The importance of embracing vulnerability and stepping out of your comfort zone

By Guest Contributor Nicola Charlotte, Career and Life Coach @nicolacharlottecoaching

To embrace vulnerability is to expand out of your comfort zone, whilst acknowledging the positive outcomes that’ll be generated as a result. At the time, these sorts of scenarios may seem a little scary or daunting, but it’s important we don’t let this fear override the excitement or adrenaline. The resulting benefits are endless, and this post will go on to explain what these
look like, and also highlight the importance of why we all need to embrace vulnerability regularly.

Often people like to play it safe, be that sticking to the same routine, staying in the same job, carrying on “cruising” through life with minimal challenges. As humans, we don’t like change, and this is normal - it’s a way that our subconscious protects us from risk or potentially “dangerous” situations. Dangerous is a slight exaggeration, however it refers to any scenario that our mind sees as a potential threat, and when this threat crops up, it’s as if a big red imaginary flag appears in our minds shouting NO! Consequently, we end up talking ourselves out of doing something, and remain within our “safe” zone.

As you can start to see, we therefore tend to stay very much in this safe space for a large portion of our lives. We need to get out of this comfortable, “safe” space, and expand beyond it as otherwise we don’t learn or develop. By embracing the unknown, we’re opening ourselves up to challenge, to growth and to new opportunities i.e. key components for personal development. If we don’t expose ourselves to these new opportunities, we’re likely to miss out on many positive and rewarding experiences. To bring it to life with a tangible example, think of a time when you’ve challenged yourself on a physical level i.e. committed to doing your first 5KM, entered a triathlon or learnt how to do a headstand in yoga. You had to push yourself to get there - the run felt tough, the sweat was real and you were challenged! However, out the other side, the feeling of accomplishment, achievement, pride and success was SO worth it right!? We push ourselves to a level where we know the positive results will out-weigh what initially seemed daunting. The benefits of embracing vulnerability are endless, but I’ve outlined a few below:

1. It allows advancement
Trying something new is always slightly scary! It’ll feel uneasy because you’re taking a new step forward. However, we don’t want this fear to over-power the excitement or courage within you too. These situations allow you to forge new connections, open up new opportunities, gain new
skills and potentially new relationships. You’re advancing forward with an abundant mindset.

2. It creates enhanced skills
Listen to the “I can” voice in your head (vs the often overpowering “I can’t”). You acknowledge it might not be easy, but you view it as a challenge you can overcome and that you’re willing to try. This is similar to setting personal goals where you’ll be pushed slightly, but the feeling of
accomplishment and pride upon doing it is amazing, and as a result you’ll continue to grow.

3. Vulnerability makes discomfort comfortable
Basically, the more you’re willing to try new experiences and put yourself out there, the more you’ll feel comfortable with doing these sorts of activities! You’ll be reaping lots of rewards and developing on a personal level, that naturally you’ll be eager to keep going. It may seem uncomfortable or a little daunting, but ultimately, deep down you know it will generate positive results that’ll show up in many corners of your life. What can you do today that’ll push you out of your comfort zone?