Life Design Action: Regularly hang out with the butterflies;

Requires: An ability to cope with uncertainty;

Does not require: a Buddleia bush ..

Hanging around inside your comfort zone is comfortable. It’s where all of your usual habits, beliefs and self identity lie. There are hammocks in your comfort zone. And beds. And cushions. There might even be a ches lounge with a large box of Celebrations and remote control next to it.

Comfort Zones are nice. They are comfy. They want to hug you.

But your comfort zones is also a gilded cage.

After a while it will become squeezy.

A bit … samey.

When this happens you can either wiggle our toes, stretch and flick the channel and ignore the cramping in your confidence.

Or you can consider how you are going grow yourself, your life, your goals in some way. And this is where the uncomfortableness begins.

You see, in order to experience growth in any life area, you have to move OUTSIDE your comfort zone. This might mean doing things that initially feels out-of-the-comfiness (going on your first jog, beginning to say “no” to people a little more, asking for things you want).  Or it may mean doing something that involves uncertainty such as changing your job, starting a new business or  taking an audition. This uncomfortable sense of uncertainty is almost always fluttering about when you are taking a new step forward.

When I was younger I found uncertainty unbearable. I hated that feeling of anxiety – the butterflies in the pit of my stomach. Now, several years, countless workshops (and bitten down thumb nails later), I recognise that the butterflies are simply the gate keepers of my comfort zone. I have no real thought about them other than knowing that I’m about to evolve my life in some courageous and gorgeous way. I guess you could say I’ve developed a high butterfly threshold.

I’m very happy about this as by becoming butterfly tolerant, I’ve been able to push my comfort zone further, taking bigger actions and creating bigger results. In fact, I can confidently say that I would be able to speak to an audience of 100-200+ and it wouldn’t be out of my comfort zone.

That is pretty rad considering that five years ago I had trouble stringing a sentence together at times.

For many of my 1-1 clients, however, the thought of leaving their comfort zone is petrifying.

The majority of adults actively avoid situations that bring the butterfly warning. People think they are giving themselves a peaceful life by refusing to ever navigate into situations that are going to bring a bit of anxiety or nail-biting restlessness. The truth is though, by avoiding the fear butterflies, we are avoiding the boundaries of our comfort zone and if we refuse to ever push those boundaries outwards, the lines draw in and get smaller. Our confidence is diminished. We shrink.

If you are looking to expand your life, health, work or the dynamic of your relationships you will to go and hang out with the butterflies.

You need to be so OKAY with them that they can brush past your lips.

Land on your shoulder.

Balance on your ear lobe.

And when you know that you can do THAT, then the world becomes full of opportunity.

When was the last time you SERIOUSLY stepped out of your comfort zone?