Here’s an experience I had that reinforces the central theme that needs to be adopted in order to make these positive changes that are going to lead to greater measurable results while getting you out of your comfort zone in order to do so.

I remember when my oldest daughter was about four years old. She wasn’t feeling well the other day, so we decided to take her over to the doctor. It was a chilly morning and as we walked out side towards the car, my daughter, Jessica said, “Daddy my stomach hurts, I don’t feel well.” I told her we were going to the doctor to get her better.

Well, as I opened the door to my car Jessie ran around me jumped into the car and puked in her seat.

And then on the floor.

And on the rest of the interior she missed.

Of course, my first reaction was to get her safe and clean and to let her know it’s totally okay – after all she was sick. When I made sure Jessica was okay, I proceeded on cleaning the car. Afterwards, I turned to my daughter and just had to ask her the question.

“Jessie, I’m just a little confused; we were outside when you told me your tummy hurt. You could have puked anywhere outside. On the stairs, in the bushes, on the lawn and that would have been totally fine. So, why did you wait until you got into the car to throw everything up?

My four old daughter, in her infinite wisdom, turned to me very seriously, looked at my face and said, “Oh daddy, it was cold outside, and it was warm in the car. So it was much more comfortable for me to make pukie in the car.” I smiled, because her logic did make some sense.

This story reinforces the critical lesson.

That is, people do what makes them comfortable. However, that is the very thing which put us in the position many of us are in today, where we’re struggling just to survive. Which is why, in order to generate worthwhile results, you must get comfortable with being uncomfortable.

We are all creatures of habit. We like to do things that produce a degree of certainty in the results, even when they may not serve us best. At the same time, we want better results but resist anything new, so we recoil back into what is safe and comfortable.

The paradox is, change is the only constant. To grow and evolve, we must change and stretch beyond our comfort zone.

Consider this. If you are comfortable with the activities you engage in, then you are simply doing what you’ve already been doing, which will produce the same results as before.

However, if you are willing to do the things that make you uncomfortable – a new activity, strategy, or developing a new skill – then you will create new results.

The lesson? If it’s uncomfortable, it’s probably the right thing to do and the quickest path to greater success. So, get comfortable with being uncomfortable.

You may be familiar with the definition of insanity: “Doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.” Consider my definition of futility: “Knowing the definition of insanity, and still not doing anything about it.”