A comfort zone is a place of safety, and as the word suggests, a place of comfort. We all hang out there from time to time. However, what you need to realise is that nothing grows in a comfort zone. That means you are not growing there. The longer you stay there, the harder it is to leave. But if you want to do more or be more, then you have to increase or step out of your comfort zone. You can’t see it, but you can feel when you are at the edge of it. There is a physical reaction in your body as you prepare to increase your comfort zone. That feeling can be fear, or your version of that. It can also be anticipation and excitement. So stepping out of your comfort zone doesn’t have to be scary.
If you’re one of those people who does the same thing, daily, weekly, annually, this list is for you.
Here are 6 ways that you can increase your comfort zone, and the result is that you will create a new comfort zone, and then you do something else, you will increase it again!
- Say YES to new opportunities and new experiences. Sometimes you know that you want to do something different, but something holds you back? That is you hanging onto your comfort zone. Say yes and see what happens.
- Go to the cinema or theatre on your own. Pick a show and book a ticket, release whatever fears you may have about sitting in the dark on your own for a couple of hours, and enjoy the experience.
- Do something different at work. If you never speak in a meeting, find something to say. If you tend to hide out at the back in a workshop, sit at the front. If someone asks for a volunteer, put yourself forward. All the thoughts you’re having right now about this suggestion are just your fears, most of which are not true. See yourself doing this new action and then go with it.
- Go to a different holiday destination. Get on a plane if you don’t normally. Explore a different part of the country or the city on a bus or on foot. Go on your own. Maybe leave your life behind for a day or weekend, and go to a retreat or a spa.
- Make a request. If you are not used to getting your needs met because you don’t ask for something. Try making small requests of friends and family. Are there things you tolerate because you don’t want to make a fuss? Could you ask someone to stop or start doing something? Could you ask for a new job or more responsibility?
- Change your appearance. If you’ve had the same hairstyle/spectacles/makeup/level of fitness/fashion sense for a few years. It’s time to update it.
Finally, take risks. Not life threatening types of risks, just the ones that you know, if you do them, will have an impact on your life. It doesn’t matter where you begin or what you decide to do, there is no going back once you start. You can’t shrink your comfort zone so easily, but you can increase it way beyond your wildest dreams and then some.
Now is the time, it is your time. Go. Be. Do.
If you would like to find out how you can increase your comfort zone and your power and influence. Join women in London at Increase Your Power & Influence workshops. More details are here.
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