Go wherever you want to go and do whatever makes you happy but promise not to remain in your comfort zone as nothing happens there! An idea or a task begins in the mind of the individual first and then gets translated into action. No individual will be able to do a particular thing if he does not navigate his thoughts positively and in the right direction. When one misses that direction he begins to complain. Complaining and not taking action does only one thing – that is it creates stagnation!
Whenever we want to start off something new we are filled with excitement and bountiful energy. We have dreams that we want to pursue. We harbour strong desires to make something of ourselves and are ready to meet any challenges head on. But with the passing of time, we may not have the same level of commitment and may hit a wall or get into procrastination. Ultimately we stop trying and learning that comes with it. We may look around and see other people who are content with what they have or who they are. So we too sit and rest for a while in our safe havens called the comfort zones. We may remain there until we feel motivated enough to start working on our goals yet again. So it’s important how we look at our goals; one way is to set a goal, maneuver around it if you may but never lose focus. In fact a goal should not hang like a sword however it must remain in sight.
When would one be committed to resume his goals no one can tell. It may take a while or turn into days, months or even years. Then comes the day when we look back and realize that we’ve been stuck in the same spot for a long while. Complacency sets in that prevents us from trying out new things or putting in that extra effort. In fact many of us become complacent early on as we are convinced where we are and what we are doing is good enough! We derive happiness in our comfort zones; anything that challenges us is averted at all costs. We stop pushing ourselves and opt for safer routes instead. We stop reflecting on how we can grow. Staying in the comfort zone for long has the potential to not only wear away a person’s will but also his spirit; which can be extremely damaging.
To avoid complacency or rust out one must learn to step out of his comfort zone. The moment you do it a whole new set of dimensions open up in front of you. It may also be a realisation that perceptions or beliefs may be quite different from the reality. Most of our limitations may be due to the self inflicted beliefs, rather than by logic or what is actually possible.
The times that we feel comfortable are the very moments we need to be vigilant about. When we get used to a situation, we don’t prepare adequately for exigencies or for the inevitable changes that might be thrown at us. Success too can make us complacent at times as everyone loves to be in that zone. Success brings limelight; in fact by living in our past glory, we fail to prepare for the next set of challenges. To remain relevant one must continuously update or upgrade and never remain in the comfort zone.
Most of us will be moving into the new quarter after completing our MBOs and starting with a fresh list of KRAs; one KRA for all of us should be to remain outside the comfort zone.
PS: Picture is taken from Google with due credits. Article first appeared in ET Hospitality World
