Avoid the Comfort Zone Trap

Comfort zone trap has many shapes and forms and it is something that a lot of people fall into never realizing that they are damaging their future success. But what do I mean by a "comfort zone trap"?

• Do you know everything or most things about your job and you feel confident, you can answer any question? Then you are in the comfort zone trap and you need to get out.

• Do you stay where you are because you know everyone and everyone respects you and you are happy that people come up to you, show you respect and ask your advice? Then quite likely you are in the trap and you are afraid to go out after opportunities because in new places nobody will give you that level of respect.

• Do you stay in your job because it is secure and allows you to pay your bills and you avoid going out there and taking risks? Then you are in your comfort zone and quite likely you are missing out on opportunities due to fear holding you where you are.

Do you remember when you first started a job, be it at an employer or your own projects? Everything was unknown and you had to learn new things and make connections with new people and perhaps at the beginning you got weaker scores or evaluations as you did not know everything well. But this is exactly the most useful period for yourself as you develop and grow the fastest in this kind of an environment. You learn new things, you force your brain to develop and make new neural connections and similar with people, you encounter new personalities, new difficulties, which you must learn to overcome.

That is where you want to be. You do not want to be in your comfort zone!

In your comfort zone you know your job well and so you might catch yourself needing coffee. People often look for stimulants if their tasks are boring. And when are the tasks boring? This is when you know exactly what you are doing, when you will be finished and what will be the outcome. And you can only know those pieces of information if you are in your comfort zone. So avoid it like the plague!

The unknown is scary and things can definitely go very wrong, but I am not recommending you to blindly jump. What do entrepreneurs do? They look for all possible ways to reduce risk. So do your homework, analyze your situation and take all the necessary steps to make your landing as soft as possible. This could mean saving some money or getting a new job before you quit your current one or making a new consulting contract before your quit your job or developing something on the side up to the point where it starts bringing you money before you plunge into the unknown.

Avoid the comfort zone like the plague - do not fall into its trap! Force yourself to constantly develop and grow and reach success!