Why we need more of the unknown and less of what comforts us.
Get ready, because here is one that is absolutely new for me. You see, at my base form, I am a creature of comfort. Introverted and filled with the joy of being home, I spent most of my childhood seeking adventure through the escape of books. But now, I am learning a new depth to adventure that challenges growth and pulls more out of you than staying put with what you are comfortable doing would.
For me, adventure was always some form of escapism, through books or probably video games. Now, don't get me wrong, these types of entertainment can enrich your life and provide an adventure that is valuable and meaningful. However, it was the primary form of adventure for me, but we all have differences, so what is unknown for me may be what is comfortable for you. While escaping through entertainment has its own inherent value, I am now coming to see the value in other forms as well. The key was finding the "vehicle" that would take me there.
No, I didn't actually mean a vehicle. But we all need something that is comfortable enough to help us venture into the unknown. For me that was photography. Photography became the vehicle that helps me to thirst for new and different adventures. After all, not too many people are going to be interested in pictures of my books. Photography helped me to unleash my creativity and gave me a desire to find new and different subjects, which requires me to get out of my comfort zone. So, while photography was familiar enough to me that it didn't feel completely out of this world, it also became the very thing that drove me to get outside more, to push past my introvertism, and to jump into the river with my sneakers on, just to get a good picture.
What's pushing you to your jump into the river with my sneakers on, just to get a good picture moment?
Trying something new can add tremendous value to your life. As the water of the river seeped completely into my sneakers, I could NOT care. The joy of the moment overtook the discomfort within my shoes. IT was too special to care about, I was in my element.
It can be scary at times to venture into unknown territory, or maybe it isn't scary for you, you just don't see the value to it and prefer to stick with what you know. But who said we had to be good at things in order for them to have value? When did the rules start saying that we have to make money off of everything we do so that it can be okay to spend time on it? I think we can sometimes misunderstand what has value, and even in seeking to grow, we only seek to do things that we feel checks off all the boxes.
Who said we had to be good at things in order for them to have value?
So, I hope you will try something new today, I hope that you will release yourself from the weight of always having to do what needs to be done perfectly. I hope that you can pull yourself away from your comfort zone and do something that you're interested in, just for the heck of it! Who knows, you might like what it brings out of you ... or you just end up with wet sneakers and socks.