Find Your Summit

Happy Friday! It’s been a great week and I’ve been busy, busy, busy. My job and family keep me hopping, and with a nasty cold virus making its way through the house, it’s been interesting.

The weekend is right around the corner, and I’d like to challenge you a bit. Well actually, I’d like to challenge you to challenge yourself a bit. I think it’s important for us to push ourselves occasionally, whether at work, with a hobby or passion, or anything we feel gets us out of our comfort zones. I read a blog  post (scribblingsandthoughts@wordpress.com/2016/06/01/step-out-of-your-comfort-zone) a couple of days ago that reminded me how our comfort zones can really keep us from doing things we would rather be doing, or starting things we have always wanted to start. I know it happens to me.

Every now and again, I need to be OK venturing out of my normal routine, and not shying away from potential failure. For me, failure can sometimes mean anything short of perfection. So, I get good at certain things, do them perfectly, and have very little risk of failure. This becomes routine, and before I know it, I’m not challenging myself anymore. This also means I’m not growing anymore. I believe that’s why I love rock climbing so much. It satisfies my dedication to physical exercise, but it also challenges me in so many ways – both physically and mentally. If I want to progress, I have to challenge myself! I have to climb a little steeper, scarier route each time I want to reach the next level. And once I move past that fear, whether it be of falling or failure, I gain a new confidence. After a while, I start to see myself at the next level before I even try. I get more and more confident being outside my comfort zone, and I accomplish so much more than I ever could from inside that space. It’s that confidence, that ability to see myself doing the things I want, that allows me to reach heights I never dreamed possible. 

Challenges are different for everyone. You don’t have to make it something huge, but it’s OK if you do! Just get yourself out of that comfortable space, spread your wings a bit, and be amazed at how high you soar!

I’d love to hear about some of the ways you challenge yourself. Feel free to discuss in the comments section.