My Inverted Comfort Zone

Most people talk about their comfort zone as though it is a box. They like to stay inside the box because it's what they're familiar with. Occasionally, they are forced to venture outside the box by doing something they've never done, and as a result, their comfort zone is expanded.

However, I'm sort of the opposite. I tend to get bored with repeating the same things I've done before, and I find much more excitement with doing new things and going new places. Whenever possible, I try to do things that are altogether new, or at least a new twist on an old activity. Do you know the jittery feeling that you feel when climbing a tall ladder and stepping on the roof of a house? Some people hate that feeling, whereas I love it. In a sense, my comfort zone is to be outside the normal comfort zone, and being inside the normal comfort zone is outside my comfort zone.

This may sound like an exciting approach to life, but I'm here to tell you that it has its own struggles. For one, I tend to be bored a lot. Most of the elements of life have to be the same regularly. For another, I tend to face some resistance to new ideas, and it's especially difficult to get a large group of people to try something new.

People have different preferences on routine or new things. I would not suggest that anyone has to be comfortable with one way or the other. However, I should say that we must develop the ability to do routine things well and the ability to do new things, because both are regular parts of life.