How to Get Outside Your Comfort Zone in 3 Steps

But did You Die?

I’ve learned some important lessons during my 120 Days of Radical Action challenge. The biggest one being how to get outside my comfort zone and not die, face plant, nor suffer publicly shaming. I wish the advice I am about to give is more complex or earth shattering but all it takes is baby steps.

Take One Step at a Time

You don’t have to go from coach potato to marathon runner overnight. You simply need to map out a path of baby steps that gets you on step further outside your comfort zone each day. The beauty of taking baby steps is that with each step you increase your comfort level and thus expand your comfort zone. Before you know it you’ll easily be doing things that once terrified you.

You will Barely Even Feel It

The one catch is you may feel like you are not actually getting out your comfort zone or taking any risks. The feeling is probably comparable to the feeling you might have if you were afraid of heights and each week you only went up one rung of a 18 ft ladder and came back down. Thus you may end up feeling like you need to do something major in order to have an impact.  The truth of the matter is you will eventually be at the top of the ladder. The secret is to remind yourself that you are making progress.

Essentially, I’ve learned that it really doesn’t matter if I change a little or a lot each day, but what matters most is that I change and keep changing for the good.

My Tiny Victory

Step 1: Determine what area of your life is worth you getting uncomfortable. Are you too comfortable in your career? What about your marriage or relationship (I’m not suggesting divorce)? Could your social life use some shaking up? What about your exercise routine and eating habits?

Step 2: List the things that you SHOULD DO but haven’t done because it makes you feel uncomfortable.

Step 3: Pick one of your “SHOULD DOs” and create a baby steps map. Try breaking it into 4-7 baby steps with each step being something that you can do each day or week to push yourself outside your comfort zone.