Getting comfortable with the uncomfortable is a phrase I heard recently, and I’ll admit it touched a nerve. It hit home that I need to embrace this if I’m to make any changes in my life…particularly with my running and my business.
So why did it touch a nerve with me?
Well…you know when you set yourself a target of any sort, and you think ‘Yeah, I can do that’? But then time seems to get the better of you, the nights get darker, other work gets in the way, you’re tired…shall I go on?
This was exactly me…making up excuses in my head to avoid getting stuck into what I had to do in order to get the job done. Because I knew it would be uncomfortable, both physically and emotionally.
The ‘job’ being getting back on my running and doing the runs consistently, even those that I know are going to be uncomfortable because of the pace I have to hit.
The ‘job’ also being learning to say no in my business, sticking to my values when I send out a proposal, listening to other people’s advice but doing it my way if I feel that’s best.
So when I heard the phrase ‘get comfortable with the uncomfortable’, I had a bit of an ‘aha’ moment. The penny finally dropped. The switch went on. I either get on and do it, or I don’t achieve what I want to.
I had a change of mindset.
A change in mindset sounds so simple, but we’re faced with so many things going on in our lives; our minds are so busy that it’s sometimes hard to focus on what is in front of us. And I truly believe that you only change when you’re ready to. You might desperately want to change something in your life, but you won’t until your head is ready.
And even after taking that first step, it then comes down to being consistent. You have to keep chipping away at it until you get to where you want to be, however uncomfortable the journey. It becomes part of who you are and what you do every day, and then it’s not such a big deal anymore.
So if you do one thing today, take a moment out and think deeply about why you are putting something off. It might be uncomfortable thinking about it because you have to confront your fears, but until you do, nothing will change.
Fear of the unknown often holds us back from taking the next step. If you’re having problems in your business or personal life, seek out someone who can help you. Until you do, you’re kinda stuck where you are.
But if you’re not ready to change yet, that’s OK. Just don’t beat yourself up about it; be kind to yourself. Come back to it later. Or actually it’s ok to reassess your goals, even if it feels like you’ve failed. You haven’t…that feeling will pass.
We are sometimes guilty of setting our goals too high, then beating ourselves up when we don’t achieve them. Often these goals we set are too high in the first place.
I learnt this with my running…I set myself a target of a sub 25-minute 5k. I got to 25:47, which is still pretty good for my age, but knocking off those extra 47 seconds proved harder than I thought it would be. So I took a step back and looked at it differently…I had achieved a sub 26-minute 5k!
If you are ready to change, then go for it! In the future when you look back at how far you’ve come, you’ll wonder why you kept putting that ‘thing’ off, which seemed such a big thing at the start.
Both your business and personal goals are achievable if you are realistic with them and are prepared to do what it takes. But nothing changes until you do!
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