For many people, the picture above likely conjures thoughts of an idyllic vacation: white, sandy beaches; azure water; a light breeze; drinks by the ocean.
Perfection. Right?
While I haven’t been to a lot of places like the one pictured above, I do enjoy those types of places when I’m with others.
I’ve never been on a solo vacation, but if I ever went I would likely go no farther than my local library. I would spend the week savoring as many books as I could with the occasional nap in between.
No plane ticket or sand required.
A lot of growth can come from internalizing what we read then putting it into practice. For people who love to read, there’s no discomfort there.
- Grab a book.
- Settle in.
- Read.
- Learn and grow.
There are two commonly parroted ideas that have gained a lot of prevalence in the last few decades but that have never really served the greater good:
- The only time you grow is when you’re uncomfortable.
- Humans seek comfort at all costs.
The first one is often either accompanied by a story about someone achieving greatness by working tirelessly at the expense of everything else some story about building muscle as though everything in life can be reduced to a good session at the gym.
The second one is typically couched in a statement like the following from Scott Trettenero: “If we weren’t wired with our affinity for comfort, our possibilities for a better life and world would be unfathomable.”
Hyperbole much?
Tying both #1 and #2 together, my new personal “favorite” quote comes from Luay Rahil:
Most people sacrifice their potential to avoid painful moments, leading to failure. They forget that growth and comfort don’t coexist.
“Growth and comfort don’t coexist.”
Um. What?
Mr. Trettenero’s and Mr. Rahil’s statements imply that discomfort = growth. We can all point to abundant examples in our own lives where we had some measure of discomfort that didn’t lead to any kind of growth. How many times have you engaged in over-eating to the point of physical illness? How about the consumption of alcohol? Exercise to the point of injury?
Okay, that last one maybe isn’t fair since injury is possible even during exercise within one’s capabilities. I once tore a hip flexor getting out of a car. Accidents happen.
The point is, if we grew from those experiences, we wouldn’t repeat them.
Growth can occur by getting out of your comfort zone, but a certain amount of comfort can also be conducive to personal development. Comfort often leads to feeling secure and supported. That feeling might then lead someone to explore opportunities; perhaps push the boundary between the comfort and discomfort zones.
Comfort can act as a catalyst for growth by providing a stable foundation from which to explore new opportunities. It’s fair to say that growth in certain areas will require some discomfort at some point on the journey, but to imply that discomfort is required for growth is inaccurate at best and harmful at worst. Discomfort is not a universal requirement.
The key to growth is finding a balance between comfort and discomfort. There will be times that growth and comfort *ahem* comfortably coexist and times when a little discomfort can expand one’s capacities.
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