Is Your Comfort Zone Really That Comfortable? 10 Facts You’re Not Quite Sure

“Comfort zone” is considered to be psychological space of a human being in which he feels relaxed. This zone is called comfortable due to the fact that everything that happens within it is predictable.

Spending time in this space does not bring about strong emotions and feelings. Predictability allows using a limited set of behavioral reactions and does not require new decisions and actions. That is the moment you stay in the comfort zone when people find out nothing new for themselves, at the same time using only the knowledge and resources possessed.

Comfort zone for adults

The adoption of new solutions for adults is often associated with stress. It can be seen, for example, when purchasing goods or services. If you hadn’t an experience of acquiring a particular category of goods or services, then you would feel insecure and not confident. The cause of stress is related to an individual’s attitude towards the world, other people and expectations.

Comfort zone for children

Children do not feel stressed because world understanding has not formed yet, and each performed action is cognition and study of their capabilities. The absence of stress in children’s life suggests that limiting of some directions is the main cause of comfort zone existence. Directions include certain feelings, such as: fear, guilt, shame, peace, joy, etc. Memories connected with these feelings act for us a stimulus to the commitment or refraining from action. For example, if sales for a person are associated with guilt, which he experienced in childhood, that person will avoid this sphere of activity or will bring this feeling into his work.

Everybody strives for homeostasis (balance). Psychological balance is an important component of your daily life. In case of any new event when the person does not know what to expect, the body feels instability and danger. To avoid this danger you can turn to directions that form the boundary of your comfort zone and keep us well.

Why you need to step out of your comfort zone?

1. You will never know something new without trying.

You can spend a lot of time trying to guess how the life could have turned in a particular case that happened. But you will never learn if you don’t try personally. History repeatedly gives us examples. The great discoveries and achievements were made when people decided to come out of their comfort zone when risking.

Each of us can make a decision to take the risk, but will this risk bring some benefit? For instance, you are a designer and have recently read about new styles and trends. You would like to try something, but you have become so accustomed to the old ones that even such a thought is frightening. Don’t be afraid if something does not work, then you will have an opportunity to return to the old ways. It is possible to expand the network. While dating you need to meet and personally communicate with a person, but you really feel uncomfortable in such situations. But leaving your comfort zone allows you to learn how to work in a team and to reach a new level.

2. You will not evolve and will remain at the same level of development.

Life is a series of specific events and decisions, which teach us to be stronger, give experience and knowledge allow you to cope with some tasks easier. But if you are afraid to go out of your comfort zone, no development will be.

Very often people having reached some kind of a stage or step, refuse to go forth. You believe that a bird in the hand is better than a crane in the sky. You are afraid to take risks, to try new things, set new goals. And this fear, at first glance seems absolutely understandable. Why dream about something, after all, and now all is well. But as soon as you stop setting goals for yourself, you will slowly but surely fade away. Your life will be boring, monotonous, routine. Home, work, home that’s what awaits people who chose “bird” and not want to get out of their comfort zone.

3. Errors are the best teachers.

The main reason why most people are afraid to leave their comfort zone is fear to make mistakes and to lose everything what they have. But mistakes, as mentioned above, are not always bad things. I would even say that it’s great that in your life were situations which caused you to make errors. Any failure is, first and foremost, a lesson to become better, to know ourselves, to understand how to act in a given situation.

If you learn how to analyze mistakes, if you take lessons from them, then you will completely forget what is comfort zone, stop being afraid to do some unusual things, to take the most ambitious and radical solutions.

4. You are too shy and doubtful.

This means that you are afraid of trying some new experiences and emotions, you are unhappy with the current situation. Try new challenges!

5. Starting conversation first  – it’s not about you.

You have doubts and indecisiveness before talking to strangers, this isn’t ok.

6. Refusing to do something unusual.

Don’t hesitate, agree to someone’s respond to help him doing something not familiar to you.

7. Procrastination is your main feature.

You often complain about unpleasant factors, you usually don’t do things in time. Something always holds you back.

8. If/When are your favorite words.

Your main feature is using words of negative connotation, such as: can’t or, for instance, won’t. You are to change these words with more positive ones – should or could.

9. You don’t strive for success.

10. New achievements – aren’t your main goals.

All in all, it is clear that you need to pay attention to this issue due to the fact these factors can influence your life greatly, you don’t set new goals.

Don’t forget: development is a life’s driving force!

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Marta Trenton is a graduate student and an inspired blogger at Tuko.co.ke. 5 years ago she started writing her own short stories on a wide range of topics including education and information technologies. Marta finds travelling a great way to get back to what’s really important in life. You can follow her on Twitter.