Everyone has a zone where they feel the most comfortable. For some people this comfort zone is smaller than others. Here is some advice on how to break out of you comfort zone, face your fears, and start living a fuller life, such as reading some feel good quotes at quotes.viralcreek.com, or learning to take small steps at a time when facing a fear.
Start Small
There is no need to dive in head first, start by just sticking your foot in. By taking things one (small) step at a time, it will help you grow and learn from what you are experiencing better. If you try and face your fear of heights by jumping out of a plane from the get go, it could make your fear heights even more. The same goes for breaking out of your comfort zone. If your fear is of heights, start out by climbing a ladder. Then when you are comfortable with that you can move up from there. By the time you are ready to jump out of the plane, it will be more enjoyable for you.
By taking small steps you start to de-sensitize yourself from you fear, or what makes you uncomfortable. Small steps are situations you will find yourself in more often as well. How often will you jump out of a plane opposed to climbing a ladder? The more you de-sensitize yourself from these small steps, the better you can start living your life.
Set Goals
The best way to track your progress is to set goals for yourself. These can be as often as daily or monthly. Having goals is a good way to track your progress. The biggest comfort zone issue people have is social anxiety. If you are one of these people set a goal to talk to a certain amount of people you don’t know a day, week or month. Remember to start small and go from there.
Over time you may lose track of your goals and everything will come naturally to you. It’s just like training for a marathon. You start with what is comfortable to you and slowly start pushing yourself more and more to reach your goals. Before you know it, you’re able to run a 10k without even thinking about it.
Know that it’s OK to Fail
Most people don’t get it right the first time. Remind yourself, if you can’t do it the first time, there will be more opportunities to try. The most important thing to remember is;it’s ok to not succeed the first time. You just have to stick with it and never stop trying. Quitting is your enemy when it comes to opening your comfort zone. If you stop trying, you will never beat your enemy.
It is important to remember if you fail the first time, try it differently the second time. Taking new approaches to breaking out of your comfort zone will allow you to recognize how to go about it. Once you have accomplished one feat, you can re-visit ones you have failed in the past. Do these until you reach a point where you have completely come out of your comfort zone.
Have Faith
Your biggest support is yourself. Have faith in yourself and you can do anything. There is not much more to it than that. Breaking out of your comfort zone can often be a scary experience. Understanding that you can do it,and having faith that everything will be ok when you do, should be your biggest driver to face your fears.
Find What Motivates You
If you find yourself full of doubt, find something that motivates you. For some people this could be proving naysayers wrong. For others, anger fuels their motivation. Many people turn to motivational quotes to keep them going. Whatever it is that motivates you, stick with it and turn to it whenever you find you doubt yourself.
Sometimes taking risks is what you need to motivate yourself. Taking risks is a great way to break from what you are comfortable with, that is what taking risks are after all.
Have a Support Group
If you still feel like you need something more, rely on people who will support you as well. There are plenty of people you can find to cheer you on. Whatever comfort zone it may be that you are trying to step out from, there are people who are trying to do the same. They can be there to support you and you can be there to support them. Your support for them can help you grow as well.
Support groups can be friends or family, but can also be found throughout the world on the internet. There are tons of support groups for every comfort zone imaginable. Listen to other people stories and you can learn from them as well.
If breaking out of your comfort zone is something you would like to accomplish for yourself remember these 6 tips. Don’t give up on yourself, you may actually be surprised with what you are capable of.
Featured photo credit: gagilas via flickr.com
