Latest / The MysticWithin Podcast / Ep. 12: Your Comfort Zone Is a Cage (Why the Messy Part Is Where You Grow)
Transcript
- Vanessa: I have an emergency PSA from the version of yourself that is living your dream life. You choosing to stay in your comfort zone is actually stopping you from getting everything you want. The parts of life that you're avoiding, aka the messy parts, are actually an opportunity for you. So I have some good news and some bad news. The bad news is you cannot skip the messy part. But the good news is that the messy part is exactly where you grow. You taking one step outside of your comfort zone is actually the first step towards your dream life and proving yourself wrong that nothing can change or your dreams can't come true. You taking that chance on yourself and stepping into the unknown is going to bring you everything you want Today we are having a one-on-one conversation because you need to hear this. I have a feeling that whoever is listening to this needs this conversation about the parts of life that make us squirm, the ones that we just want to run away from, the uncomfortable, the scary, the unknown, the big question mark in our mind that we genuinely just want to throw up at the thought of. But this conversation isn't focusing on the squirming. It's about the moment that you start looking at these opportunities as a way that the universe is forcing you to expand. Not only will you be expanding through these uncomfortable opportunities, you are actually growing into the person who is meant to live that dream life. We're gonna be talking about how comfort zones give you the illusion that you're safe or secure. But what if those are actually our cages? Today's conversation is really focusing and keying in on how we can transform our mindset with the feeling of discomfort to actually see these things as openings in our lives. My name is Vanessa, and this is the Mystic Within Podcast, a podcast design for women reconnecting with their power, their purpose, and their intuition, one honest conversation at a time. Let's get into this conversation. I'm gonna preface, listen, discomfort is normal. The desire to stay where it is safe and comfortable is human. It's biological. The truth is the comfort zone is an illusion. it is the limiting beliefs that we tell ourselves to say, this is exactly where you should be. This is exactly where it's safe. This is where everything can happen. Yeah, stay here. Please, please stay here. It quite literally begs us until our feet feel like cement and we can't move forward. Life is going to evolve and it's going to give you opportunities where you can prove that you can as well. Feeling discomfort is also normal when we're faced with new things, things that we have never experienced before, experiences that we've never had enter into our lives, doors that have never been opened. But just because the door hasn't been opened, does that mean we can't enter the room? Of course we can, and most likely we should. That is what it means to step into your dream life with courage. The whole purpose of fear is that you can overcome it through your own courage. You provide yourself the courage. You provide yourself the permission to expand. I always had the illusion that whenever I felt feelings of discomfort or fear or really scared of the unknown, that it was a sign or a symbol from the universe not to go forward with it, not to prove myself in those moments. But as I was doing that, what I was doing is digging my heels deeper into the cycle of stuckness. I wasn't making any actionable anything. What I was doing is staying exactly where I felt was safe. But that's actually the most dangerous thing you can do when you're going after your dream life. Staying exactly where you are is not going to get you any different results than exactly what you have. And that is the truth. Your dream life is going to call for you to change. It's going to call for you to expand. It's going to call for you to grow into the person who is actually living that life. And you and that person are not any different. The only difference is they're having the faith in themselves. They're taking the risks that are essential when you believe that you're meant for more. I truly believe that everyone has a purpose here. I also believe that any dream life calls you to learn and to grow and to really step into that version of yourself that is living their highest good, their highest being, their highest self. Being comfortable only happens when you step into discomfort. Because the longer you stay in comfort, we know you're gonna feel stuck at a certain point, or you're gonna be complicit to the cycle of everything being the same all the time. But the reason you feel Uncomfortable the moment that a new opportunity is in your landscape is because it is teasing you. It's teasing a part of you and challenging something within. You feel uncomfortable because it's a little bit bigger than you, or so you feel. It feels like something beyond your reach. opportunities don't come in our lives when we can't learn something from them. Or we can't step into them completely. So take this as a sign if you are in an environment or in a new season of life where there's a lot of newness or new opportunities coming in and you're feeling like you're a little bit out of your depth. I'm gonna tell you a secret. You are not out of your depth. You're just learning to swim. You're going to get to a point where you're the best swimmer out there. But you can't try until you get in the water. You can't show your stuff until you start swimming. Okay, you're uncomfortable. You're new. You're a beginner at something. You're learning something. Guess what? That is uncomfortable. It's uncomfortable because you are new. You are new here. Or you're now a little fish in a big pond. But now you have the space to grow. When you are in that stage of stuckness, your soul is expanding beyond this cage that you've put yourself in. You are feeling like you need more space to grow. So, what the universe will do. Is bring in new opportunities, new experiences. Bring you a challenge of that comfort zone to give you more space, to give you the chance to expand. And you're gonna either take it and you will expand. I promise on everything, you will expand and rise to the occasion or you're gonna remain in the comfort zone. And you're not gonna give yourself the chance to be more than you believe yourself to be. And when you remain in that comfort zone, you are actively choosing to be caged. You're actively choosing to play it small and safe. Safety is great, but the thing is, you're not gonna get what you want playing it safe all the time. You're gonna need to take the risks, you're gonna need to take the opportunities that you don't know what you're doing. But guess what? You trust yourself. You're gonna learn. You're going to learn things that you need for your dream life. And not only are you gonna learn things for your dream life, but you're one step closer to your dream life, to everything you desire. And one thing that loves to be in your comfort zone is fear, limiting beliefs. I talk about fear and limiting beliefs so much because fear and I were like this. Fear and I were bonded at the hip. But when I started to understand that fear was just trying to keep me small or safe or comfortable, I understood that I could take in my fears and And challenge them. Is this trying to keep me safe? Is this going to allow me to expand if I stay fearful of this? Hmm, usually the answer was no. And I'm allowed to move forward knowing that I'm uncertain what's gonna happen or I'm going to feel uncomfortable. That's okay. I can feel uncomfortable and do it And I know that the feeling of discomfort, the feeling of being completely. Out of my my element is actually going to give me more opportunities to be bigger than I feel that I am It's going to make me a more fearless person. It's going to allow me to be a spirit and soul that trusts itself and can take risks and understand that whatever happens is going to get me to where I need to be. I started looking at uncertainty with curiosity. Hmm, I'm really scared of that. There is a lesson there. There's something that's rewarding there. There's something that I need to follow there. So I started going where the fear was. What am I scared of? Nothing is going to have a hold on me. Nothing is going to cage me. Nothing's going to stop me from getting to where I need to go. And where I need to go is feeling like I can do anything. And even if I'm terrified, I I'm going, I'm going in. And I'm discovering more about myself and my ability to evolve into this woman that I know I am. If you don't know by now, I mean that bookshelf is is full of fantasy novels. And fantasy as a genre has taught me so many spiritual lessons. And it's mostly spiritual lessons about courage and not giving up. in fantasy novels, usually there's a part where the main character is faced with a moment where they need to have immense courage and rise to the occasion. And what happens is there's an opportunity that presents where they need to flex that muscle. The messy part is the dark forest and the character staring right on the border of it, terrified to go in. But the trail that must be taken is right into the heart of the shadowy trees. It's the unknown, it's the uncomfortable, it's the scary. We have no idea what's waiting for us beyond the threshold of the forest. But the character goes in. Okay, they go in because they know that they need to take that path. They have to do it. And what happens is about a hundred pages later, they're saving the kingdom, or they're doing something that the person who was on the threshold of the forest looking in, thinking they couldn't, is doing actively, confidently, courageously. And that's what this life is about. You're allowed to be scared, you're allowed to be uncomfortable. The messy parts of life, the messy parts of the it is always a call from the universe that it's time to expand. Our comfort zone is constantly evolving and changing based on the risks that we are willing to take for ourselves. And it's good. We should always see life as an opportunity to evolve and expand and become new. And that happens when we test ourselves, when we challenge ourselves, when we rise to the occasion plus some. And I heard this quote before where. It says a mind stretched by new experiences can never go back to its old dimensions. And it is true. Once you learn a lesson, you have that knowledge under your belt. Once you challenge yourself, you have the knowledge that you can do it under your skin. That is expansion. You cannot go back to old dimensions when you've proved that you can do more. And when you do, you can catch it easier. You can have the mindset that says, hmm, I've done this before. I've experienced this before. And I know I can do more. I know I am meant to do more, have more space, take up more space in this world. You can't go back to your old dimensions. It's not possible when you. Have evolved. Again, if you're now a big fish in a small pond, you're meant for more now. That is the call from the universe. When you feel like your spirit is expanding beyond your skin, it's time to put yourself in rooms that actually call you to do more into experiences that make you feel a little bit smaller, not spiritually smaller, but inspired. Inspired to be bigger, bigger than you ever felt that you were before. And that is why I feel that discomfort is a tool for us to know that we're ready. We're in it. We're physically in it at that point. If we're feeling signs of discomfort, we're feeling like we want to run away. We're feeling scared. We're feeling like we're beyond what we we know ourselves to be. And the universe is right alongside you saying, We put this here for you. This is for you. This is the messy part that you are going to go play with and experience and evolve within. And it's beautiful and it's incredible. And it's meant to be here for you. Discomfort is not a sign to stop where you're going, stop the journey midway through. Fear is not a reason to give up on everything. These are all signs that the universe knows that you are meant for more, and it's waiting for you to wake up to it. It's waiting for you to understand that you are meant to expand right now. It's an opportunity for your life to grow. And for your dream life to be one step closer. If you are going through a time of immense fear or discomfort, I want you to know that it's also the call for you to be bigger. You are meant to be bigger right now. You are meant to walk with uncertainty and walk with faith Ground yourself in the understanding that this is temporary. You will be comfortable once more and the call will come once more to be uncomfortable. It is also the call for you to expand outward, to expand what you know you are meant to be. Thank you so much for listening today. This was a nice topic. I needed this reminder as well. You know, fear is powerful, but I am more powerful, and so are you. If you are interested in working with me one-on-one in my spirit mentorship program, returning within, link is in the I also have many tarot reading options and sessions with me. Again, thank you so much for spending some time with me. And remember, I believe in your inner power and in your ability to create the life that you desire. If this episode has taught you anything, share it, subscribe, send it to your family, friends, dog, do whatever you gotta do. Until next Wednesday, go face your fears. Go feel a little discomfort and switch the mindset. You know, you can do it. I love you so much. Bye for now. I'll see you next week.