Moving Out Of That Comfort Zone

By Author: sarah denholm
Total Articles: 4
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If you could move out of your comfort zone, what could you achieve?
I watched a U.K. documentary recently in which a shy, reserved Classical musician who grew up in the countryside of Wales, was transported to London and, with support, challenged to transform herself into a Dance House DJ in a trendy club, all in the space of one month - at which point she would be tested to see if she could be picked out as a fake (I taught this girl music theory a few years ago when I lived in the UK, so had extra interest in the show!). What really fascinated me about the programme was that by the end of the month Sian not only passed the fake test, but was totally thrilled with her transformation; when interviewed she said that she had tuned into fun and sociability, and that she now fully intended to make the most of her twenties and instead of just practising the cello and going to bed early, she would go out dancing with new friends! Sian relished her new confidence and it showed. This made me think about the restrictions that we live with, some that we have allowed to be placed on us by others, and some by ourselves: ...
... How often do you stop yourself from taking a risk, choosing a different response to your usual? That's just how I am can be a familiar cry, but how true does that have to be? What stops you from stretching yourself? Fear, sure, and that comfort zone can certainly be cozy, but where's the fun in that?! What stops us is our limiting beliefs, and these can be changed by changing our thinking. Expanded thoughts lead to enhanced feelings, which in turn lead to good attitudes and therefore better results. Vision and imagination are a part of right brain activity and being playful and spontaneous is the way to access this side of the brain; by simply relaxing and keeping an open mind, ideas can flow freely into our consciousness, unhindered by blocks of negativity and habit. Most of the time, we lose perspective as to how things could be altered. What can you start to see differently? This month, dream a little!  What did you love doing when you were a child? Doing jigsaws? Dancing? Singing in the school choir? Get back in touch with something from that time, and aim to filter the activity through the eyes of wonder of a child. Yes, it may sound corny, but you never know what energy and sense of adventure it may spark in you now!  Act as if....the old favourite of fake it till you make it really can work. Choose a quality that you want to develop in yourself, and for the next few weeks, aim to embody that quality at some point every day. It can help to think of somebody whom you admire who has that quality (in your life or on television, movies etc) and pretend to be them; ask yourelf how would X behave in this situation? This can be highly effective, strange though it sounds, because it causes you to break your habitual response mechanisms.  Minimise your fear of feeling or looking ridiculous! One of the things that can hold us back the most dramatically is the unease that can sweep across us at the prospect of potentially making a fool of ourselves in front of others: for a start, that may not happen, and if it does, what's the worst that can happen? We all have our ridiculous moments - are you going to let that stop you from giving yourself the gift of freedom and flow in your life?  Think back to two or three times in you life where you were filled with passion and energy, where you felt I did it! It could be passing a difficult subject in College where you really had to dig deep, or getting married, or travelling alone in a foreign country - anything where you felt inspired and proud of yourself. Ask yourself now, what were the threads common to all of the experiences? You may have to think for a while about this one, but something will strike you; was it winning, being part of a team, contributing to others? Once you know what inspired you then, you have the chance to recreate it now. Good luck! About the Author Sarah is a business and life-design coach, working with individuals, entrepreneurs and independent professionals to support them to create more business and profitability, while designing a balanced, fulfilling and fun life.