Bravery. A word we equate with many things: Gryffindor, heroes saving the entire world, things that are bigger than ourselves. It wouldn’t be likely for us to say a small act such as going somewhere new was brave. But that’s exactly what it was. The word bravery means nothing more than a courageous act. Bravery is the willingness to confront pain, agony, danger, uncertainty or intimidation.

That means asking that boy or girl you like out makes you brave. Or going to a new place you’ve never been, by yourself, is an act of bravery. All it takes is a few seconds of immense courage to take the leap and do something you’ve never done before or something you never thought you’d do.

You’re thinking, why do I care? What’s the point? So I get up the nerve to ask that person out and they regret me, great advice Tori. Why should you really step out of your comfort zone? I’ll tell you why: because until you do, you’ll never know what amazing things the world has to offer.

I wouldn’t be telling you this if I didn’t take the step myself. As an Education major, I’ve now been going in and out of different classrooms and school districts for a while now, a brave act in and of itself. But the moment I was told I was going to be in a self-contained classroom for fieldwork, I panicked. I was afraid.

I’ve never been in a self-contained classroom where students with a range of disabilities learn. Not only was the uncertainty of how severe the student’s disabilities would be, the class was in a high school. I already graduated high school once; I planned on never going back, and rightfully so as I’m an Elementary Education major. So now I had many things to make my heart race and my plans sweaty. I would be going to a high school that I’ve never been to before and go into a classroom setting I’m very unfamiliar with, working with a student population that I never worked with before.

I was intimidated, the amount of uncertainty was daunting, and by definition, I was brave when I walked up to the school doors that day and willingly faced all my fears. Sure, I couldn’t even get the door open for about a minute while the secretary was trying to explain to me how to open the door, but I still took a huge step out of my comfort zone. My heart was still racing while I walked down the hall lined with orange lockers and I entered the classroom.

Turns out, there was nothing to be scared about. The environment was welcoming, the kids themselves were brilliant and funny, and that one experience changed my life. I learned a lot of things that day, that I thought would be beneficial for everyone to know.

Lesson 1: You really don’t know what the world has to offer until you go and discover it for yourself.

I was never given the opportunity to work in this type of classroom setting, hence my reservations when I was placed there. But I’m glad I got to experience it because I would never have known what it was like or what I was missing.

Lesson 2: You can’t say you don’t like something until you’ve tried it.

Here’s some more personal info about me: I’m working towards a certification in Elementary Special Education. Sounds sort of silly since this was my first time actually working with students in special education, but the certification is for general education as well. But I always told people I’d prefer to teach general education because that’s what I was exposed to. I couldn’t see myself as a Special Education teacher because I didn’t know what that entailed. If you try something and you don’t like it, then it’s not for you. But you can’t judge something until you’ve worked up the courage to try it.

Lesson 3: Sure, you might be embarrassed, but you’ll also be proud of yourself.

If you’re going somewhere and doing something you’ve never done, there’s the possibility that you’re going to fail. No one is perfect. We’re all human beings who make mistakes. Maybe the person you did ask out rejected you, but aren’t you proud that you were brave enough to ask and now you have an answer? OK, maybe not, but 9 out of 10 times I bet you’ll feel proud that you accomplished something scary. Yeah, I couldn’t work a simple door to get into the building and my cheeks grew hot with embarrassment when I finally got in, but when I left later that day I barely remembered that catastrophe of an entrance--I was just proud I had gotten in at all.

Lesson 4: You’ll grow.

Everything in our life shapes who we are as a person. Maybe you hated the experience, maybe you loved it; either way, if you gain nothing else from it, grow. Learn from it so it can happen again or so it won’t. When I went to the school the next week, guess who opened the door in one try? This girl.

So next time you have the opportunity to try something new, are you going to take the step out of your comfort zone?