If you missed my other posts relating to this, here they are: Dreaming, Finding Your SWEET SPOT In Life, The Keys To Success and Strengths, Talents and Gifts...
Comfort Zones are comfy.
That's why we all LOVE them and want to stay curled up and safe and warm. But, if we want to learn, grow, build character and achieve our dreams, we have to GET OUT OF OUR COMFORT ZONE!
As Wick Jackson (my dad) would say…
"if you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got"…
So YOU get out of YOUR comfort zone and I'll get out of MY comfort zone…DEAL?!?!?!?!
So, for me this means:
-going to the gym alone?
-teaching a class?
-driving out of town alone?
-speaking in front of a crowd?
-going to the grocery store alone?
-working on my yard/house?
-cooking a new meal?
-being a leader at Bible Study?
-going to a conference alone in two weeks?
-walking my dog alone?
Obviously being "alone" is my biggest issue. I HATE to be alone (most of the time) and it is way out of my comfort zone. I would LOVE to be with Nick ALL DAY EVERY DAY!
So, what things would take you out of YOUR comfort zone?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?
I'd like to think that most everyone who ever achieved anything GREAT did it by getting out of their comfort zones…so, I like to think about what I can achieve if I get out of mine.
You want another inspirational word from Wick Jackson? This is what he has posted in his office:
Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, And Nobody
| This is a little story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody. There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about that because it was Everybody's job. Everybody thought that Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn't do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done |
I LOVE this little story because it reminds me that I CAN DO IT!
Now you want some inspiration from me?
GOT DREAMS? GET OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE AND JUST DO IT!
Just kidding, but not really…I have to tell this to myself ALL of the time.
Side note: we need REST too! We get tired! We can't just keep going and going and going and going like the energizer bunny…take a nap, read a book, go to the beach for the day, leave town for a week of vacation…just make sure that you are getting enough rest so you have enough energy to continue to dream!
REMEMBER: As you are getting out of your comfort zone and trying new things, it's ok to make mistakes! If you make a mistake, you learn not to ever make that mistake again. Nick wanted me to add this - smart people learn from their mistakes…wise people learn from the mistakes of others. We don't know who said that, but its good! No matter what, NEVER GIVE UP! You MUST dream, you MUST find that sweet spot in life, you MUST learn to be successful, you MUST figure out your talents, strengths and gifts, you MUST get out of your comfort zone and you MUST continue to learn…don't just let your life float by!
Nick and I have traveled more than most of our friends. But, it isn't because we just decided to buy airline tickets one day and left the country the next. We worked hard and sacrificed for years! When our friends were going out to restaurants and to see movies in the theatre, we were picking up Little Ceasar's $5 pizza and renting a RedBox DVD for $1.30. When our friends were buying new furniture for their new homes, we were using hand-me-downs from friends and family. When our friends were buying flat screen TVs, we just went without and then finally got a hand-me-down TV from a sister during our 4th year of marriage. When our friends were getting new laptops, we were still using the one we've had since college graduation in 2008. When our friends were buying new cars, we were buying used and sharing one car, for the two of us, since we were married in 2007. When most people own their own vacuum cleaner, we have been borrowing my moms since the one from our wedding broke years ago. When most people need new towels or sheets and just go out and buy them, we would just wait it out and ask for them for Christmas. When my girlfriends would go buy a new dress for a special occasion, I would go through my mom and sisters closets and borrow something that they already have…the list of "sacrifices" goes on and on and on!
I'm NOT saying we had it bad…we HAVE IT GOOD! But, we have dreams and goals and we plan and save. We live according to a budget that we set for ourselves. The budget has changed over the years. During our first year of marriage, we were still full-time students and we worked all of the hours that we weren't in class or sleeping. That year, I bought an exercise tank top from Target for $15 and I thought that I had just thrown our money away and we were going to be living on the streets. That's the same time of our lives when we thought that a Combo #1 at Chick-Fil-A was a SUPER expensive date night. So, we have grown up and graduated and have better jobs, but we STILL dream, set goals, plan, budget and save…that's still the only way to actually live out our dreams! So, YES, it was a sacrifice, but we NEVER GAVE UP and since getting married in 2007, we have been to 17 countries together and slowly been checking things off of our ever growing bucket list.
You can do it...
NEVER GIVE UP
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