Our comfort zone is where stress and risk are minimum. And so, stepping out of the comfort zone is ultimately a choice. A choice that can be good or bad depending on how we go about it because the why and the how make a lot of difference.
Will stepping out of your comfort zone be really worth it?
These 3 quick questions based in science will help you decide whether stretching or stepping out of your comfort zone is going to be really worth it or not.
1. How far
The first question to ask is how far – “How uncomfortable am I willing to be to get that result?”
Feeling a little resistance is normal. It goes with any kind of change and is actually what keeps life feeling enjoyable. It’s called the Goldilocks principle or the Yerkes-Dodson Law that essentially states that we enjoy things most when the amount of difficulty is just right…neither too much feeling overwhelming, nor so little that we start getting bored.
But when we target for things so far out of our comfort zone that we stretch it to the snapping point, the action demands so much effort that it leaves us feeling overwhelmed even to think about it,
then that tells us that it’s not going to be worth the effort…. Because even if we manage to perform at that level once or twice, it won’t matter much because to get any meaningful result we have to be able to show up consistently.
And it’s easier, more practical to show up consistently for things that feel easy than those that demand a lot of effort.
Setting the tone for future choices –
Our brain likes to choose the easier option because it saves energy, something it would need in case there’s a survival emergency. The ’how far’ really makes a difference in whether it would all be worth it or not.
And this is important because it will influence how much we are willing or not willing to step out of our comfort zone in the future too because our brain is going to use this experience as a reference to predict whether doing uncomfortable things would really be worth the effort….even for things that we really want in our life.
2. How important
And that brings us to the second question, “Do I really want the result?”
Because if it isn’t, then going that extra mile won’t be able to justify the amount of satisfaction the result would bring. The ROI or return on investment has to be good enough so that our brain lodges it on the positive side of whether stretching our comfort zone is a good thing or not.
Because doing things out of our comfort zone is ultimately a choice. And if we don’t think
- the result matters enough, or
- if we are satisfied with how things are right now, or
- if we are not feeling stuck in any way
then no matter what anyone says, it’s not an absolute essential thing to do to feel happy with life.
But, if being comfortable is doing more harm than good. And if it’s something that will take us closer to our goals in life, then stepping the right distance out of our comfort zone is going to expand our horizon, our potential. Because doing what felt scary over and over again would eventually turn it into the new normal, something well within our comfort zone.
That’s what helps us grow.
“I’ve pushed it in different directions and made it bigger and bigger until these objectives that seemed totally crazy eventually fall within the realm of the possible.”
– Alex Honnold
To know the Third question – the one that sets your effort up for success, watch the video up top. It’s what makes stepping out of your comfort zone less stressful and more enjoyable.
What’s your best formula to know whether going that extra mile would really be worth it or not?
