I wrote a whole article that I was going to post today and I decided not to post it. It wasn’t that controversial (at least in my way of thinking) but I just decided to write something different and, I hope, more positive. I think we could all use a little more positivity and inspiration these days. I’ve been kicking around some ideas about one or more extended trips overseas and I keep coming back to the same question, “Why not?” I then read something that made it seem like that question was even more important. “Life begins at the edge of your comfort zone.” I love that. We all seem to get trapped in our comfort zones. We have some grand idea about something and when we get to the edge of our comfort zone, we often fail to take the next step. Why not?
There was an article on one of the news sites yesterday about a young woman who will be a passenger on a civilian space flight on the SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule potentially late this year. The young woman, Hayley Arceneaux, is 29 which will make her the youngest American to fly in space. What is even more remarkable is that she had bone cancer when she was 10 years old and was a patient at St. Jude’s hospital. While there, they implanted metal rods in the bones of her left leg as part of the treatment. She is now cancer free and actually works at St. Judes as a physician’s assistant.
The whole mission is being funded by billionaire, Jared Isaacson. He is the founder and CEO of Shift4 Payments. Hayley will be one of four people on board. The crew will consist of Isaacson, Hayley Arceneaux, and two others who have yet to be named. He said he wants to assemble a crew of people whose stories inspire people. Isaacson is also committed to giving $100 million to St. Judes, which treats pediatric cancer patients free of charge. The mission will be called “Inspiration 4”.
When Hayley was approached about the opportunity she answered ‘yes’ in very short order, even after being encouraged to ‘sleep on it.’ One can only imagine what was going through her head as she stood on the edge of her comfort zone but, ultimately, she asked, “Why not?” and took the next step. In my mind, she exemplifies the difference between living and staying warm and cozy in her comfort zone. What an opportunity.
I know in my own life, almost every time I have forced myself to step outside of my comfort zone, the experience has been extremely rewarding and memorable. Even the ‘bad’ adventures are things you can look back on at some point and laugh about. But more often than not, the adventures have been well worth whatever discomfort and fear had to be overcome initially.
Many years ago, an opportunity presented itself to me that took me way outside of my comfort zone and it turned out to be one of the best and most rewarding experiences of my life. I had been doing quite a few 10K runs and smaller triathlons when I saw some information about how you could enter a lottery to earn a place in the Ironman race in Hawaii (2.4-mile ocean swim; 112-mile bike ride; 26.2 mile run). Most people got into the race by qualifying in the various age groups but, at that time, they still had a few places that were available by lottery. On a whim I entered. I didn’t even tell my wife at the time. I just did it and then pretty much forgot about it.
About three months later, in early May, I received a very thin letter from the Ironman Race. I was sure it was a one-page rejection letter. I opened it and saw the words, “Congratulations, you have been selected as a participant in this years Ironman Race.” I was stunned. I had never, ever done anything as grueling as an Ironman race. The race was in October so I had about 5 months to train for the race. I told me wife and things just started snowballing. I was both excited and terrified.
Arriving in Kailua-Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii was extremely intimidating. I was surrounded by world class athletes and age group athletes who had actually qualified for this race. I was just there via some fluke of luck. I was so far out of my comfort zone that I could have been on another planet. To make a long story short, I finished the race well ahead of the cutoff time. I was exhausted, sore and my feet were trashed but I survived and that was my only real goal. It was one of the greatest experiences I’ve ever had.
So, now when I read about people like Hayley Arceneaux who jumped at the chance to take a ride on a rocket, or the American woman I just read about who, at the age of 70 up and moved to Greece to live full time, and I reflect back on some of the times I have pushed my own comfort zone or some of the things I am contemplating doing in the future, I realize even more that ‘life begins at the edge of your comfort zone’.
Looking back over my life I realize that most of the regrets I have are not from the times I went beyond my comfort zone. They are, by far, those times when I was too afraid to push that door open and walk on through. I’m not saying everyone needs to ride a rocket, move overseas or do an Ironman. But it’s far too easy for all of us to get trapped in our comfort zones and fail to fully experience this buffet know as life. So, the next time you’re thinking about doing something and it takes you right up to the edge of your comfort zone, think about people like 29-year old cancer survivor, Hayley Arceneaux, soaring through space, then kick the door open and walk on through. Why not?