked around, stepped carefully, then again... He still took four steps forward and back... The bars limiting him now existed only in the imagination, but they were in place and turned out to be too strong. The bear is still measuring out his comfort zone, not paying attention to the free space around him.
Awareness of the absence of boundaries is the path to freedom. Let's admit that we have fenced ourselves off - it's time to expand the boundaries. We offer a five-step program for getting out of your comfort zone.
Do you need to leave your established comfort zone?
The “suspended” state very often causes discomfort. Many people have a fear of taking action so as not to worsen the existing situation. Leaving your usual habitat means doing something you are afraid of, even if there is a risk of losing everything. Moving forward requires constant change.
Taking risks and taking unusual steps is the only way to move to the next level. If you want your life to change for the better all the time, then the feeling of discomfort associated with a new environment should become quite familiar to you.
Why step out of your comfort zone
A feeling of complete security, peace, lightness and carelessness - these are all signs of a familiar habitat. The individual knows perfectly well what awaits him, does not foresee any unusual developments of events, and sits calmly in his cozy shell. The advantage of such a stay is absolute uniformity of existence and psychological well-being. The desire to leave such a state is extremely important in order to grow and develop. “Symptoms” of entering the zone:
- everything goes on as usual;
- the soul is light;
- complete carelessness.
If you have the feeling that there is no meaning in existence, you are floating with the flow and something has long been needed to change, the “kick” that you will receive by leaving your usual area will provide enormous opportunities for personal growth.
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If you cannot cope with the problem on your own, and life does not give you the desired impetus, you are stuck in one place. Sign up for a consultation with me, and I will provide you with high-quality psychological assistance, breathing new meaning into existence.
Don't be afraid to communicate with "strangers"
When it comes to the need to meet other people, many of us are prone to inaction. We continue to “lie on the couch” rather than solve the problem. This fully applies to both personal life and work acquaintances.
This behavior, according to practicing psychologist Veronica Stepanova, is primarily due to fear. In this situation, the psychologist recommends understanding yourself and taking action:
- talk about the situation (what exactly and who you are afraid of);
- describe the worst thing that can happen, what a new person will tell you;
- Assess how these fears make you feel.
Intensify these experiences as much as possible and mentally “live” these feelings. This way your brain will become “familiar” with the possible negative consequences of a new acquaintance. After this, the level of discomfort during a real meeting will be much less.
How to understand that you are trapped
Finding acquaintances, changing jobs or areas of activity, gaining skills and knowledge is a huge stress for many people. Often such actions are accompanied by risks that bring psychological discomfort to the individual. The uncertainty of the future, fearlessness in the face of future challenges is one of the stages of human development. The older an individual is, the more difficult it is for him to escape from his usual peace. However, an emotionally healthy person should not remain in this state for a long time, otherwise degradation is possible - that’s why you need to get out of your comfort zone.
Imagine for a moment that you find yourself in a situation where practically nothing depends on you. If you have panicky thoughts or feel anxious, this means that you are deeply mired in a problem. Do not resist change, even if it seems terrible, fear is a natural protective reaction of the human body. We are designed this way and only strong individuals can overcome themselves. Usually they are the ones who achieve great success in life.
Enjoy the journey to your goal
Do not confuse the “comfort zone” with physical comfort. Staying in the so-called comfort zone, people do not always experience joy and peace. They often spend years working at jobs they don’t like and doing boring routine things just because they don’t want to change anything in their lives. Or rather, they are afraid of difficulties and the thought that “everything could get worse than it is now.”
In such cases, coach and personal development expert Itzhak Pintosevich recommends not focusing on the final result, difficulties and your own anxieties. Behind them lie:
- daily openings;
- new impressions;
- skills;
- acquaintance.
Therefore, enjoy overcoming yourself and making new discoveries every day. Praise yourself both for small achievements and for continuing to act.
How can you get out of your comfort zone and start taking action?
To leave your usual habitat, follow my recommendations.
Methods
There are many opportunities to force yourself to do something. You need to start small, then increase the dose until you achieve the desired result.
- Change your daily routine - the most harmless option. Try to spend time at least once a week differently than usual. Soon your body will thank you – you will have energy and feel better.
- Set goals - at first, make them tiny, easy to achieve. Then expand your horizons and soon you won’t recognize yourself.
- Start waking up early - this is an effective way to fill your body with energy and move forward.
- Mini-stress will help you psychologically tune in to productive work.
- Discover new places - change your usual path, go for a walk in the evening, go on a trip.
- Learn to say no - as practice shows, many people do not know how to refuse, even when they fulfill requests to the detriment of their interests.
- Play sports - you don't need to win gold medals and set records. Just go for a run, visit the pool or gym, do yoga.
- Limit the hours you spend online, read an interesting book.
Practices
I believe that getting out of your comfort zone is the only way to develop as a person, so I will provide the following exercises for those who need to “reboot”:
- Learn what you've always wanted to do: play the piano, make dumplings, embroider.
- Meet a stranger without any goals, just in a store, on a bus or on the street.
- Go to an unknown place - a restaurant with unfamiliar cuisine, a cinema or a garden.
- Take interesting training courses or visit clubs of like-minded people.
- Rearrange furniture or make repairs.
- Change your clothing style, haircut, hair color.
- Go on an unplanned trip, go to a live music concert.
Change your environment and habits
To achieve success and create her dream art project, Claire Laffout bravely left her comfort zone and moved to Paris. In order to achieve her goal, the girl had to cope with the lack of housing, lack of money and the need to constantly look for part-time work.
Claire took on any job and experienced constant anxiety. However, it was the struggle with the discomfort that she experienced that allowed her to take part in the Chanel Gabrielle advertising campaign and record her own single.
According to Evgenia Streletskaya, a specialist in cognitive behavioral psychotherapy, people get used to living in their own cozy world and cease to see opportunities for development. When they try to do something new (for example, learn a foreign language or move to another city), they experience serious discomfort. According to the psychologist, this indicates a lack of a certain skill.
Do you want to get rid of this unpleasant feeling? Try changing your habits. Start with something small:
- cook something unusual for breakfast;
- change the route you take to get to work;
- throw away or give away things you don't use;
- think about changing your image;
- rearrange furniture or make repairs.
Five steps to liberation
To achieve new heights and radically change the direction of life, adhere to the following stages of transformation of your internal state.
Step 1 – Goal Setting
Any road always begins with a choice of direction. You need to have a goal and clearly understand where you are going to go. The challenges that need to be overcome can be varied. For example, the fear of talking to new people, when trying to start a conversation, a person is constrained, he falls into a stupor. The solution is to meet strangers as often as possible, while initiating dialogue.
Step 2 – What and how much do you want?
The next stage is to specify the task at hand. Be clear about what you should receive and when. The result can be measured by facts, amounts or other criteria.
Step 3 – Labor
Consistently solve all tasks without deviating from the planned plan. Ideally, you will write daily reports to yourself and analyze their strengths and weaknesses.
Step 4 – More work
Get ready for the fact that on the path to achieving success there will be a lot of difficulties that you will not be able to overcome immediately. Don't take on more than you can handle. It's better to go slowly but surely.
Step 5 – Exploring “new horizons”
If you suddenly realized that yesterday’s milestone has again become your usual habitat, you can safely move forward and explore the unknown.
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How leaving a comfortable environment will change your life
The process of overcoming oneself will not go unnoticed; colossal changes will occur, namely:
- You will have a huge number of ideas for development, your perception of the world around you will expand, your brain is constantly fed with information from various areas of knowledge. You will look at everything that is happening around you from a completely different angle.
- Productivity will increase significantly, and the fear of solving complex problems will disappear.
- Soon, constantly reaching the top will become a habit for you.
