One of my all-time favorite movies is Moana. I love everything about it, from the story itself and the visualization of the underlying messages and the music (especially the music).
You may remember that in the movie, Moana is set to become the chief of her island, Motunui. She genuinely enjoys her role and actually does a very good job at it. Everyone is very supportive of her, and she supposedly has everything that she needs on the island.
However, if you're familiar with the song "How Far I'll Go," you know that Moana is conflicted. She knows that she could be a successful chief, and she would be satisfied with her role. On the other hand, she wants to go beyond the reef and out to sea, to literally see how far she can go. The only problem is that she's initially somewhat hesitant to actually do so. She's been warned about the real dangers of venturing beyond the safety of the island, so there's no guarantee that it would be easy.
And as we know, that doesn't stop her from trying.
Moana takes the initiative to step out of her comfort zone and embark on an enriching new experience, and we can, too. That's one of my favorite takeaways from the movie.
Sure, it's nice to feel comfortable and secure right now in your bubble (or rather, on your island.) After all, you probably know how everything works or doesn't work on your little island. As long as you don't change anything and just stay on course, chances are that you'll be fine.
You'll be fine, but are you really doing everything you can to get the most out of your life? Do you imagine that things could be better?
That's right, you're nodding right now. So what stops someone from seeing how far they can go?
Stepping out of your comfort zone to try something new — going beyond the reef — is scary. You've never done anything like this before, and chances are that it might not work out the first time.
Think about when you tried to develop a skill set, pick up a new hobby or learn a new language. Chances are, you thought it would be easy to try something new, and you quickly learned that it wasn't. You became very aware of how much you needed to grow. That must have been daunting.
At that point, you were at a crossroad. You could either stop and go back to being in your comfort zone where you know you would be secure and happy or you could keep going forward and pushing yourself to further boundaries.
It's easier to go for the first option. However, it's much more rewarding to go for the second. If you decide to venture beyond the reef and learn from your experiences, you'll grow as a person. And you'll have a better understanding of just how far you can go.
