Have you ever started your work week and wondered where the weekend went? You lay there in bed trying to motivate yourself to start your day. You even begin to look forward to the upcoming weekend so you can have the freedom to do the things you enjoy. This routine repeats itself over and over as we want to change.

Does this sound familiar? Life has become so routine that you desire to change what you are doing but don’t know where to begin. So how do you get out of your comfort zone and start living a more fulfilling life?

In this article, we will explore guidelines you can follow to move out of your comfort zone into the life that energizes you to wake up each day and live and do things that excite and motivate you.

These guidelines will include the following:

• Face the fear of the unknown
• Challenge yourself to develop a growth mindset
• Live beyond your comfort zone
• Focusing on a more significant purpose

Face the fear of the unknown

An ancient story that took place generations ago is The Black Door story. It describes a time when a desert war was going on in the Middle East.

A spy is captured by a Persian General and given two options on how he would be sentenced. The first option was for the spy to face a firing squad. The second option was to exit through a Black Door.

The spy thought about these two options and decided to face the firing squad because he felt more comfortable facing what he knew instead of exiting through a door with unknown mysteries and horrors that may await him.

After the firing squad executes the spy, an aide to the General asks what is behind the Black Door. The General replied freedom lies beyond the Black Door with unknown opportunities. However, very few men choose it because they fear the unknown more than what they already know.

This story summarizes a great dilemma facing many of us today, the fear of the unknown. We become comfortable living a life playing it safe without risks, choosing to stay where we are instead of taking a chance to do something better.

How do we overcome this fear of the unknown?

The first step to facing unknown fears is to acknowledge what you are afraid of, write down the worst possible outcome you can imagine, and then take the courage to overcome these fears through faith and by setting bigger goals and dreams for your future.

Dream big, and let your dreams for success be more significant than your fear of failure.

Challenge yourself to develop a growth mindset

After you dare to face your fear, start developing a growth mindset.

As discussed in an earlier article, A Review of a Growth Mindset Vs. In a Fixed Mindset, a person with a growth mindset believes that their skills can be developed, even if it has to be done incrementally over time.

Developing a growth mindset enables you to use goals as a roadmap to take you where you ultimately want to go. It does not mean you will not experience setbacks or failures but that you can use the experiences encountered as opportunities to learn and grow.

An example of a growth mindset is Thomas Edison’s attempt to discover the lightbulb. He failed thousands of times in his attempts but viewed each failure as a learning opportunity for what had not worked. He was driven by persistence to discover a solution until he succeeded.

Likewise, developing a growth mindset may involve starting a business or changing your career to reach your desired goal. Each time you fail, look at it as an opportunity to learn from it and use that knowledge to continue growing.

Live beyond your comfort zone

We all live within a bubble. This bubble can be viewed as our comfort zone. It consists of our geographic location, beliefs, values, and everything that shapes our personalities.

Living beyond your comfort zone is challenging yourself to take risks to grow as a person by learning and expanding into a wider area of comfort than you are accustomed to. Aspire to evolve into a more fantastic version of yourself by living beyond the boundaries you are used to.

Open your mind by reading, developing new skills, getting to know people different than you, and seeking to learn something new daily.

Expand your network of friends through work and social media platforms that promote your growth and development goals.

Focus on a more significant purpose

To tap into life beyond your comfort zone entails living a life of purpose. So what can you contribute to make this world a better place?

Each person makes a difference. To prove this point, imagine a grand forest of trees. Although there are many trees, each one is unique. Therefore, if a tree were set on fire, it would spread to other trees because a fire can not be contained unless a miracle of God or firefighters were available to prevent it from spreading.

I am not advocating that anyone go out and burn trees. The point in this illustration is that, like a tree, each of us impacts the world around us. When we become all God has created us to be and operate within our purpose, we inspire others around us. Use positive inspiration within yourself to inspire others to strive to live a more fulfilling life also.

Have a passion for following your dream and accomplishing something more significant than where you currently are. Allow this passion to drive you to put forth the effort and focus on improving yourself daily.

Conclusion

In conclusion, we have discussed getting out of your comfort zone to live a more meaningful and fulfilling life. We have outlined guidelines to follow to make changes in your life.

These guidelines included facing the fear of the unknown, challenging yourself to develop a growth mindset, living beyond your comfort zone, and focusing on a more significant purpose.

The next step is action. What actions will you start today to move outside your comfort zone? Please share your comments on what you are doing to expand your comfort zone or what unique suggestions you have developed that can help others.

Your feedback is greatly appreciated. Thank you for your time.