If you're interested in daring and surpassing yourself, you've already heard of the comfort zone.
But do you really know what it is?
We often hear it said: "Get out of your comfort zone to live your dreams"; "To become who you want to be, you have to get out of your comfort zone", and so on.
Most coaches and trainers associate the comfort zone with all the misfortunes of the world.
We'll see in Part 1 why this is not true, and why it's better to cherish our comfort zone than try to escape it at all costs.
Many people talk about it, without really knowing what it is.
Instinctively, we think of it as a kind of imaginary boundary separating known, stable and predictable situations from others.
This definition is accurate, but incomplete.
In reality, there's a more global zone, which we'll call the Life Zone.
It contains five circles:
The comfort zone,
Fear,
Panic (optional, depending on the situation),
Learning zone,
Finally, the achievement zone
Most people will tell you to get out of this first zone, and into the learning zone, crossing the fear and panic zones if the situation calls for it.
For example, to approach someone you like:
You see the person walk by (Comfort Zone).
You approach and speak to them (Fear Zone).
You don't know what to say, and a feeling of unease sets in (Panic Zone).
Finally, you manage to chat and joke a little (Learning Zone).
By repeating this pattern, phase 2, phase 3 and finally phase 4 will become familiar and predictable situations... They will enter your comfort zone.
This is where my opinion differs from that of many coaches.
The aim should not be to get out of our comfort zone a little more and more, whatever the situation.
The aim is to expand it by repeating a difficult action until we master it.
This will have the effect of expanding your comfort zone in your social life in general.
Getting out of it is therefore important if you want to develop your ease in various areas.
Social
Professional
Personal
For each of these categories, we have a different comfort zone.
Comfort zone (social)
Zone of Mastery (professional)
Personal comfort zone
Stepping out of your comfort zone won't expand your personal mastery or comfort zone, except in rare cases.
Expanding your comfort zone will inevitably involve going through your fear zone, and whatever happens, you'll have to push yourself to get there.
It's worth the effort, though, because having a large comfort zone in all areas of your life allows you to develop your audacity and move ever closer to your zone of fulfillment.
As you can see from this diagram, your comfort zone will expand by encroaching on your fear, panic and learning zones.
Although these will never really disappear, you'll move closer and closer to your zone of fulfillment.
The aim here is to get out of your comfort zone for the sake of getting out of your comfort zone.
To become bolder, happier and more fulfilled, you need to expand it as much as possible.
There are different ways of expanding our comfort zones.
I've chosen to present two of them here.
The gentle method of small steps and the brutal method of the big leap.
Which one is right for you depends on your personality.
If you like to take your time, the first is preferable, as it's easier but slower.
On the other hand, if, like me, you're impatient, the second will satisfy you more quickly.
The small steps method is simple.
Just step out of your comfort zone a little more each day.
At first, just ask someone for directions, ask a colleague you don't really know how their weekend went, or pay a stranger a compliment.
Then, little by little, make things a little more complicated. Make wackier or bolder requests, express your point of view on a hot topic, try out new things, always taking things a step further.
When you start out, nothing much will happen; at best, you'll get used to the feeling of fear.
As you push yourself further and further beyond your comfort zone, there will come a time when you'll move into your learning zone. This is when your personal zone of ease, mastery or comfort begins to expand.
It's simply a matter of getting into the habit and taking action.
As Mathieu Boinet says in his motivational talks : "Audacity, perseverance, action!"
If one of these elements is missing, nothing will happen.
First of all, you need to define the area in which you want to expand your comfort zone. It's best to avoid running too many hares at once.
Once you've chosen the area, define the actions that will require boldness.
Brainstorming with someone close to you works well for this.
Then rank each action in order of difficulty.
Finally, take action!
Every day, try to get used to one of them. Don't put pressure on yourself: if it takes you two, three, six or nine days, that's okay.
The second method requires a great deal of mental strength and daring to implement.
The idea here is to go straight to your learning zone, and to do so on a regular basis. Once a week, for example.
Of course, this means going through your fear and sometimes panic zone.
That said, you'll make much faster progress than with the first method.
It's all a question of willpower.
To begin with, as with the first method, choose the area in which you want to improve.
Once you've done that, define ten or so actions that you'd like to have done, but never dared.
Write them down and plan once or twice a week when you're going to do them. Write down the date and watch out for excuses!
Make a commitment, either personally or with someone close to you, to do whatever you set out to do, no matter what.
Once you've completed all ten actions, start the process all over again.
Expanding your comfort zone isn't essential, strictly speaking.
That said, it is an option to be considered very seriously for people seeking personal, social or professional fulfillment or development.
Crossing our fear and panic zones is difficult and requires boldness.
Not to worry. As Mathieu Boinet perfectly explains in his corporate talks, audacity is a force within each of us, just waiting to be expressed.
If you'd like more information on the subject, you can also read this article: "How to be bold".
You mustn't try to simply get out of this zone without any goal in mind. Getting out for the sake of getting out won't help you evolve. The important thing is to get used to a difficult action in a specific area (social, personal or professional).
There are different zones: the comfort zone, the fear zone, the panic zone, the learning zone and the achievement zone. They're all contained in what I call "The Life Zone". This zone differs depending on the context. Professional, social or personal.
We must seek to extend our comfort zone. To do this, we need to perform as many actions as possible in our learning zone. This necessarily involves passing through our fear zone, which is impossible to break.
There are several ways of extending your comfort zone, but the most interesting in my opinion are: the small steps method and the big leap method. The former is for people who like to take their time, while the latter is for the impatient who prefer things to happen quickly.
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To take it a step further, I recommend the conferences given by Mathieu Boinet, an expert in audacity in the business world.
Thanks to his valuable advice, you'll be able to dare to step out of your comfort zone and reach your zone of fulfillment.
To discover Mathieu and more content on the theme of audacity, visit his Youtube channel by clicking here!
And if you'd like to see Mathieu BOINET help your colleagues to step out of their comfort zone and dare to be bold, contact him via his contact form.
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