A Successful Career Change Means Getting Uncomfortable
Most human beings cling to comfort, though science has proven that when you step outside of your comfort zone, that is where the most significant achievement takes place. If it weren’t for taking uncertain steps out into a scary world, we would still be living in caves and throwing rocks at dinosaurs, waiting around for someone to discover fire. Thomas Alva Edison would never have given us the light bulb, and we probably wouldn’t know that bacon goes great with everything.
Thinking about changing careers can be scary.
Most people just stay right where they are, because they are frightened by the possibility of failure. Since they have their family to provide for, they make the justification that they shouldn’t tempt fate. Moving to a new career might not turn out so well. So that person sticks with their current career even though they are not happy, years later wondering “what could have been.”
My personal story saw one initiative after another that I proposed to leadership being turned down. The reasoning didn’t make sense. I could save the company money while improving performance, so why say no? It became clear that change was super intimidating to the team and they really just wanted me to babysit cubicles. I am not a cubicle sitter.
If You Never Step Outside of Your Comfort Zone, How Do You Know What You Are Truly Capable Of?
Sports records fall every day because athletes keep pushing themselves. They are not happy with their current level of achievement. They want to know how good they can be, so they train and work very hard. They push themselves out of their comfort zone, and their regular training regimen. They lift heavier weights, work out longer, and run faster. The result of becoming uncomfortable, training as they have never trained before, is new personal bests and sometimes world records.
This is because of something known as the Yerkes-Dodson Law. Dodson and Yerkes were a couple of psychologists who, in the earliest years of the 20th century, discovered that stress leads to achievement. What they found was that significant achievement did not happen until a person took small steps outside of the environment, surroundings, and behaviors where he felt most comfortable.
Small Steps Lead to Big Change
They noted that when someone was put in an entirely uncomfortable, stressful environment, performance was horrible. However, taking small steps outside of a person’s comfort zone slowly began to expand the area where that person was happy and comfortable. Over time, it becomes easier and easier to take on new tasks and expose yourself to unfamiliar experiences.
With the employment environment being what it is… take every opportunity to grow you can.
If your job is killing you, physically or mentally, maybe you should switch careers. Don’t take a giant leap – take a baby step instead. Rather than immediately moving from one career to another, why not take a part-time job in a career that interests you? This may give you the inspiration you need to execute on your own deal. Maybe you can sign up for classes or certification in some field that has captured your attention. These small steps outside of your comfort zone will eventually give you the confidence to move onto an entirely different career if your current field of employment is not working out.
The Big Change
You experimented. You checked things out. Now it’s time to pull the trigger. Hang that tile and tell the world you are in business. You don’t have to quit the main gig yet if you don’t want to, but don’t be afraid to tell people you are making moves. Promotion, Networking and not being afraid to lean on others for additional support is the key to growth.
My own growth came when I got out of my comfort zone and began leveraging others toward my own success. A lot of this happens by being a Servant Leader and giving to others along the way… but not being too proud to accept the referrals and “hand ups” that come along.
You can do this and if you are in need of direction… I can help.
