“Yes” Your Way Out Of Your Comfort Zone

Shonda Rhimes chose to say “YES!” for a year.

In Minou Clark’s article on Huffington Post –  she shares

From “Grey’s Anatomy” to “Scandal” and “How to Get Away with Murder,” Shonda Rhimes and her production company, Shondaland, have virtually conquered the small screen, gifting us some of Hollywood’s most fierce and fearless characters. But Rhimes will be the first to admit that, despite all her success, for a very long time she was terrified to step outside of her comfort zone. 

Can you even begin to imagine Shonda Rhimes scared?

I bet you can’t because you see this…

You can’t imagine that Shonda Rhimes could be scared. She’s successful, she’s a writer, she’s famous, she’s self-assured.

Yet Shonda, just like the rest of us, feared coming out of her comfort zone.

We all have a comfort zone. Even those of us who’ve “made it.”

We’ve made it to a particular point but in order to move forward we need to push beyond our comfort zone.

Sometimes it takes an idea, a thought, something someone says to inspire us to get uncomfortable.

In Shonda’s case, back in 2013, one of her older sisters remarked “You never say yes to anything.”

And Shonda’s response:

I decided I was going to say ‘yes’ to everything that horrified me, scared me, freaked me out, made me think I was going to die.

“I have a great job, I have wonderful children, I have a great house, I have a wonderful family,” Rhimes thought to herself, and yet, she wasn’t living her life to the fullest, which made her feel “miserable.” Rhimes then decided to challenge herself to face her fears and overcome her social anxieties.

I’m not yet living my life to the fullest and there’s always the argument – is there a “full” mark on life? I think it moves as we learn, grow, and expand. It’s forever widening until we die.

I’m not so much saying “yes” but I am focused on LIVING. By that I mean actively participating in and enjoying my life – the mundane and the over the top and every f*cking thing in-between!

I lived far too much of my life waiting for the right time, needing permission, and wondering whether I’d be accepted or not.

I’m done.

I’ve finally realized that regardless of what I do, people will have stuff to say. I can please no one, nor do I care to anymore.

According to Alan Henry

Your comfort zone is a behavioral space where your activities and behaviors fit a routine and pattern that minimizes stress and risk. It provides a state of mental security. You benefit in obvious ways: regular happiness, low anxiety, and reduced stress.

And about my own comfort zone?

How will I know if something is going to work or not if I stay in my comfort zone?

This is the year to find out. I’m going to be giving all my workshops a green light. I’m stepping out into uncertainty…scared…but so what? I’ll never know if I don’t put my work out there!