This post is dedicated to all those readers who have had a situation over come them. Decisions made on your behalf. You gain the upper hand with seeking to control things in your control. The situation is not in your control but your reaction is. The following post is about how embracing ‘not knowing a subject’ and making that journey to learn is just about as beautiful an endeavour as any of us can undertake, enjoy:
OK let me start with a bold but I think confident assertion. Everyone enjoys knowing a subject well. Don’t you think? I mean everyone enjoys the feeling when we know the most about a subject in a room full of people. It makes you feel good about yourself, doesn’t it? There is nothing wrong with a desire to know and control your environment. Our evolutionary survival depended on this.
However, can I propose the temptation to double down on the thing you know is hurting you! OK, maybe not but it’s at least holding you back or preventing growth. It gets in the way of trying new things, and growing as a person. I think growing as a person is why we are here on this planet. Make no mistake, knowing the most about a subject and staying there in that zone is all about ego.
Can you be bold and look for new things to learn? can you embrace not knowing a subject. The more we can admit we don’t know, the easier it will be to learn from it. If we can all be comfortable feeling uncomfortable we will grow, if we can all be content with feeling discontent we will be better tomorrow and open new possibilities. I know of no better way to keep growing. Here is the kicker, the why people feel a resistance: It requires trust in those around you and it requires you to be vulnerable.
Below is a list of the ways I think you can begin to be more comfortable being uncomfortable? or being more vulnerable.
- Try something new every day, even if it’s just a small thing.
- Practice mindfulness and learn to sit with uncomfortable feelings without reacting to them.
- Embrace failure as a necessary step towards success.
- Take on challenges that push you outside your comfort zone.
- Seek out feedback and constructive criticism, even if it’s difficult to hear.
- Surround yourself with people who challenge you to grow.
- Learn to laugh at yourself and not take yourself too seriously.
- Try to reframe uncomfortable situations as opportunities for growth.
- Celebrate small victories and progress towards your goals.
- Remind yourself that discomfort is temporary and will pass.
Hearty handshakes from me to you
Sea's The Day 