The comfort zone: the dilemma of staying or leaving it
Each one of us has lived different experiences, more or less pleasant situations that have defined our profile, what we are now. All these experiences have shaped our way of interpreting reality to configure our comfort zone. Human beings tend to look for those situations that make us feel pleasure and to flee from all those that produce displeasure.
By acting in this way, by fleeing the unknown through fear, uncertainty ... somehow we are constantly seeking to remain within our comfort zone, that is, we are trying to leave everything as it is, to remain comfortable within our reality. But ... we know what is the comfort zone?, Do we know the consequences of staying in it?
The comfort zone: what it is and how we interpret it
The comfort zone is that area in which we are safe, it is an environment where we know everything, where there is hardly room for unforeseen events, are all those routines that we have in our day to day, like going to work, chatting with some mate, buy in the same stores, meet with the same friends ... All these actions of day to day are part of our comfort zone, and belong to everything that is known to us.
The comfort zone may seem like a nice place, we feel comfortable in it and it allows us to function almost automatically. However, it is a mental state that prevents us from personal development. Staying in this area does not allow us to advance, to break our limits, to know, to increase our abilities and capacities ... in short, it limits our personal growth.
Risks of staying in the comfort zone
Surely we have all heard once; "be careful", "that's dangerous", "what if it goes wrong?" ... All these expressions, whether due to fear or insecurity, lead us to stay within our safe, known area of our comfort zone.
Although being inside the comfort zone can be pleasant, not making any change can attract different negative consequences. Never move from the familiar, the familiar and the safe ends up limiting us, because it does not confront us with new situations, we do not live different experiences and we end up stagnating.
Another consequence of staying motionless is that our skills are reduced, if we do not face different situations and we do not solve new challenges, we do not train our abilities to solve problems, to make decisions ... and the time will come when we will feel sad, without desire, we will think that we are capable or that we do not know how to do it, which will end up affecting our self-esteem.
Every time we leave our comfort zone, traveling, learning something new, meeting people ... we are expanding our learning area, we are expanding our vision of the world, of things, we are developing as people, growing, advancing .. .
How to escape from the comfort zone
So that the fear of failing or failing does not stop you from trying to get out of your comfort zone in any way, we tell you some secrets to motivate you:
1. Challenge yourself. Set new goals and objectives to achieve in a certain period of time. It is important that they are realistic and achievable so as not to feel defeated at first, the challenge is to keep trying.
2. Change your style of doing things. If what you like is to have everything under control, leave a small space to receive some unexpected surprise. Try to manage the changes and become more flexible.
3. Move in different environments. Go ahead to travel, to live in another place, to change the decoration of your house, even clothes ... These changes will allow you to meet very different people, who will motivate you and teach you completely new worlds for you.
4. Anticipate your own excuses. This psychological resource is the most effective way to get out of your comfort zone. Thanks to him, you will break the chains that keep you anchored to your comfort zone.
Rocío Navarro Psychologist Director of Psicolari, integral psychology
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