Exit the Zone

“Comfort provides a floor, but also a ceiling.”

-Trevor Noah

I think one of the scariest things we experience in life is facing the unknown.

At least we think it’s scary.

And in thinking it is scary, we experience the fear.

I am a personal fan of encouraging people to push the limits of their comfort zone; and yet there are things I wouldn’t face myself. Life sure is a balancing act. I will say, that in my mind the things I won’t face feel extreme. For instance — I won’t try bungee jumping, or skydiving, or anything else where there is some form of free fall. I don’t like the idea of a floor being taken out from under me. At the same time, I absolutely adore zip-lining (at least I still feel the connection to the line which is supporting me).

But it’s not just about the physical limits in our lives — what are the mental blocks we’ve placed on ourselves that we are unwilling to push past? Do we feel a lack of support, like we might go into free fall without a parachute, by giving our mind over to the unknown? Perhaps.

Here’s the kicker: Absolutely everything that is in front of us is unknown. We might think we have an idea of what we will face, but we don’t. I don’t really know what is going to happen 30 seconds from now, let alone 30 days or 30 years.

We’ve convinced ourselves that we have limits, but those limits hold us back, and those limits are only in our minds. I used to have a limitation of thinking (despite most people’s experiences of me) that I was shy. When I would go to a party, I would stand in the corner hoping someone would talk to me; but I couldn’t possibly make the effort myself because it was too risky to face the possibility of being rejected. Rejection, to me, was like the parachute not opening.

It actually took a lot for me to move past that fear — and I still face it occasionally — but I am glad I did move past it when I did. It was because I stepped out past the comfort zone and said, “hello,” that I met the man who is now my husband.

I couldn’t possibly have known in that moment what the next 30 seconds would hold, neither could I have known that three years after that we would be married.

In retrospect I see it. It makes me wonder what other opportunities I’ve missed because I hid behind my own fears.

What fears do you need to face today?