There is a time in everyone’s life, and just not in their career, but in all facets of their life, where they hit what has been commonly referred to as the ‘barrier.’ This is the spot where a decision has to be made as to either stay where you are, or, go through, over, or, around it and explore the unknown. In other words, to get out of your comfort zone.
If you really start to consider it, we have been doing it all our lives. Think back to when you were growing up and meeting one of the barriers. You had to meet that challenge and move on to the next step. You hit those barriers and went through them without even thinking about it; crawling to standing, walking to running, tricycle to training wheels to full two-wheel bike, or, sitting on the bench to being a starter.
What does this have to do with your career? Start by looking at exactly where you are today. Are you comfortable there? Is this as far as you want to go? Are you satisfied with your results? If the answers to all those were yes, then maybe you should stay there and become just one of the average? You are obviously very aware of what is not only behind you, but also what all of that entails. You have become the smartest person in the room, but as someone once said, that means that you are in the wrong room. If your answers is no; that is, you want to go further, you realize that your results could always be better and know that being comfortable is the enemy of progress, then congratulations, you have just made the decision to go from being the average
You have become the smartest person in the room, but as someone once said, that means that you are in the wrong room. If your answers is no; that is, you want to go further, you realize that your results could always be better and know that being comfortable is the enemy of progress, then congratulations, you have just made the decision to go from being the average person to that of the professional in your field. You have come to the realization that real growth and success lies outside of your comfort zone.
As Lao-Tzu said: “The journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step.” Since you have taken that first step, what you should do is clearly picture the end. Where does your ‘thousand miles’ end? Setting a goal is the first step in getting there because if you don’t have a clear destination in mind, how do you know you have reached it? The next step is to prioritize your activities to make sure that the ‘steps’ you are taking in your journey are getting you to that goal. You see, a goal without an action plan is just a wish.
At this point, you may be saying to yourself: “This sounds hard.” And guess what? It is. What you have to ask yourself is if it is worth it, or, are you going to ‘wimp’ out here? You know what is behind you and where you are at as you have lived it and further, you had decided that is not acceptable. As the smartest person in the room, you have decided to leave it.
In his book: ‘You Can’t Teach a Kid to Ride a Bike in A Seminar’, David Sandler called this ‘wimp junction.’ Only you can make the decision if you are going to ‘wimp’ out, or, are all of your wants, desires and wishes worth it?
You have gone through the ‘barrier’ before, why would today be any different?