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I’m a big advocator of growth and change. But I also realise that it’s incredibly tough to leave your comfort zone and do something different, and creating a different version of yourself is a different ballgame altogether.

At times, it takes your soul’s strength to be another way—a way that is quite the opposite of who you’ve always known yourself to be. The struggle is real.

To be or not be is a question that will always pull you in different and opposing directions. One part of you wants to be exactly where you are and the way you are because it’s familiar, safe, predictable. Here, you have everything under your control and you know all the ways in which things can go wrong. Yet, you also know that you will be able to handle it because you’ve already worked out the possibilities before and it took a lot for you to even get here. So why disturb the equilibrium?

And then there is another part of you that knows there is so much out there for you. Bigger, better things. Opportunities and ways of being that can uplift and enhance your life and being in plenty of ways. It wants to move out into the unknown, unfamiliar, and explore. It doesn’t want to stay confined to the known, predictable, and familiar because it can also see the discomfort that this so called comfort zone has started to bring in, and it’s only a matter of time before it moves toward being painful.

And this push-pull dynamic within yourself, between these parts of you, can get so exhausting and frustrating!

“For things to change, you have to change.” ~ Jim Rohn

But sooner or later a decision has to be taken, isn’t it so?

And how do you decide whether it’s time to change something in you or in your life?

Perhaps, when you realise that your comfort zone is no longer comfortable and is only giving you discomfort and pain. In the words of Tony Robbins, “Change happens when the pain of staying the same is greater than the pain of change.”

That’s when you know that your known and familiar isn’t working for you anymore and you need to create a new space by disturbing the equilibrium and allowing a new one to set in, knowing that all this will take time, patience, and courage—to be different and make different choices to create a tomorrow that is going to be better than today. While it’s a risk, your vision and intention for a better life is what’s going to give you that much needed push to choose a different path.

Here are some signs that tell you that it’s time for you to start looking at different ways of being and doing things:

1. You’re always unhappy, dissatisfied, and unfulfilled.

2. Things which would earlier be a source of joy don’t give you the same amount of pleasure and happiness.

3. You don’t feel like talking and engaging with the world.

4. You’re struggling to take care of yourself and often end up feeling unmotivated, lethargic, and disinterested.

5. There’s a persistent feeling of emptiness that engulfs you.

6. You’re experiencing physical symptoms like persistent aches, pains, and fatigue.

7. You’re constantly stressed and on edge.

8. You’re feeling stuck and unable to move forward in life.

9. You find yourself anxious, edgy, restless, and irritable for no reason at all.

10. You feel lost, confused, and aimless.

All these and more indicate that perhaps it is time to look at things or maybe yourself differently. Everything in life comes with an expiration date, even our thoughts, emotions, and behavioural patterns. What has worked for you till now doesn’t mean it will continue working forever because whether we like it or not, change is the only constant. However, whether we grow or not, that’s up to us.

Yes, change is painful, but so is staying the same. We all need to choose our pain and bear it till it becomes a new comfort zone for us.

Strange, but that’s how life is. That’s how growth takes place.

The question is whether we are going to choose growth or not.

So what will it be for you?

“You can change your life if you really want to. You can improve it, make it better. And it all starts with changing the way you think.” ~ John C. Maxwell

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