The Pain of Stepping out of My Comfort Zone
by Rhia Mae Aquino
Some common advice I’ve heard from people is to “step out of your comfort zone”. We’re bound to hear this when dealing with our career, studies, or personal development in general. “Get out of your bubble,” they say, but I find that this is a lot easier said than done.
Being in a tough spot is never fun — at least, that’s what I believe.. From my time being a student in high school up until my second year of college, I’ve had a lot of moments where I had to “step out of my comfort zone”. And while it was exciting as someone who wants to learn all sorts of things, I still found it quite hard.
One of the biggest struggles I’ve faced whenever I had to get out of my comfort zone was an unending need for mental preparation. For example, when I was a student leader in high school, I had to make a lot of decisions while considering my classmates. I had to be in the right headspace to do so, as these take up a lot of my energy.
And not only did it take up my energy but it also took up much of my time. There were a lot of meetings and deliverables that I had to make time for each week, and it was pretty tough to balance everything all at once.
I have also experienced shortcomings that have made me question my abilities. These feelings of doubt and sadness were mainly triggered by times I had to stomach constructive criticism. Don’t get me wrong, I’m more than aware that constructive criticism is there to help me grow and learn. Despite this, it took time to process this type of feedback because I put my soul into the work I’ve done, which makes anything against it feel like a personal attack, even though that’s not the case.
In the midst of these experiences, I find myself wondering, “is all this even worth it?” And honestly, in retrospect, some things weren’t completely worth it.
However, these don’t discount the experiences that were actually worth my while. After all, I was able to learn new skills, and learn things that are beneficial to me in the present. And even if there were some experiences that weren’t that worth it,, I still don’t regret them. All in all, I think that these experiences were able to help me develop, despite them being imperfect. Over the years, I have learned how to make better decisions, collaborate with others, and use feedback to improve my work, among other skills and values I hold dear.
Why am I sharing these experiences? This is not to discourage anyone to step out of their comfort zones but rather to shed a light on the realities that come with this feat. In spite of and because of the challenges we may face, we shouldn’t be afraid of taking opportunities outside our comfort zone if we’re looking for ways to grow.
About the Author
Rhia is a second year BS Economics student at UP Diliman. As a Growth and Marketing Specialist at KadaKareer, Rhia creates engaging and eye-catching content for Kada’s social media channels and she is in the process of leading the branding efforts for KadaKareer’s upcoming VirApp program.
About KadaKareer
KadaKareer is a career development platform for underserved students in the Philippines hoping to launch their digital careers. “Kada” comes from the word barkada, which means a group of friends. We are a Filipino student’s cheerleader, coach, and support group throughout their entire career journey!
