Six Gifts from Taking Risks…Oh! And The Truth About Comfort Zones
“Comfort is the enemy of progress.” P. T. Barnum
“The enemy of success is not failure, it's comfort.” Michelle Poler
My natural aesthetic is comfy and cozy. Taking risks isn't something I naturally do--in my fashion choices, work-life, home-life, all parts of life.
But a couple of years ago, my comfort zone started feeling more like a prison. I couldn't seem to get any momentum or forward movement when it came to my larger goals. I felt stuck, frustrated, restless, and miserable.
Why? I was outgrowing my comfort zone.
The question became, “How do I escape?”
There are two things to know about comfort zones. Number one, we don’t usually realize a comfort zone is a prison until we’ve outgrown it; it becomes more clear the moment we step outside of it. Second, while comfort zones may keep us locked up, their doors are actually wide open. We just have to walk out.
Simple, right?
No. Not simple.
For me, leaving my comfort zone meant facing fears and taking risks I wasn’t sure I was ready to take. It meant embracing the possibility of failure. What if I stepped out, realized I had made a horrible mistake, turned around to go back, and found the door shut behind me?
Leaving my cozy cell meant allowing myself to be seen and heard as my authentic self, no longer able to hide the parts of me I was still ashamed of. It meant breaking my own rules, the rules I’d put in place to keep myself safe from making mistakes or overstepping. Rules like, "Don't be too shiny,” “Don’t stand out,” “Don't be self-promoting,” to name a few.
It also meant losing approval even from those closest to me. People don’t like it when we change and grow. It disrupts their comfort zones as well. Was I ready to cause this disruption? Was I ready to chance the loss of approval?
Instead of HOW to escape, the question instead became did I really want to escape?
The choice came down to 1) stepping out of my self-imposed prison or 2) dying there (the real me, anyway).
I stood at the door for a while, looking out longingly, waiting for the courage to finally take a risk—any risk. No longer comfortable in my comfort zone, but too scared to make a move for all the reasons I mentioned above and more.
While talking to a few close friends, I was surprised to find that we were all experiencing similar unrest in our previously cozy lives. 2020 and 2021 created similar crises for many, and my friends and I knew it was time to step out.
One of them mentioned a book that they had read about taking risks as a catalyst for change (I’ll link it below if you’re interested). We decided to form a small group, loosely based on the ones described in the book, for accountability purposes. The goal being to support and encourage each other to start taking risks—small steps toward freedom and who knew what else?
We met regularly over a few months, and in between our meetings, we were challenged to take one risk. Small or big, didn’t matter. It could be any risk that could potentially improve our personal lives or the world in some way. At each meeting, we would talk about what happened because of taking that risk, and we’d choose our next risky step before leaving the meeting. Even though it was uncomfortable, we took these risks, and none of us would say it wasn't worth it even if the risks didn't pan out the way we expected.
It turns out that risk-taking has many benefits, more than just being freed from our comfort-zones. Here are a few gifts or benefits of taking those risks you’ve been putting off:
1) Risk creates new opportunities.
Taking a risk may not lead us to the opportunity we originally were gunning for, but it can (and does) open up new opportunities that we may not otherwise have noticed or taken advantage of.
2) Risk creates space for change and growth.
Risk is how we escape our comfort zone prisons, and if we choose to stay in our comfort zones, we limit the amount of growth we can sustain because we have to constantly bend and shrink ourselves to fit where we no longer belong. Stepping out creates space for positive change and growth—for you and the rest of the world. As P.T. Barnum said, “Comfort is the enemy of progress.”
3) Risk builds self-confidence.
This is a fake-it-till-you-make-it, do-it-scared situation. Self-confidence does not (and does not need to) precede taking a risk. Being brave requires some level of fear. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be true bravery. The more you do scary things, the less scary all things become which is how taking risks and facing your fears builds your confidence.
4) Risk builds resilience.
No one enjoys the pain and loss of rejection, but it’s an inevitable part of life. Taking risks and opening yourself up to the possibility of rejection teaches you that you can indeed survive it. When the “worst possible scenario” happens, and we see that we are still alive and breathing, we learn just how tough we actually are. You can handle it. Take the risk.
5) Risk teaches you about yourself.
Risk helps us learn what we value most and what is worth fighting for—or not. Risk teaches us the areas in which we still need to grow or heal. Risk teaches us what our limitations are and what we are truly capable of, and we are far more capable than we realize.
6) Risk keeps us from living in regret.
We’re going to experience regret at some point or another in our lives. Do we want to experience regret for NOT taking that risk or do we want to experience taking a chance and learning something from it?
For the majority of my life, I had associated risk with inevitable destruction, but during those few months of intentional risk-taking, I learned that taking risks, even small ones, could be a creative and learning process, only destructive to what needed to be destroyed—unhealthy rules, mindsets, and patterns.
I am forever grateful to this group of humans that decided to learn to take risks with me. We all experienced tremendous growth. We opened up opportunities for ourselves that we would have otherwise missed out on had we not taken these risks. We grew closer as friends, too. Even though it was uncomfortable, we took these risks, and none of us would say it wasn't worth it even if the risks didn't pan out the way we expected.
With that, I invite you to ask yourself, “What small risk can I take today to create even just a bit of space for growth?” Is there an expectation you’re putting on yourself that you could ditch today? Is there a small yes you could give yourself? Or maybe there’s an opportunity you need to go for without hesitation.
Go for it, rule-breaker. Step out of your self-imposed prison. Take the risk. It’s worth it, and so are you.
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