Moving beyond our comfort zone

Who is familiar with the term ‘comfort zone’?  I think we’d pretty much all have come across it at some stage, whether in terms of work, lifestyle or education. 

It is a term that is meant to convey an area of general comfort and confidence in whatever we are doing or being.

A comfort zone can be reached after a certain amount of time spent on a task or process.  It can be reached in a relationship, a job, a school or a team.  It means we know what is expected of us and we feel confident we can deliver.

However, if we hang around in our comfort zone all the time, never challenging ourselves, simply content with the same level of output, input or stasis then our comfort zone can become a place of boredom, stagnant and closed off. 

Alternatively, the ‘stretch zone’ is that little way beyond our comfort zone.  It is that area that stretches us, emotionally, mentally or physically.  It is an area of learning, growth and change. It is not necessarily comfortable but it can be pleasant, positive and worthwhile.

The stretch zone can also be a place of discomfort, presenting challenges that may unsettle us or even cause us to fail. 

Of course, if we push our stretch zone even further, we start to sneak into our ‘panic zone’, an area generally associated with ‘shutdown’.  An area where we no longer learn or grow, but are unable to process, unable to cope or sometimes unable to function.  It is important to know when we are moving towards our panic zone, so that we can set boundaries, recognise limits, continue to function and learn from our experiences.