I recently overheard someone tell their friend, “I wish I could get up that early, but I’m not the kind of person that gets up when their alarm goes off.”

I thought, what a cop-out.

But later it occurred to me that I’ve used that excuse to keep from stepping outside my own comfort zone. “I’m not the kind of photographer who shoots those kinds of portraits.”

Pro photographer Sarah Rhoads recently blogged about the idea of intentionally getting uncomfortable. In her post she says:

“You see to me, comfort is the enemy. It stifles growth and it makes us complacent. Comfort makes us satisfied with the mediocre. Comfort keeps us in the ‘safe zone’ rather than challenging us to explore that which is un-safe. Comfort kills creativity. Comfort keeps us from failing and we need to fall on our faces a lot in life to grow.”

Such truth in her words. It’s so easy to cop out of challenges and risks by classifying yourself as “not the kind of person who does X.” But at what cost? An amazing opportunity to learn something new? To earn a friendship? To discover a new passion? To help someone else discover theirs?

The solution: become the kind of person who does do X. Here are three ways to become that kind of person:

• Be intentional. Stop avoiding discomfort for the sake of mediocrity and safety. Take risks.
• Set realistic goals. Don’t get overzealous and start freaking everyone out by making them uncomfortable with your discomfort. Ease into those challenges which seem a little scary. Once you get comfortable, find another.
• Track your progress. I’m a huge fan of journaling. Write down challenging experiences so you can look back and see how much you’ve grown. You may surprise yourself.