Are you a risk taker?
Posted on May 19, 2015 by Liana Nicolaou Ferrier, One of Thousands of Relationship Coaches on Noomii.
The only thing in life that doesn't change is change itself. How do you deal with changes in your life and how does your reaction affect the outcomes?
Do you think yourself as a risk taker? When you think of the word risk, what comes to your mind? Is it fear or excitement?
We all constantly take risks in life, being big or small. Have you thought about the risks you take when starting a new job, moving country, meeting a new friend, starting a new relationship/getting married, getting a mortgage or even simple risks like driving or crossing the road?
Life is constantly changing and so are our goals. With change, there also comes the unknown; and with the unknown comes a certain element of risk. Have you ever thought about how you react to the changes in your life and how your reactions can influence the outcome that you desire?
There are three basic zones that we all enter when faced with a change, a risk or a challenge. These three zones are Panic, Stretch or Comfort.
The first zone is the Panic Zone. In most cases, the panic zone is not very helpful as this triggers the fight or flight response. When you deal with a new situation and you are in the panic zone, this will either cause you to freeze up because you are so afraid, or make you want to run away; both of which are not very productive. You will know you are in the panic zone if you start to feel anxious, nervous, or convince yourself that ‘it isn’t a very good idea anyway’. Other symptoms include insomnia, heart palpitations, panic attacks, short temper or sweaty palms.
At the other extreme of the zone, is the Comfort zone. In this zone, you feel relaxed. You go through life in your normal routine day in day out. Although there is nothing wrong with being comfortable, the problem with being in the Comfort zone, is that there is no excitement in life. You may grow bored and uninspired. You lack enthusiasm, self-satisfaction and self- pride that comes along with achieving new goals. You feel ‘stuck’ in life with nothing to look forward to. As a consequence, you remain stagnant and cannot grow as an individual.
Somewhere in the middle is the Stretch zone. When you are in the Stretch zone, your life is full of excitement and fun. Changes are a little frightening but exciting at the same time. You feel inspired, optimistic and have a sense of self pride and confidence. You are constantly learning new things and growing as a person.You are not bowing down to your fears but stretching your limits and constantly setting yourself new goals. Your life becomes sensational and you are a great role model to others.
We can find ourselves in either of these three zones at different stages of our lives and at different circumstances. I am sure that you can remember a stage in your life where you were in one or all of these three zones. What were the different outcomes depending on your reaction? You may have noticed that once we accomplish a new task or a new goal (Stretch zone), after a while, when we have mastered this new skill, or achieved the goal, we may become bored again (back into the Comfort zone) and so set ourselves a new goal (back into the Stretch again). This is how we, as human beings evolve and grow.
Having the self-awareness of which zone you are in, can give you the power to better deal with whatever situation you are faced with. If you find yourself in the Panic zone, then maybe you will need to think about making some adjustments, for example, breaking down the situation into ‘bitesize’ chunks. If you are in the Comfort zone, then maybe you will want to start setting new goals for yourself to remove any feelings of boredom.
If you would like to continue to grow and live a rich, fulfilled life, then do not allow yourself to either go into the Panic zone, or the stagnant Comfort zone.
Break your barriers, make your life fun and exciting, keep stretching to reach your full potential!
