What do you do mindlessly? Are there activities or routines that you jump into without thinking?
We are creatures of habit. It’s easy to gravitate toward activities and environments that reinforce our expectations or existing beliefs. In other words, it’s easy to stay in our comfort zone.
The love of comfort is frequently the enemy of greatness. – The Accidental Creative
But hovering around our comfort zone can be a creative death sentence. We can easily slip into repetitious patterns that cause us to miss potential opportunities and brilliant ideas. Here are a few methods for staying out of your comfort zone:
Disrupt your thoughtless patterns. Do something that intentionally grates against your natural tendencies. Choose an activity, a conversation, a method that feels a little unusual to you. I thought about this yesterday evening as I was sitting in my hotel in Boise, ID. I’d just wrapped up a day-long session with a fantastic group (and – as a bonus – had my photo taken on the blue turf at Bronco stadium…), and was sitting in my hotel reading, writing, surfing the web, all of which are my thoughtless tendencies, while ignoring the gorgeous weather and beautiful surroundings of Boise. I decided to get out and do something, and as a result netted a few new ideas for projects I’m working on.
Know your comfort zone and work hard to stay out of it. – riCardo Crespo, 20th Century Fox
Develop a new skill. It is incredibly uncomfortable to try new things. We feel like a failure at first, and perhaps even a little embarrassed. But stretching ourselves and trying something new allows us to expand our platform for expression. It doesn’t have to be directly related to your job. It can be anything. Skill development will push you to expand how to interact with the world. When was the last time you learned a new skill?
Make a new friend. OK, introverts – I carry your flag. I’m perfectly happy on my own curled up in a chair with a good book. But I’ve noticed that this introverted tendency sometimes prevents me from forging new relationships and collaborating with others. While it’s uncomfortable for me to pick up the phone and set a time to get together with a friend, I’ve come to realize that it’s essential for my growth.
I’ve used each of these methods at various times to disrupt my love of comfort and my thoughtless habits. They’ve helped me get out of “the grooves” and explore new opportunities.
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I blogged about this yesterday in reference to entrenched organizations rather than individuals.
In terms of my own practice, I do both things you mention. I read and work at things outside of but adjacent to my repertoire. I try my hand at things disconnected to my repertoire, like painting or my summer plan to try woodcarving. And as an introvert I work on putting myself in situations in which I connect with people.
I work in the film industry, so projects, locations, technology and creative tasks are constantly changing. Fortunately, the business itself provides little room for comfort zones. Camera and lighting techniques though tend to be used over and over again to create a look that “works”, thus creating a comfort zone stylistically.
Up until recently I was starting to feel like I was digging deeper into my comfort zone as a director of photography, and my lighting approach to interview based projects was feeling mundane. I was fortunate enough to be offered another project that involved some travel, and opportunity to think outside the box (as far as interviews are concerned).
It’s always a challenge when shooting against windows, for multiple reasons: exposure, lighting compensation, background elements, weather, etc.). I convinced the director to shoot EVERY interview directly in front of a window, or have some sort of window dominate the frame to help motivate the light. By doing this, I became vulnerable to the elements, and the lack of equipment at my disposal. At first I thought, “How am I going to dig myself out of this one?”, but the challenge allowed me to think critically about how to achieve the look I wanted, while dealing with an uncontrollable environment. I felt liberated, as if I had broken through some sort of “writer’s block” from a lighting and compositional perspective.
The project turned out wonderful, and the director and his client were very happy with the end result.
I work in the film industry, so projects, locations, technology and creative tasks are constantly changing. Fortunately, the business itself provides little room for comfort zones. Camera and lighting techniques though tend to be used over and over again to create a look that “works”, thus creating a comfort zone stylistically.
Up until recently I was starting to feel like I was digging deeper into my comfort zone as a director of photography, and my lighting approach to interview based projects was feeling mundane. I was fortunate enough to be offered another project that involved some travel, and opportunity to think outside the box (as far as interviews are concerned).
It’s always a challenge when shooting against windows, for multiple reasons: exposure, lighting compensation, background elements, weather, etc.). I convinced the director to shoot EVERY interview directly in front of a window, or have some sort of window dominate the frame to help motivate the light. By doing this, I became vulnerable to the elements, and the lack of equipment at my disposal. At first I thought, “How am I going to dig myself out of this one?”, but the challenge allowed me to think critically about how to achieve the look I wanted, while dealing with an uncontrollable environment. I felt liberated, as if I had broken through some sort of “writer’s block” from a lighting and compositional perspective.
The project turned out wonderful, and the director and his client were very happy with the end result.
This resonates with me in a big way. Maybe because I am disrupting my patterns (working on an unconventional project involving a film studio), developing a new skill (networking, yes, I said networking – good for me to realize it is IMPORTANT) and making new friends via my uncomfortable need to build my network.
Thanks, it works. It is refreshing when you step away from your routine.
Because I work from home, leaving my house is usually the biggest change I can make.
But the life-sucking dryness and soul-destroying heat make any kind of transition uncomfortable to me, as I very nearly have to change shirts because of the swelterness.
So how the heck can I make changes that keep me productive but don’t make me angry or frustrated with the heat?
Or is that really the issue?
Maybe that’s my answer. At least I’ll be tan.
I’m just a blogger? From facebook. Not sure if that’s what you’d call it. I take nothing but pictures of my children. I take an occasional pic
of my husban, my food, and even my feet. I don’t take pics of the unwanted, the unknown, or the unnecessary. I find it unwelcoming in the act of taking pics of myself to where I can just take pics of the children and get a better response. And as a result, I also tend to nab the beautiful trees and the such.