In order to grow, we need to step outside our comfort zone. It’s called a “comfort zone” for a reason: we feel comfort when we’re there. We LIKE comfort and we even NEED comfort, to some degree. But that comfort comes at a price: when we’re comfortable, we aren’t growing.
Most of us only step outside our comfort zone when forced, either by circumstances beyond our control or by a coach or mentor who is invested in helping us grow.
Unforeseen circumstances will always happen but relying on them to trigger or guide our growth makes our growth accidental, reactive, and outside our control.
A coach or mentor, on the other hand, can work with us, pushing and motivating us to step outside our comfort zone. Relying on a coach or mentor to trigger and guide our growth means that our growth is both intentional and proactive, as well as within our control…as long as that person is around to push and motivate us.
While this is an improvement over relying on emergencies to lead to growth, it still isn’t optimal because our growth is constrained by the presence or attention of the coach or mentor. To maximize our opportunities for growth, we need to ensure that our growth is intentional (chosen), proactive (planned), and within our control, as much as possible.
What does “within our control” mean? That we choose and plan when and how our growth takes place.
