Get Out Of Your Comfort Zone

Ah, yes, comfort. It’s just so…uhm…comfortable. Okay, so bad word retrieval moment aside, comfort just feels good, doesn’t it? I mean so many of us seek it daily, trying to find our comfort zone and staying within it. And it’s easy to justify doing that. I mean why would we bother doing something unfamiliar or out of the ordinary when instead we can just stick to what we know? The reality, however, is our comfort zone is not always our friend.

When our comfort zone keeps us from doing things that may harm us or harm others, it’s beneficial. But you should always draw the line somewhere. Not moving towards an erupting volcano just to observe the lava is a great, albeit uncommon, example of how our comfort zone protects us. A little extreme, I know, but just an example.

But what if we want to present the best version of ourselves at a job interview? We may need to go out of character and put on a more assertive yet friendly show if we are not naturally like that. There’s a great example of going out of your comfort zone. What if you have a presentation at work and you must nail it? Some of my lovely readers are not going to be naturally talented public speakers. That’s okay, but public speaking may be necessary sometimes.

The point here is your comfort zone can be useful and impeding depending on what it’s holding you back from. Our comfort zone needs to be controlled by us, not the other way around. We should be suitable enough judges to be able to determine how and when to use our comfort zone.

How to get out of your comfort zone?

So in those situations where our comfort zone is obstructive, what should you do to overcome it? How can you handle a presentation if you are not a natural public speaker? What about flying if you are afraid of planes? The list goes on but your fears don’t have to.

At any time we can find ourselves dumbstruck by fear or hesitation due to a reluctance to leave our comfort zone. But when this starts to happen, you may be able to see it coming. It often takes our brains a few seconds to start formulating outcomes, possibilities and excuses. This can cause a ripple effect, creating or exacerbating anxiety which can then further contribute to a hesitance to leaving your comfort zone.

What this disruptive series of events needs is a pre-emptive solution. What you would ideally do here is stop your brain before it can get into overthinking. Basically, stop it before it has a chance to give you reasons to stay in your comfort zone. The first thing you can try to do is act quickly.

There is a trend that has become more popular recently which can be of great help here. It is basically a counting strategy where you count to 3 (or 1 if you go backwards from 3) and then act. So, for example, say you wanted to get in a train but you’re scared to do so. Suppose you are standing at the door and the train arrives. Now it’s right there, in front of you with an open door. You can stand there, paused in time, and start thinking about reasons not to go in. You debate yourself, presenting convincing arguments of all the bad (and unlikely) things that can happen. No need for you to go to a debate club for practice, because your emotionally charged and anxiety inducing arguments are probably going to win.

Instead of that, use the count to 3 rule to push yourself. Basically, we want to avoid giving you any time to stir up reluctance. Once the door opens, count to 3 and take action right away. A train with its door(s) open in front of you but you are afraid of trains? Count 1, 2, 3, then go inside it. Force yourself to walk to your seat and sit there.

This works for so many people for two key reasons. The first is that counting to three can help you redirect mental energy towards the act of counting. This can actually move your mind away from thinking about improbable disasters that could possibly kind of sort of happen. Instead, you try to move your mind away from that and just focus on counting. It might not be the most mentally draining task, but at least it is something to focus on other than fear.

The other reason this works for most people is it forces quick action which minimizes the time available to think. It’s kind of hard to think of two things at once for most of us. Now imagine when you only have three seconds to think before you act. That short time frame is usually not enough for most people’s minds to go into a whole imagination circus. You are basically racing against your own thoughts here. And the odds are in your favor.

I just want to make it clear that counting to three or backwards from three is my personal choice. I find it short and sweet. Some people prefer counting to or from five. That’s usually equally as useful because that small difference of two extra digits typically won’t do much harm.

However you choose to count, what matters is you try to keep it at a low number and act as soon as you are done counting. Is this going to put an end to fear, anxiety, and hesitation for everyone instantly? I mean I can’t interview everyone who tries, but probably not. This is a great strategy to start with and it may do wonders for you. For most people, it improves their situation at least slightly or even gets them to completely overcome their comfort boundaries.

So go ahead and try it. You may just be one of the people who benefits from this tremendously. The favorable outcomes that you could seek to gain far outweigh the mild inconvenience of counting a few numbers in your head.