Dear Reader,
Let’s get right to it; the secret to fulfilling your dreams is – getting comfortable with being uncomfortable.
Makes you a little uncomfortable just to read, doesn’t it?
We so often choose comfort over discomfort. If you are anything like me, you can easily remember many times when you played it safe, stayed small, chose to remain comfortable rather than stepping out of your comfort zone into unfamiliar territory.
Ah, but that’s where the magic happens… in the “discomfort zone.”
How do we grow? By expanding past our edges. How do we discover who we really are? By entering the unknown, discovering what we find there, and embracing it.
Living beyond our edges can feel uncomfortable. For many of us who are very aware of our sensory experience in this world, that feeling can be downright painful. In fact, we often do what we can to avoid it. When we do, we feel safer – for the moment. But over time, something starts to happen… the comfortable becomes more familiar, our edges harden, and we develop a vague feeling that we are not doing quite what we came here to do.
If, instead, we could just sit for a few extra moments with the initial discomfort of stepping beyond our edges – if we could just breathe, stay present and realize that we are still OK – our discomfort would become less painful. If we could reach that point, we could perhaps start to feel the excitement of possibility and potential growth that lies underneath our discomfort.
Eventually, we can see our discomfort as a positive signal that growth is on the way. We get the feeling we are on the verge of a real breakthrough.
Finally, what was once uncomfortable becomes comfortable.
Of course it is also true that if we sit with our discomfort, we may find other things underneath – fear of failure, fear of success, fear of rejection. As we discover each of those things, we have the opportunity to confront each, sit with it for a few extra seconds, breathe…
And discover yet again that we are still OK. Often, when we see our fears and name them, they lose their power over us. Ultimately, our discomfort can provide clues that lead us to the most treasured place of all – our untapped potential.
Dear reader. Sit quietly for a moment, and think back to a time when you chose comfort over discomfort; it might be recent or far in your past. The chances are good that deep down you knew you played it safe; we almost always. That knowing is intuition.
Acknowledge that the time you are thinking of is gone. That choice has been made, and it cannot be unmade. Let it go. And know that from this moment forward, you can choose differently. You can practice becoming comfortable with your discomfort, and follow it all the way – one breath, one hug, one dream at a time.
I honor your loving heart,
John
And isn’t it amazing how what may have been comfortable becomes uncomfortable over time;-)? Kind of like sitting cross legged too long ….
Hi Diane – Yes, and when I read your comment I immediately thought about the process of growth. When we outgrow an old way of thinking or being, the old way becomes uncomfortable. We can’t go back. Eventually, with even further growth, the old way may even stop being uncomfortable and become just a choice that no longer pulls at us. Sitting cross legged is another story!
John