Being comfortable is amazing. It doesn’t matter whether you’re in bed, on the couch, or in the car. Comfort is, well, comforting. It makes everything easy. It makes it easier to settle down. Easier to sleep. To relax.
Which is precisely why, in many settings, being too comfortable can be dangerous.
Want to grow? Get comfortable being uncomfortable
People tend to slow down when they get too comfortable. Often to a stop. Which makes sense. If you’re hungry, you probably stop looking for food as soon as you’ve eaten. In certain settings, like the kitchen, that’s how it should be. But when it comes to your personal and professional growth? Not so much.
Growth isn’t automatic. It isn’t easy. It’s uncomfortable. Discomforting even. Muscular growth happens in the gym—it’s the result of strenuous exercise, uncomfortable as it is. It’s the same in relationships, at work, and in most other situations. Growth is what happens when you persevere through hardships. When you overcome being uncomfortable.
So, if you want to grow, it might be time to ask yourself if you’re too comfortable. To assess where you’ve become too satisfied. Too full, to your own detriment. For instance, perhaps you’re so comfortable with your current network that you’ve stopped networking further—potentially mitigating your career growth.
When you find these areas, ask yourself how you can become hungry again. How you can stay hungry. Then do it. Get comfortable being uncomfortable. That way you can continue growing in every situation.
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