Being uncomfortable.

On the other side of what makes you uncomfortable is growth.

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I think one of the best lessons I’ve learned in the past couple of years is how to be okay with getting uncomfortable. How to truly step outside your comfort zone and realize that what’s waiting on the other side is what could potentially change your life.

It’s not easy. No on likes to do something that scares them, or something they’re unfamiliar with. But choosing to do it anyway and feeling the growth after you have accomplished these things is worth every second of being uncomfortable.

Something that has helped me in the most uncomfortable situations is realizing that other people involved are also uncomfortable. I’m very lucky to actually enjoy public speaking, I loved my speech classes growing up and throughout college. This doesn’t mean that stepping in front of hundreds of people and talking doesn’t make me a bit nervous. However,

I know that anyone else stepping in front of hundreds of people to speak is also quite nervous.

Confidence is key, yes; but understanding that you’re not the only one who gets nervous or uncomfortable doing something challenging can help you stay calm and just keep trying.

Over the past few years I’ve worked through a few uncomfortable situations that have led to nothing but growth and strength in my life.

One of the first times experiencing this was when my relationship ended a couple of years ago. If you’ve been in an on and off again kind of relationship for several years you probably know that one of the reasons you have a hard time leaving is the comfortability of staying.

After so many years with the same person, thinking of getting to know anyone else, or dating again, or just being alone after being with someone for so long is really frightening—and uncomfortable.

But at the end of the day you must realize that even though something makes you feel comfortable it might not be good for you. Staying inside your comfort zone even when you’re hurting is a dangerous place to get lost.  Even though what comes next is foreign, just getting past the initial feeling of being uncomfortable will open doors you can’t imagine.

I’m thankful for everything my last relationship taught me about life, and love and about myself; but learning to leave and move on from it even though it was something new and challenging and uncomfortable has really brought a new kind of growth to my life.

After going through an uncomfortable break-up; the only practical thing to do was move across the country, right?

Slightly joking but maybe this was one of the driving factors that led to me moving to Maine. Either way, I knew I wanted to start traveling more, and Maine just seemed like the right place to start.

Wow, this was a very challenging and uncomfortable learning experience for me last year. I would be leaving my friends and family and the place I’d worked and lived for the past five years to start new in a random place surrounded by people I didn’t know.

Just simply applying for a new job and going through the entire interview process was scary. Not to mention actually packing up and moving across the country.

I had really gotten used to sticking with my routines in Kearney. Going to work with the same people, then going out with the same group of friends. It became the norm; my familiar routine, ultimately it was the epitome of what some would call a comfort zone. I didn’t have to do anything challenging or new or uncomfortable for quite some time.

Then I moved and had to really step outside this comfort zone and learn new things, meet new people, become familiar with a new routine find a new group of friends. Funny thing is, I cannot believe I didn’t do this sooner.

The doors it’s opened, and the people I’ve met are enough to make this experience more than worth it. But that’s not all—I feel so much more confident in myself and more comfortable with the idea of picking up and moving anywhere.

A more recent event that has taught me how to be comfortable being uncomfortable was meeting a good friend of mine, Brady, and traveling to Southeast Asia. These two things don’t go hand in hand necessarily, but they happened around the same time and their significances are both really tremendous.

Basically, I met Brady and had possibly the biggest crush on a human being that I’d ever had before. So bad I could hardly hold a conversation with him. As our friendship grew, Brady pushed me outside my comfort zone more than I thought was possible.

He was honest. Brutally honest. He asked the questions that needed to be asked, and told you what you needed to hear, even if it wasn’t what you wanted to hear. Either way, Brady taught me that even when being honest makes you feel uncomfortable in the moment, it’s what will help you grow and will benefit you more in the end.

Brady came into my life at such a unique time. He is one of those people that you know was placed in your life to help you grow. I can only hope that he and I will remain friends for as long as we can even though we might end up in different parts of the world.

I could probably write an entire blog, maybe even a short book about the lessons Brady taught me in the short time we spent together; but the growth he helped me reach just before leaving the country for my first extended period of time is something I’ll forever be grateful for.

Traveling to Thailand to visit Charissa was by far one of the freakiest, but most exciting things I’ve ever done. Of course, I was exhilarated to travel and see new parts of the world. But for just a small-town Nebraskan girl who grew up in the cornfields, flying to a foreign country was pretty intimidating.

You have no idea the discomfort that comes with boarding a fifteen-hour flight all alone surrounded by strangers heading to a foreign country. Trust me, it takes a little bit of nerve. I will always admire Charissa for moving to Thailand all by herself for four months—talk about learning to be okay with getting uncomfortable. You go Char!

The planning and the packing and the never really knowing if you’re prepared to be in a foreign place is a different kind of uncomfortable. Not in the scary kind of way, but more of a lost feeling—just something you’ve never known. The language barriers when arriving to that new country, getting transportation to your hostel the first night and then figuring the rest out as you go isn’t necessarily hard however it’s a learning experience for sure.

Every part of traveling to Thailand taught me more about getting uncomfortable and working through it. Whether it was the growth between Charissa and I in our friendship; learning how to adjust and react to challenging situations while in a foreign country, or just simply trying something you’ve never done before and not knowing what the outcome would be—every step of the way I was learning something new and feel like I came out the other side more confident, more mature, and more comfortable than ever.

These last few years have been nothing short of amazing. Filled with more adventure than I could have ever imagined and growth I never knew I needed in my life. I’ve surrounded myself with some pretty amazing friends, I’ve seen places that have made my eyes water, I’ve pushed myself through difficult situations and gotten used to being uncomfortable and I am truly enticed to see what comes next.