Escaping the Comfort Zone
Over the past couple weeks there’s been a concept dwelling in my head. Life right now is still very different for us all but this is something I’ve heard before and it’s come up yet again. This concept is something called the Comfort Zone. If you’ve followed my Facebook/Instagram posts, you probably noticed that it’s something I have been talking about often lately. However, it has gotten to the point where I wanted to dedicate a blog post to it. Coronavirus is still occurring and activities in the outside world are still very limited to what we can do to have fun. Due to my nine to five job (with added responsibilities increasing stress) by the time I get home I feel exhausted and just want to rest. Over the course of this repeated daily cycle, even after days off, if I’m not at work, I’m typically at home. Unintentionally I crafted a very rigid schedule. If something was thrown off, it not only made me unhappy, it made me uncomfortable. At the end of the day, this is one of my biggest weaknesses.
I’ve been seeking comfort. Why go down to the city to take photos when I could try to find something at home and get super creative? Now, that’s not necessarily a bad thing by any means, but when you have the opportunity to go explore a bit (socially distanced, of course), shouldn’t you take it? I have become more of an introvert, though I know I haven’t always been this way. Luckily, I had the chance to reunite with my wonderful friend from the ChicagoLand Area all last week. He didn’t intend to do this by any means, but him coming down to visit forced me out of this Comfort Zone. Best of all he didn’t have to do anything to enforce this. I had to make the effort to be out all day and drive in and through Austin to show them around. At first, it terrified me. I wanted to be at home, where I was in this “bubble”. The down side to this is, in this bubble, growth can not be experienced.
This is no different when I decided to join my roommates in leaving Illinois to begin with. If I did not go out of this bubble, I wouldn’t get to spend time with an old friend. It’s sad that something like that could hold someone back. Yet, after I had spent the week with him having a blast, I was grateful. I was able to visit places I haven’t been to in a while and take photos, which is kind of the whole point of what I do. Getting out of that rhythm I was in forced me to learn new things about where I was driving to and how to get around downtown. Did I like going through it in those moments? Hell no. However, growth cannot be obtained if I didn’t go through with any of it. This was an experience I did not expect to encounter during my friend’s visit, but I am sure glad it happened. It opened my eyes and made me realize that some changes needed to happen.
Change is necessary, without it, everything stays stagnant and (depending on the situation) dull. Life is too short for the Comfort Zone to take over. It’s not easy to leave that space, I still feel it when I wake up each day. Step by step I encourage everyone to do something that would be considered to be out of the norm. Now, I realize this is on a photography website blog, but without leaving that space, it can allow someone to have to think quickly on their feet, let the creative thoughts flow. Whether that’s changing the layout of your room, taking a different route to work, or challenging yourself to try something new. As for myself I am challenging myself to slowly step away from my nine to five job and pursue what I love wholeheartedly. Even if that includes having to work on projects when I get home after work. Spice things up a bit, you never know what will happen. It takes time, for sure, though I believe making small changes everyday can contribute to a greater change - leading you out of that Comfort Zone.