When was the last time you did something for the FIRST time? Last year? Last week? Yesterday? How did this experience make you feel? Was it positive or negative? Most of the time, it makes you feel shocked but in a good way because for once in your life, you finally decided to try something different. You took a risk and tried something new without soaking your feet in the water first.

Typically, this is called stepping outside of your comfort zone. A handful of people go through life being afraid or too comfortable living inside their own realm of the comfort zone. Each one of us has probably met an individual like this or already has someone in their life that is afraid of trying new things. Meanwhile, they constantly complain about the life they have, yet they don’t do anything about it!

Ever wonder why?!

They refuse to step outside of their comfort zone. This is not just the elderly who are typically conservative, traditional, and fear change. Many young individuals fall down this trap as well.

There is a significant difference between living a comfortable life versus a happy, fulfilling life. Wouldn’t you agree? In the most simplistic terms, there are two types of people in this world: The ones who settle and the ones who do not. Not to offend anyone out there who chooses to take the “easy way out” as there is nothing wrong with that, but you cannot expect to live an extraordinary life by simply doing the bare minimum. Whether this settling for less than what you deserve entails working a mediocre 9-5 job you are unhappy with because you chose not to go to college or could not afford it at the time, dropped out, etc. (whatever the case may be) as college is not the only way to make money these days and it is certainly not for everyone, but that is a conversation for another time.

On the contrary, there are the hard-workers, the ones who go above and beyond, and advocate change. These are usually the type of people you would classify as “successful” or self-driven, motivated, ambitious individuals. The ones who make it in life. They are not afraid of taking risks. In fact, they are the ones willing to do whatever it takes in order to reach their desired outcome. They do not wait for someone or something to come around and change their life. They take initiative for the outcomes they wish to see and actually DO something about it, instead of complaining all the time.

THAT is the difference, my friends…

They actually choose to do something about it! Especially when you are given a choice.

Though, there are so many things in life that are beyond our control. Why don’t we just try to shift our focus on the aspects we can control? Quit your job, take some time off, figure it out. Do what you have to do to put yourself out of that miserable life. Start over. Expand your horizons. Meet new people. Ask your dream girl out on a date. Go skydiving. Do something crazy and spectacular for once. Travel far and wide. Don’t worry about the money. You have to start somewhere, because as you have probably heard a million times by now…Nothing great ever came out of comfort zones. Life begins where your “comfort zone” ends. While comfort zones may feel good temporarily,  growing is a heck of a lot better.  It’s okay to be scared. Being scared means you’re about to do something really, really brave.  On a final note, F. Scott Fitzgerald wisely advises us: