Everyone tells you that life starts at the end of your comfort zone. But I am going, to be honest, and say it is not very easy to step out of your comfort zone. I am an introvert and I like my safe routines but at the same time, I am also thinking I want to change myself and my life. But every time I fall back in my same old routines. If you are used to the same old routines every single day and you like your comfort zone, it takes courage to take that step. But it will be worth it in the end. In this blog post, I will give you 5 reasons to step out of your comfort zone.
If you want to change your life and grow as a person, take action. Because before you know it, you are old and you will regret not doing it. Trust me, I’ve been there. I already have a few regrets because I was too scared to step out of my comfort zone. And if you take the leap and do something scary, you can only grow as a person, whether you liked it or not. But at least, you won’t feel any regret for not trying it.
Reasons to step out of your comfort zone
No regrets
As I said, if you want to do something but it scares you, it is easier to stay in your comfort zone. But you have to ask yourself the following question: ‘Will I regret it if I don’t do it? If the answer is yes, then do it. Yes, taking the first step is always scary because it is new. We people like doing safe things, our brains want to keep us safe. So when you want to do something scary, your brain will tell you not to do it. That is why you always have to listen to your intuition. If you want to start a business or switch careers, do it. If you are too scared/shy to talk to someone, just do it. Because you don’t want to regret not taking the risk and follow your heart when you are older. So many old people regret the things they didn’t do.
Personal growth
If you stay in your comfort zone, you will end up doing the same things over and over again. Sometimes that can be nice. You don’t have to think about the things you are doing. But you will not grow when you stay in your comfort zone. If you decide to speak in front of a lot of people, you will get used to that eventually and suddenly you are not so scared anymore of public speaking. Stepping out of your comfort zone does not always mean it will be successful or that you will like that. But the good thing about that is that you will always learn from your mistakes and that is growing too. You learn what you like and what you don’t like. You learn what works or what does not work for you. The first step is scary and you have to get through that phase but eventually, it gets easier and you wonder why you were even scared at all.
Confidence
When you have to speak in public for the first time it can be scary and you don’t feel very confident. You are new to it and you are not sure if you are doing it right. But if you do it more often, your confidence will grow. Your speeches will get better and better and you are not so scared anymore.
When you stay in your comfort zone, there are no challenges for you. You do the same thing every single day. There is nothing new to do and learn. But that means there is barely any room to become more confident. When you step out of your comfort zone and did something scary, you will feel on top of the world.
Dealing with fears
Life will get more exciting and interesting
The comfort zone is safe but also very predictable. If you do the same things over and over, you will get the same results. If you do something else, you will get new results. Maybe that scares you, but the good thing is that you have no idea what is going to happen next. You will get different results, but you have no idea what. And that is exactly what life makes interesting and exciting. Because suddenly everything is possible.
You spend more time in the now
Following routines means you don’t have to think about it. When you learn how to drive a car, at first you are focused on driving. But after a few years, you don’t have to think about it. Some people do other things while they are driving. Not very safe, but as an example. And while you are driving home, you will think about other things. Your body took everything over without thinking. But when you learn something new, you have to pay attention to the moment because if you don’t, you will probably fail. If you learn how to play the guitar, you have to focus on the chords and where to place your fingers. You are spending more time in the now. And that is where is the magic starts too. Suddenly you are being mindful and there are a lot of reasons to be more mindful too. You feel more relaxed because you are not worrying about the past or future anymore and you suddenly notice the things around you. You will see the beauty of life and you start living.
How to step out of your comfort zone?
You probably want to step out of your comfort zone if you are reading this. That is great! But you have no idea where to start. I recommend starting small. Some people think you have to jump out of a plane to step out of your comfort zone, but that is not true. Stepping out of your comfort zone does not always mean that you have to do crazy big things like sky diving. For example, I am scared to talk in my TikTok videos. Yes, I know that is kind of weird. I am Dutch and I am afraid of what people will say about my accent when I speak in English. But that is one of the steps I can take to step out of my comfort zone. Or maybe you can start by complimenting someone (you know). Or when you want to start small then you try a new recipe.
Remember to take small steps. Even a small step is a step in the right direction.
Photo by Joshua Rawson-Harris on Unsplash