A comfort zone is a psychological space where a person feels secure, in control, and free from stress. It encompasses habits, routines, and environments that offer familiarity and predictability. While comfort zones provide stability and a sense of safety, they can also hinder growth and limit opportunities if one becomes overly reliant on them.
Management experts of all hues, sizes and shapes keep exhorting us to get out of our bubbles of comfort. Ultimately, growth begins where the comfort zone ends. By stepping into the unknown, individuals not only expand their skill sets but also develop resilience and adaptability. Recognising when to challenge oneself and when to retreat into familiar territory is key to a balanced and fulfilling life. Embracing discomfort as a catalyst for growth can transform how individuals approach challenges, unlocking new possibilities in the process.
Dilip Mohapatra proposes that we keep getting out of comfort zones all through our lives. Most of the times, we may be blissfully unaware of our doing so in an unconscious manner. This is what he has to say:
You cross your first ever
comfort zone when you are
emerging from the womb
your body covered with amniotic fluid
and your umbilical cord
is severed from your mother’s
placenta
and the midwife
picks you up by your legs
and slaps your back for
you to cry out loudly…
Then you are cleaned up
and wrapped up in white linen
into a bundle
and you snuggle upto
your mother’s warmth
and a new comfort zone appears
that soon gets embedded
to your mother’s embrace
assuring you of your security
as you grow up
and finally fly out of your nest
to savour the world outside.
As you taste the uncharted waters
of the boarding schools and colleges
you experience
a new comfort zone
through bonding with your friends
taking care of one another
and creating the safety nets
under you
and a protective circle around
and your membership
guarantees you
comfort and safety
till you venture out
to your hunting ground
for your survival and success.
On your way you meet your mate
and soon you are entrapped
in a new comfort zone
that is built around you
by your partner
its boundaries delineated by
a fence with love as its posts
and possessiveness
born out of insecurities
as its barbed wire…
and you are happy to stay within
its limits
and dare not to move out
to face the consequences
and anxieties outside.
Then in your twilight years
when all fences dissolve away
one after another
you create your own
self made comfort zone
with bricks of experience
and plaster of
accumulated wisdom
and find your recliner
to slowly rock
to the rhythm of
the waves of memory
lulling yourself to
soothing slumber.
Then as you venture into
your spiritual realm
in search of the infinity
the comfort zone
loses its meaning
and you move into
the divine comfort zone
having no boundaries
no limits
and you levitate into
a state of perpetual bliss
that is both ethereal
and eternal.
About the author
A decorated Navy veteran, he wears many hats. Has dabbled in the corporate world. Author. Poet.
(Illustration courtesy the World Wide Web)
ashokbhatia 