Often times, we become too comfortable where we are, reluctant to move or force change upon ourselves. We know this story far too well, whether it is the inability to get up from bed because you have found the perfect position to nestle into, or the inability to change paths in life because of the uncertainty and discomfort it may hold. We like our comfort and threatening that comfort can be detrimental…or so we think.    

Sometimes in order to live you need to force yourself to quit what comes most naturally to you.  Stop the daily routine, be spontaneous, do something no one expected you would ever do and watch it change your life for the better. 

I am not advocating you take a huge risk and gamble with your life savings. While that would be a very uncomfortable situation and extremely spontaneous, it is not a calculated risk. Your spontaneity should be calculated, do something that will change you as a person for the better, not jeopardize your life.  

The most difficult part of being comfortable is that we forget how to step away from it. Staying in our niches and shying away from new people and places just becomes a part of who we are. But learning how to break away from that is most important. 

Stepping out of your comfort zone sounds like a lot of work, but all you need is some guidance to break free.   

1. Stop Thinking: Our biggest challenges come from within, our minds are always thinking about what others are thinking of us and often become the cause of our initial discomfort. Do not be afraid to make a fool out of yourself just because your mind assumes others are judging you for it. More often than not the most charming people you meet are the ones who are not afraid to be silly, make mistakes, laugh it off, and move on without giving it a second thought. Be that person.   

2. Face your Fears: Whether it is heights, falling, spiders, or a new setting, face your fears. If you allow yourself to deal with the discomfort of facing these fears instead of avoiding them, you can open yourself up to a lot of adventures and experiences you had been missing out on all along.   

3. What’s the Worst that can Happen: You might fail, you may not even be close to facing a fear or stepping out of your comfort zone because it is not that easy to do, but the important thing is that you tried, and the more you try the better your results will be.   

Being out of your comfort zone is hard especially when it is not as simple as getting out of bed, but it is worth it. Most memories are made up of those moments where you overcame discomfort, where you were forced to go into survival mode and reveal a part of you that you never knew existed. That is where you learn and grow, that is where you get the most out of life. 

It is difficult to step away from certainty, it is difficult to leap into an unknown and test how far you can push yourself, but the results are beyond worth it.   

Neale Donalrd Walsh said it best, “Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.”