Get Out of Your Familiar Zone

I recently purchased a print of this artwork for my office. It’s titled “Comfort Zone” by Italian artist Davide Bonazzi.

While perusing the internet on Saturday night back in January, the piece immediately caught my eye. The juxtaposition between the cool, calm blue of the swimming pool and the murky, dark ocean is jarring. Layer in the three swimmers, and it immediately becomes apparent which one is taking a different approach to swimming… or perhaps life.

Outside of the comfort zone is dark. It’s scary. There is no certanity.

The comfort zone is safe. It’s familiar. There are few surprises.

The phrase “getting out of your comfort zone” has been one I’ve lived by for a long time. In college my friends and I started a nonprofit with no permission. We started a business and worked with clients two to three times our age. After college I moved to Los Angeles on a whim. Several years later I proposed and was given my dream job, despite having no formal experience in the field.

Each one of these experiences had one thing in common:

They were extremely uncomfortable.

Success was anything but a guarantee. But I persevered and learned a lot in the process.

Recently, I learned that using the words “comfortable” and “uncomfortable” in this context is not entirely accurate.

Because our “comfort zones” aren’t always comfortable.

But they are always familiar.

People stay in abusive marriages not because they are comfortable. But because they are familiar.

People stay in jobs they’re miserable in not because they are comfortable. But because they are familiar.

I — like nearly everyone in western culture — have a strong inner critic. He tries to tear me down. He is my exclusive source of self-doubt, shame, and fear.

My inner critic is familiar. I’ve known him my entire life. In a paradoxical way, I use him to drive me forward. I try to prove him wrong:

Your nonprofit is going to fail. You won’t find a job in L.A. They’ll never give you that position if you pitch it.

Does fighting the critic work? Ultimately, yes. But it’s exhausting and deflating more often than not. It’s anything but comfortable. It’s anxiety inducing. It’s stressful. It’s not a comfortable way to live. But it’s so automatic that it’s familiar.

The first step is acknowledging that most of us have familiar zones that might be doing us more harm than good. They can be so deeply ingrained and habitual that we don’t notice them. We somehow miss how much they take a toll on our health and well being.

Recognizing this is important.

Dave Hollis, President of Worldwide Theatrical Distribution for Walt Disney Studios recently announced that he’s leaving his job to help his wife run her company, Chic Media. As part of this transition, he and his family are picking up and moving from Los Angeles to Austin. This is not the type of thing that “happens” in this field. People either get fired or retire from this role.

Dave is making this move because after 17 years at Disney, he’s ready for uncertainty. And he’s willing to leave an esteemed career at one of the most admired companies in the world for it. He’s diving in head first into that dark, murky ocean.

This takes guts.

Recognizing, and getting out of familiar zones is daunting work.

But it’s the most fulfilling way to live.