So you’ve walked the same path to and from class everyday at the same time with the same white converse you bought last summer on sale. You keep swiping past the same type of people on Tinder and, wait, was that the same guy who spilled his drink on you at last Friday’s house show? Anyway, you’ve been feeling a little mundane lately and are in desperate need of some spice. Flavor. Some “sauce”, as Future may say. We all go through phases of our lives that have way too much routine, which lead us wanting something, anything, to happen.
What exactly is a comfort zone? It’s the place where you experience the least amount of growth. You may have that one friend who doesn’t necessarily hold you back, but definitely doesn’t seem to inspire you, either. Perhaps your “comfort zone” consists of those Friday nights where you want to get up on stage and sing karaoke with your friends, but the fear of what others may think stop you from doing just that. Maybe your comfort zone is staying silent when you hear others make racially-insensitive jokes around you.
Whatever your comfort zone is, it may seem harmless. In fact, comfort zones seem to dress up as friends, when in reality they’re stealing away the life you deserve to live every time you give into their temptations. Your comfort zone may speak to you like this:
“You don’t REALLY wanna speak up in class, do you? No one really cares what you have to say. Just stay quiet like you always do.”
“There’s no point in going back to school. It’s too late. Besides, you already have a great job.”
“You probably shouldn’t show up to that interview. It’s not like you were going to get the position anyway.”
That’s when you have to tell that little zone of comfort to shut the hell up.
Whatever you think you can’t do—it’s all in your head. Whatever you think is unattainable—trust me, it isn’t. It’s time we stop dancing with the hum-drum comfortability that this dangerous zone so seductively, yet falsely, promises us.
How does one exactly escape these toxic “comfortable” thoughts? It starts with your brain. Your thoughts control your life a lot more than you may think. Think about it: happy thoughts lead to smiles, laughter and confidence. When our thoughts are positive, our body language is instantly more open and inviting, thus making us way more attractive. More people will want to talk to you. More opportunities will arise. Positive energy is contagious and it’s a lot stronger than our comfort zones.
Sometimes it helps to think back to your childhood. What was your biggest dream? What have you always wanted to do? What’s stopping you from accomplishing that now? Absolutely nothing. So tell your comfort zone to put a sock in it and get the hell out of there, because once you do? Well, I guess you’ll have to find out.