Description
The concept represents a physical space or state where a person is securely settled and feels “at ease” - this is a familiar habitat, a sequence of actions, situations, the result of which is calculated and predicted in advance. The person is emotionally safe.
The decision to radically change your field of activity means going beyond comfort. Along with a new position and higher financial remuneration, an employee’s mental load and responsibility increases. Additional time is required to adapt and complete newly assigned tasks. Sudden but expected changes cause stress and anxiety in the individual. Discomfort will be felt until the individual “gets involved.” As soon as he gets used to it, stability in business will be established - the stressful state changes polarity and calmness is restored.
When do we withdraw into our comfort zone?
The comfort zone is a person’s living space, providing stability, security and confidence in the future. It is a form of addiction because a person takes it for a need.
Every morning starts with coffee and reading the newspaper. Then - a walk with the dog. After that - work. And in the evening there will certainly be sweet food and your favorite TV series about criminals. This is a standard description of the average person's comfort zone.
- Therefore, when your favorite series ends, a person will experience discomfort.
- Therefore, when the postman does not have time to bring the newspaper for breakfast, this will cause irritation and spoil the mood.
- Therefore, when you have to give up sweets at night for one reason or another, melancholy and anxiety will appear.
We find ourselves hostage to our comfort zone as soon as we enter it. But it also doesn’t work out completely without it. Because work usually starts and ends at the same time. And most daily activities are repeated. It becomes a habit. The human psyche needs a comfort zone. But it is necessary to expand its borders and make it a temporary refuge, and not the only place where a person can be.
While everything in the world tends towards chaos, man shows inertia. And this is part of the self-destruction for which we are, in part, programmed by nature.
This order appeared with the emergence of civilization. When people lived closer to nature, hunted and plowed in the fields, there was no comfort zone as such. Modern realities created it. And now we need to learn to free ourselves from its shackles. Otherwise, life will become stereotyped, development will stop and personal degradation, creative stagnation and apathy will inevitably begin.
What is the harm of staying in a familiar state for a long time?
If a lake frog is placed in a container of cold water, which is then heated over low heat, the amphibian will slowly begin to adapt. How? She gradually increases her body temperature, trying to make her stay in the new environment as pleasant as possible for herself. Soon there comes a turning point, when the liquid warms up so much that it is no longer bearable, but the frog still will not jump out of the flask and cook. This is due to the fact that she has already spent her reserves trying to adapt (by changing the temperature of her body).
An identical situation occurs with a person. When deterioration comes gradually, the person practically does not notice them or tries to pretend that he does not see the harmful changes. At first she makes concessions to her own detriment, then the situation worsens. Thus, one gradually comes to terms with the troubles that are occurring, consciousness changes, and as a result, a habit is formed.
A person can clearly understand everything, think for a long time about what does not suit him, want to change it, but alas, does nothing, postponing the solution to the issue “for tomorrow.” As a result, circumstances are already so pressing that everyday life turns into hell, he has neither the physical nor the moral ability to change anything, since all efforts were wasted on forming a habit. The longer an individual does not resist, the more his situation worsens, and he can no longer take drastic measures.
Many people ask the question: is it necessary to leave the established comfort zone? When a person lacks the motivation to change the situation, life itself presents him with problems that stimulate him to take action. Troubles push a person out of his familiar routine, and he is forced to look at what is happening in a new way and react appropriately. It is thanks to an unforeseen combination of circumstances that consciousness makes a sharp turn.
Psychologist Daria Milai
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If a specialist loses his job during layoff, resulting in severe stress. Over time, he opens his own business, which gives him something he could never have dreamed of. Many have hidden potential, but to unlock it, a tough shake is needed.
When a breakup occurs, a man or woman is forced to remain alone. They experience emotional shock and depression may occur. But after a while, a person looks at what happened differently, finds new love and even rejoices at the separation.
If you take a closer look, those things that were initially considered normal were most likely not so. We often get used to work with low pay, bad attitude from loved ones and believe that this is how it should be. Don't wait until life hits you so hard that you have to jump out of boiling water.
Do you need to leave your established comfort zone?
The “suspended” state very often causes discomfort. Many people have a fear of taking action so as not to worsen the existing situation. Leaving your usual habitat means doing something you are afraid of, even if there is a risk of losing everything. Moving forward requires constant change.
Taking risks and taking unusual steps is the only way to move to the next level. If you want your life to change for the better all the time, then the feeling of discomfort associated with a new environment should become quite familiar to you.
Why do you need to leave her?
The reasons for which it is worth looking for a way out may vary:
- Awareness of the problem and search for ways of self-realization. This option is rare among people who regularly work through internal conflicts with a specialist. This helps awareness, causing a desire to change the situation for your own benefit.
- Hidden inner qualities seeking ways of expression. In rare cases, talent, confined to the clear boundaries of a zone that seems comfortable, begins to break through in creativity. This brings to mind the possibilities that disappear without being used, since leaving a familiar environment is scary.
- The desire to obtain unavailable benefits. The zone that marks the boundaries of a comfortable life makes it impossible to achieve certain goals. To implement them, a violation of the usual framework is required - this is the minimum condition.
- Internal stress. Constantly being in conditions that are familiar, but do not provide comfort, causes internal dissonance. A person does not need anything externally, but feels internal discomfort. In such conditions, the level of stress actively increases, which affects physical and mental health.
READ Fear of people: causes, symptoms, treatment and prevention
If the position taken seems uncomfortable, social phobia gradually develops, especially in conditions of external well-being. The individual expresses dissatisfaction, receiving in response misunderstanding and condemnation, because outwardly the way of life corresponds to the norms. However, refusing to communicate does not solve the problem, so it is worth studying in advance the mechanism for comfortable development of abilities for a decisive step towards peace and spiritual comfort.
Why step out of your comfort zone
A feeling of complete security, peace, lightness and carelessness - these are all signs of a familiar habitat. The individual knows perfectly well what awaits him, does not foresee any unusual developments of events, and sits calmly in his cozy shell. The advantage of such a stay is absolute uniformity of existence and psychological well-being. The desire to leave such a state is extremely important in order to grow and develop. “Symptoms” of entering the zone:
- everything goes on as usual;
- the soul is light;
- complete carelessness.
If you have the feeling that there is no meaning in existence, you are floating with the flow and something has long been needed to change, the “kick” that you will receive by leaving your usual area will provide enormous opportunities for personal growth.
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If you cannot cope with the problem on your own, and life does not give you the desired impetus, you are stuck in one place. Sign up for a consultation with me, and I will provide you with high-quality psychological assistance, breathing new meaning into existence.
How to understand that you are trapped
Finding acquaintances, changing jobs or areas of activity, gaining skills and knowledge is a huge stress for many people. Often such actions are accompanied by risks that bring psychological discomfort to the individual. The uncertainty of the future, fearlessness in the face of future challenges is one of the stages of human development. The older an individual is, the more difficult it is for him to escape from his usual peace. However, an emotionally healthy person should not remain in this state for a long time, otherwise degradation is possible - that’s why you need to get out of your comfort zone.
Imagine for a moment that you find yourself in a situation where practically nothing depends on you. If you have panicky thoughts or feel anxious, this means that you are deeply mired in a problem. Do not resist change, even if it seems terrible, fear is a natural protective reaction of the human body. We are designed this way and only strong individuals can overcome themselves. Usually they are the ones who achieve great success in life.
Signs of being stuck in your comfort zone
Learning something new is always associated with going beyond your comfort zone. The risk zone is a space where unpredictable events can happen to us, but it is necessary to enter it in order to develop. When we are young, we easily expand our boundaries, but the older we get, the more difficult it is to give up peace.
A healthy person who lingers in the comfort zone for a long time dooms himself to degradation. What signs indicate getting stuck? Let's say you're faced with a new situation or just imagined that you could get into it. If fear becomes your reaction, know that it’s urgently time for you to get out of your favorite place. Remember that reactions to new circumstances can be completely different: curiosity, anxiety, pleasant excitement, even joy. But the fear you experienced is an absolutely destructive feeling, and it clearly indicates a reluctance to leave your comfort zone. Fear makes us hide from the problem, pretend that nothing is happening, and resist change. If we decide to expand our comfort zone, the actions must be completely different - adaptation and acceptance of new circumstances.
How can you get out of your comfort zone and start taking action?
To leave your usual habitat, follow my recommendations.
Methods
There are many opportunities to force yourself to do something. You need to start small, then increase the dose until you achieve the desired result.
- Change your daily routine - the most harmless option. Try to spend time at least once a week differently than usual. Soon your body will thank you – you will have energy and feel better.
- Set goals - at first, make them tiny, easy to achieve. Then expand your horizons and soon you won’t recognize yourself.
- Start waking up early - this is an effective way to fill your body with energy and move forward.
- Mini-stress will help you psychologically tune in to productive work.
- Discover new places - change your usual path, go for a walk in the evening, go on a trip.
- Learn to say no - as practice shows, many people do not know how to refuse, even when they fulfill requests to the detriment of their interests.
- Play sports - you don't need to win gold medals and set records. Just go for a run, visit the pool or gym, do yoga.
- Limit the hours you spend online, read an interesting book.
Practices
I believe that getting out of your comfort zone is the only way to develop as a person, so I will provide the following exercises for those who need to “reboot”:
- Learn what you've always wanted to do: play the piano, make dumplings, embroider.
- Meet a stranger without any goals, just in a store, on a bus or on the street.
- Go to an unknown place - a restaurant with unfamiliar cuisine, a cinema or a garden.
- Take interesting training courses or visit clubs of like-minded people.
- Rearrange furniture or make repairs.
- Change your clothing style, haircut, hair color.
- Go on an unplanned trip, go to a live music concert.
How to expand your comfort zone?
The comfort zone is not a static phenomenon. Expansion occurs if a person engages in new activities for some time, performs unfamiliar actions, which soon become familiar and fit into his field of life. Only when you go beyond ordinary boundaries does your personal comfort zone expand. At this stage, psychologists advise:
- Start small, gradually increasing the volume of actions.
- The new action must become a habit and be consolidated for at least 21 days (persistent consolidation ≈ 90 days).
- Provide yourself with the support of friends - motivation and enthusiasm dry up, and close people are a source of maintaining the intention to move on.
- Record the slightest results of changes, success and compare yourself “today” with yourself “yesterday”.
Five steps to liberation
To achieve new heights and radically change the direction of life, adhere to the following stages of transformation of your internal state.
Step 1 – Goal Setting
Any road always begins with a choice of direction. You need to have a goal and clearly understand where you are going to go. The challenges that need to be overcome can be varied. For example, the fear of talking to new people, when trying to start a conversation, a person is constrained, he falls into a stupor. The solution is to meet strangers as often as possible, while initiating dialogue.
Step 2 – What and how much do you want?
The next stage is to specify the task at hand. Be clear about what you should receive and when. The result can be measured by facts, amounts or other criteria.
Step 3 – Labor
Consistently solve all tasks without deviating from the planned plan. Ideally, you will write daily reports to yourself and analyze their strengths and weaknesses.
Step 4 – More work
Get ready for the fact that on the path to achieving success there will be a lot of difficulties that you will not be able to overcome immediately. Don't take on more than you can handle. It's better to go slowly but surely.
Step 5 – Exploring “new horizons”
If you suddenly realized that yesterday’s milestone has again become your usual habitat, you can safely move forward and explore the unknown.
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How leaving a comfortable environment will change your life
The process of overcoming oneself will not go unnoticed; colossal changes will occur, namely:
- You will have a huge number of ideas for development, your perception of the world around you will expand, your brain is constantly fed with information from various areas of knowledge. You will look at everything that is happening around you from a completely different angle.
- Productivity will increase significantly, and the fear of solving complex problems will disappear.
- Soon, constantly reaching the top will become a habit for you.
