Exploring the Edge of your Comfort Zone
Jose & Crystal here and we are back with Episode 202 of the Undeniable Level Up Podcast. In our last episode we discussed the sacrifices that are required to achieve success. If you missed it, please go and listen to it now by clicking on the "last episode" hyperlink. We heard a moving story from Steve Harvey about how he sacrificed for his chance at comedy stardom after his first open mic on stage and the truth is, most of us haven't really considered the sacrifices that are required to make our dreams a reality. So I definitely encourage you to check out that podcast.
Today we are exploring the edge of your comfort zone! For some of you, you have gotten so comfortable that you've resorted to NEVER getting out of that comfort zone. But that's where life begins!!! At the edge. Right where fear turns your stomach and anxiety pulls you back from the edge, this is where the magic happens.
Roy Bennet wrote in 'The Light in the Heart', "It's only after you've stepped out of your comfort zone that you begin to change, grow, and transform".
Q: Do you agree or disagree with Bennet?
It is extremely easy to get stuck in your comfort zone. Some even refer to it as being "stuck in a rut". If you've experienced this before, you know exactly what this feels like. Your day is the same old routine, day in, day out. Nothing changes. You wake up, get the kids ready for school, you go to work, you come home and make dinner. Spend a few minutes helping the kids with homework, a little Netflix and then its off to bed and the routine repeats the next day. And then the next and then the next. At some point you wonder how 10 - 15 years have just passed without any excitement, no growth and a deep dark depressing boredom that you wear along with your now permanent frown.
But this doesn't have to be your reality, right? The very first step to change is realizing that you need to make a change. So how do you know if you are stuck in your comfort zone and need to begin exploring the edge a little more.
Casey Imafidon, from Lifehack, provides us with 8 signs that indicate it's time for you to take leap out of your comfort zone. If any of these signs resonate in your heart, then it's time to begin to expand your comfort zone and go from being alive to actually living:
The first indicator that you are stuck in your comfort zone is that you are unhappy. Many times it's difficult to identify what exactly is making you unhappy.
Q: Have you ever found yourself feeling deeply unhappy and feeling like you are stuck in rut? How did you handle it? What things did you do to implement changes?
The next indicator is a profound feeling of self doubt. You either don't think you can accomplish much, you feel like you peaked in life or have an overwhelming sense of feeling incapable of more than you are currently doing. That could be working a dead end job and not feeling like you are worth of a promotion, or maybe you are trying to get in shape, but feel like you're too old to really make the transformation you want.
Q: Have you ever found yourself second guessing your ability to achieve a goal or an objective?
The next indicator is that you are living a stagnant life. Meaning there is no movement in your life. Everyday seems still and eventless. You might be accomplishing mundane tasks that do not add value or excitement to your life.
Q: Have you ever found yourself in a stagnate state? What put you there? How did you get out?
The next indicator is that you can't recall the last time you did or tried something new. Your day to day has become so mundane that your zest for learning and growth has all but vanished.
Q: When was the last time you tried something new? How have you enjoyed it? What challenges did you face?
The next indicator is that you have nothing to talk about. When you are around others, you are the least exciting person in the room. You are amazed by the lives and stories of others and can't imagine doing half of the things that the people around you are doing.
Q: Have you ever been the least exciting person in a room?
The next indicator is that you constantly say "NO' to anything you've never done before. Rather than try something new, you prefer to stay in that flaccid state of inactivity and non-action.
Q: When was the last time you said NO to trying something new? Why? Do you regret it? Would you do it now?
The next indicator is that you procrastinate on taking action. You want to learn how to dance Salsa, and you will as soon as you lose 30 pounds. Or you always wanted to learn how to ride horses, and you plan to, as soon as the kids are grown up and move out of the house.
Q: What types of things have you wanted to accomplish but continue to procrastinate on? How will you change your behavior?
Finally, you often use the words "IF' and "WHEN" to excuse your current state of comfort. Negative words like "CANT" and "WONT" are common in your vocabulary. "I WON'T jump out of plane because I am afraid of heights", or "I'm NOT going diving because I CAN'T swim well".
Q: What type of negative self talk do you use or have you used in the past? How have you changed the narrative of your self talk? How has that reflected in your choices?
So what do you do if you find yourself stuck in that comfort zone? Well, there are several different things that you can do to get yourself unstuck. And we are going to give you 12 different things you can do to turbo boost yourself out of that nasty yucky comfort zone.
The first one can be challenging. But it involves understanding how you body handles and responds to fear. I've found myself in some very scary situations and so I know exactly how my body responds to fear and I also know how to control my reactions to fear. Understanding how you manage and deal with fear allows you to control the stress that you'll encounter as you begin leaving your comfort zone.
Q: How do you respond to fear? Have you always responded this way.
Second is self affirmations. And if you haven't listened to the Undeniable Level Up podcast, Season 1, Bonus Episode 3, "I am a Champion" The Power of Positive Affirmations" then please go listen it to it now. This is a great way to help you edge out of your comfort zone.
The third, is change your internal dialogue and control your narrative. You can tell yourself, this is too hard to endure, or you can say, "I've got this, I've been through tougher situations". Controlling your narrative will allow you to put thing...
