Topic: Comfort zone.
This is my first time joining a “Word Vomit Wednesday” with my peers Brian and Taylor, so please forgive me if I am not as good as them haha.
So let’s start talking about this topic of “Comfort zone.” Everyone has a place or belong somewhere where they can be themselves, free from judgement of the rest of the world. It is when we step out of this place or familiar feeling that we shrink into something less than who we really are. We do this because we are scared of the unknown and how the fear of the unknown might hurt us. How do we go about stepping out of our comfort zones then? Well, you take what is uncomfortable and make it comfortable. When you first try something new it is hard because it’s not something that is comfortable or familiar to you. But as you keep at it, you become comfortable with it because you now have experience with it. So really you just need to try, try, and keep trying and soon enough your comfort zone will expand as you add new things to it or it can even open up new opportunities. These new opportunities is where the magic happens.
Now let’s put my explanations into practice. For those who know me, you KNOW how shy of a person I use to be. I use to have my earphones on all of the time to avoid people talking to me. If someone came and sat next to me I would just sit there in awkward silence and not talk to them. I didn’t join any clubs or try to run for positions in them because public speaking just was not my thing. If I did talk to a random student who sat next to me or did join clubs I would be stepping out of my comfort zone. How did I get over this shyness? I put myself in situations that were uncomfortable. I started joining clubs and organizations and I put myself in positions that challenged myself. After having so many positions of leadership, speaking in front of a large crowd became easier. It was something that I never could see myself doing but since I had done it so many times it was like second nature. This helped me be more familiar with the people around me and I created a community at Sac State, a place that was once unfamiliar then became an additional thing that I could add to my comfort zone.
So what happens next after something uncomfortable then becomes a part of your comfort zone? You run away and keep adding new things to it. That’s literally what I did haha. I ran away to England for fall of 2015 to study abroad! I left my comfort zone which was my family at home and my family at Sac State. If you took me back to my freshmen year in college this was something I never thought I could ever do. Why? Because I was that shy girl and being shy costs so much. It makes you not want to try new things and keeps you from developing skills that should be explored. The time I spent at Sac State, I spent it exploring skills that I needed to develop further like public speaking, asking for help, and building connections with new people. Once I explored these traits and became comfortable with them it opened up new opportunities for me to have the courage to try new things. And this is what I mean when I say adding new things to your comfort zone can bring new opportunities. If I had not gone out of my comfort zone to acquire new skills, I would not have studied abroad.
So yeah I totally get it. Staying inside our comfort zones feel good, safe, and secure. Stepping out of it brings fear, nervousness, and discomfort. But remember to always be curious about what’s on the other side. When we stick to just what we know we miss out on new and wonderful opportunities all because of fear. This can be applied to anything like starting a new job, going to a new school, falling in love, getting married, moving away, etc. Just remember that as you try new things the circle of your comfort zone can only get bigger not smaller.