Karen Brown Of Exponential Results On How to Grow Beyond Your Comfort Zone to Grow Both Personally and Professionally

An Interview With Maria Angelova

Share your journey with others. I never realized how many people were inspired by what I did or what I was pursuing. When I shared my big dream with others, it ignited their own dreams and convinced them they could pursue theirs as well. We bring each other along when we share things like this.

It feels most comfortable to stick with what we are familiar with. But anyone who has achieved great success will tell you that true growth comes from pushing yourself out of your comfort zone. What are some ways that influential people have pushed themselves out of their comfort zone to grow both personally and professionally? As a part of this series, I had the pleasure of interviewing Karen Brown, CEO of Exponential Results.

Karen Brown is the founder and CEO of Exponential Results, a company that uses the principles of neuroscience to make leaders more effective and maximize their potential. She has 20 years of success as a corporate executive with over 30,000 hours of senior executive coaching experience. Years ago, she discovered the key to greater performance and effectiveness: identifying and addressing blind spots — the repeated thinking patterns that impede success. Her discovery led to the creation of Exponential Results’ proprietary Power Pathways™ method, rooted in neuroscience. She is also an international-level, ultra-endurance athlete, having completed the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii; Ultraman Championships; and 18 other ultra-marathon and triathlon events around the world.

Karen Brown Comfort Zone.mp4

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we start, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your childhood backstory?

There were two things that really stand out in terms of bringing me to where I am today: competing in the Ironman World Championships (IMWC) and starting my own business. The Ironman was a particularly life-changing experience. Most of my life, I had been a recreational athlete but not overly competitive. What propelled me to undertake the Ironman was the feeling deep inside that perhaps I have what it takes to achieve great things and I might not be tapping into that potential.

Fast forward to 2010. Having learned about neuroscience and behavioral patterns (I’ve always been interested in human behavior), I had a massive “a-ha” moment realizing that it was my own behavioral patterns holding me back from the successes I craved; what’s more, it works the same way for all of us. From then on, I learned and ultimately became an expert in performance behavioral patterns, and applied this knowledge to myself and my clients, with resounding success. Two short years later, I crossed the finish line at the IMWC at age 46 (having never run a marathon) and also founded my company, Exponential Results.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

While there are many great quotes to choose from, there’s one that really stuck with me over the years: The quote is from Thomas Edison: “If we all did the things we are truly capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves.” This speaks to me because it goes to the topic of “untapped potential.” There are so many people on this planet with the skills to do amazing things who don’t even realize they have them because they’ve never put them to the test. Or they may know they have the skills, but they simply lack the motivation. If people can overcome whatever obstacles stand in their way, they will surprise themselves at how skilled, how proficient, and how talented they are. And they might also be amazed at the impact their skill set can have on the world. For me, the quote was an inspiration to try new things, even if I didn’t know whether I could do them. But I did them anyway because until you try, you simply don’t know what you can achieve. I didn’t want to live my life saddled with a bunch of regrets and “what ifs.”

Is there a particular book, podcast, or film that made a significant impact on you? Can you share a story or explain why it resonated with you so much?

Seeing the Ironman World Championships on television when I was a teenager was a game-changer for me. At the time, I had no idea what an Ironman even was. But when I saw this remarkable human drama unfold in front of me, I couldn’t look away; it brought up strong feelings from deep inside, including the overarching thought, “What if I have what it takes to do that, and I’m not tapping into it?”

Immediately, I realized that I was living a small, safe life, only taking on challenges I knew I could achieve. Perhaps to outsiders it looked like I was living large because, by almost any measure, I enjoyed a very successful life. But I knew it was just a charade and I was not taking on challenges that would really test my mettle. The truth is, I didn’t know for sure what I was capable of. But watching the Ironman competition inspired me to find out.

Let’s now shift to the main part of our discussion. Let’s start with a basic definition so that all of us are on the same page. What does “getting outside of your comfort zone” mean?

I will first say that I don’t believe there’s really a way to “get outside of your comfort zone.” Instead, I think of your comfort zone as an infinitely expandable rubber band that never snaps back. By expanding your actions, thoughts, and feelings outside the boundaries in which they generally operate, you are not actually getting outside of your comfort zone; rather, you are inflating it like a balloon. And once you do the things that have traditionally made you nervous or frightened, you can now include them in your newly inflated zone.

Can you help articulate a few reasons why it is important to get out of your comfort zone?

1. Very few truly great things are accomplished in the safety of your comfort zone.
2. It’s an effective way to challenge yourself and find out what you are really capable of achieving.
3. It’s a way to find your purpose — your unique talents and skills that could impact the world.
4. You can discover new activities, causes, and purposes that you never would have known about otherwise, making your life more interesting and fulfilling.

Is it possible to grow without leaving your comfort zone? Can you explain what you mean?

Growth is always possible, but if you don’t expand your comfort zone, the growth will be much more incremental; that is, it will not be as fast or as significant. My own personal growth was the result of taking on bigger challenges at work (tasks I had never done before) and in the athletic arena. But again, they were all things I knew I could do, even if I had to learn some of them on the fly. Ultimately, I never questioned my ability to meet any of these challenges. But even if you do doubt your ability — even a little bit — challenging yourself is a process that can aid in the expansion and exponential growth of your comfort zone.

Can you share some anecdotes from your personal experience? Can you share a story about a time when you stepped out of your comfort zone and how it helped you grow? How does it feel to take those first difficult steps?

At the top of my list would be my training for an Ironman Challenge at the age of 44. Here’s how it helped me grow:

• I had to learn an entirely new world from an athletic perspective: the world of triathlons. I had never ridden a road bike or swam in any kind of competitive setting, and although I was an avid runner, I certainly had never run a marathon. I had frequently engaged in all three activities, but only on a recreational level.
• I had to figure out how to manage my schedule to fit in 25 hours per week for training, revamp my eating to support my body for maximum performance, and start thinking like a triathlete.
• I needed to stop watching television, even the news; I simply didn’t have time for it.
• I went to bed earlier because I needed solid rest to fuel performance every day and to complete two workouts before going into the office.
• I had to do things I had never done before and sit in the discomfort of doing them until they became second nature.
• I learned that this challenge, which I thought would be 90% physical and 10% mental, was actually the opposite; my mental game was the key to success.

Speaking of the first steps, my first one was to conquer and transform my limiting beliefs. These are the beliefs that we aren’t capable of something based on comparison bias. For me, this meant that when I thought about the Ironman event, I compared myself to the other competitors and concluded, “They are professional-level, and I am recreational; I can’t possibly compete against them.”

Limiting beliefs are always there, in all of us. It’s a bug in our operating system left over from evolution, originally meant to keep us safe so we don’t attempt to do things that can hurt us. But in the modern world, they simply hold us back because they pop up subconsciously and direct our behavior, usually stopping us from doing things because they are scary, different, or new — even though we might very well be capable of doing them.

Once limiting beliefs are transformed, it’s easy to take the first steps; it’s after the first steps that things start to get harder. And they continue to get progressively harder until you reach the zenith of learning and growing through overcoming a daunting, ongoing challenge. What you then find is that this is merely a doorway to other challenges, not just a “one and done” occurrence. You find it is applicable to everything in your life and your work. (A side note: I wrote a book on this subject entitled, Unlimiting Your Beliefs, based on the premise that no one should suffer from these limiting beliefs.)

What makes the “middle miles” (the progressively harder ones after the beginning steps) easier is learning how to get into a Flow State. This is a biological state in which everything feels effortless and connected. Some call this the “runner’s high,” and it is actually a proven physical state. There are a few things that combine to create the entry to a Flow State

Here is the central question of our discussion. What are your “five ways to push past your comfort zone, to grow both personally and professionally”?

1. Identify your BIG DREAM. It should be one that makes you break out in a cold sweat just thinking about pursuing it. It can be something you’ve dreamed of since you were little, or something that entered your mind very recently. But it should give you goose bumps — partly from the trepidation of addressing a major challenge, partly because you can barely contain your excitement about getting started.
2. Identify and transform limiting beliefs, as described earlier.
3. Find your way to the Flow State every day, using the steps cited above. (This can also be done through meditation.)
4. Realize that people may treat you differently. Current relationships may even change, or need to, in order to accommodate your new-found path. Nothing — and no one — should hold you back from this pursuit. The people who support you will stick with you; the others, you just don’t need.
5. Share your journey with others. I never realized how many people were inspired by what I did or what I was pursuing. When I shared my big dream with others, it ignited their own dreams and convinced them they could pursue theirs as well. We bring each other along when we share things like this.

From your experience or perspective, what are some of the common barriers that keep someone from pushing out of their comfort zone?

The Limiting Beliefs, as described earlier, is really the biggest obstacle. There is nothing that will prohibit a person from expanding their comfort zone like the simple thought that they are incapable of doing whatever it is they’re thinking of doing — or at least trying. World-renowned NHL hockey player Wayne Gretzky had a saying: “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” The meaning is crystal clear: maybe you’ll fail if you try something new. But if you don’t try, failure is guaranteed.

There is a well-known quote attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt that says, “Do something that scares you every day.” What exactly does this mean to you? Is there inherent value in doing something that pushes you out of your comfort zone, even if it does not relate to personal or professional growth? For example, if one is uncomfortable about walking alone at night should they purposely push themselves to do it often for the sake of going beyond their comfort zone? Can you please explain what you mean?

This quote is one of my favorites, and it’s so true. I would modify it just a bit, changing the word “scares” to “challenges.” I wouldn’t advocate walking alone at night if it scares you because there is an actual reason to be scared, i.e., someone might attack you. But, when you flip it to “challenging,” it changes. Growth is found in doing things that you don’t even know you can do; things that are highly challenging and that you won’t know you can do until you try. This is because by doing them, new connections and pathways are forming in our brains, which quite literally describes the process of brain growth.

And, yes, there is inherent value, because of what you learn along the way — what you learn about yourself, as well as about the thing you are doing. I am considered an expert in behavior and health because of the crucial lessons I learned and experienced in Ironman/Ultra Endurance competitions, along with having spent over 30,000 hours coaching senior leaders to maximize their potential. They say it takes 10,000 hours to develop mastery, and while doing so, what you learn is deeply applicable everywhere, especially when it comes to relationships. How often I have applied my learnings in my relationships with others — whether romantic, professional, familial, or personal.

You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?

I would love to inspire a movement that helps all people conquer and eradicate limiting beliefs.

This would allow us all to expand our comfort zones on a daily basis. If we did this, the world would be an entirely different place, one where everyone is constantly tackling new challenges, not being held back by a lack of confidence, a gap in motivation, or any other convenient excuse. New technologies would be discovered. Previously unthinkable ideas would be set into motion. And the irrational limits we put on ourselves would essentially disappear.

Is there a person in the world whom you would love to have lunch with, and why? Maybe we can tag them and see what happens!

I’d have to say Ryan Reynolds because he is one of my celebrity crushes. I want to have lunch with him because he’s extremely easy on the eyes, but he’s also innocently and intelligently funny, as well as very smart. He seems to exemplify expanding one’s comfort zone often, easily and effortlessly. It’s as if he and his wife simply see something they want to do and then do it. They don’t let anything stand in their way.

How can our readers follow you online?

They can follow me on my LinkedIn page at https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenbrown/. They can also check out my brand-new website at https://yourexponentialresults.com/.

Thank you for these fantastic insights. We wish you only continued success in your great work!

About The Interviewer: Maria Angelova, MBA is a disruptor, author, motivational speaker, body-mind expert, Pilates teacher and founder and CEO of Rebellious Intl. As a disruptor, Maria is on a mission to change the face of the wellness industry by shifting the self-care mindset for consumers and providers alike. As a mind-body coach, Maria’s superpower is alignment which helps clients create a strong body and a calm mind so they can live a life of freedom, happiness and fulfillment. Prior to founding Rebellious Intl, Maria was a Finance Director and a professional with 17+ years of progressive corporate experience in the Telecommunications, Finance, and Insurance industries. Born in Bulgaria, Maria moved to the United States in 1992. She graduated summa cum laude from both Georgia State University (MBA, Finance) and the University of Georgia (BBA, Finance). Maria’s favorite job is being a mom. Maria enjoys learning, coaching, creating authentic connections, working out, Latin dancing, traveling, and spending time with her tribe. To contact Maria, email her at angelova@rebellious-intl.com. To schedule a free consultation, click here.