It’s the end of January and the start of “soooo about that resolution” season.
I was sitting at my day job the other day and started thinking, you know its a good day. Things aren’t so bad. Do I really want to strike out on my own and fully leap into my business? I mean my day job isn’t terrible. I have friends here and I like most of my co-workers. I just moved to a new desk that has a window view. Maybe I should just stay? Take the pressure off myself to get this business going. It’s comfortable and familiar. Why push to change?
At that moment, I could have thrown in the towel and chosen comfort. The number one killer of dreams and goals. The number one creator of “I wish I had” syndrome. The number one reason people stay when they know it’s time to go. Comfort.
There is nothing wrong with comfort. It’s kind of the goal right? To live a comfortable life? but when it comes to change, to dreams, to goals it can be a killer. Change is uncomfortable. There is no way around it but through. So trying to change something in your life without feeling uncomfortable is a lesson in futility and usually leads to regret.
If you really want to make a change you are going to have to be okay with being uncomfortable for a while. You are going to have to choose to stay the course when things get uneasy and unfamiliar. You are going to have to constantly choose change over comfort. Eventually, your new reality will start to feel comfortable but if you let that fear of being uncomfortable stop you and keep you in one place, you’ll never reach your goal.
There are many things that I love about my day job and there are many things that scare me about striking out on my own eventually but I know deep down why I want this. Which is one of the ways I combat the pull of comfort.
When I feel it creep in I think about how I want to be able to be home after school when my kids get off the bus. I think about how I want to not be driving 45 mins plus each way to work. I think about the awesome clients I have right now and how I want to help more amazing folks take their businesses from dream to reality through design and coaching. I know deep down it’s a dream that I don’t want to look back on years from now and wish I had tried.
So I see you discomfort. I know you are coming but I know that eventually, you will turn into comfort and joy so I’m choosing change not just for me but for my family, for my clients, and for the life I want to live.
Choose change over comfort.
Are you willing to be uncomfortable for a little while to achieve your dreams?