I have a tendency to accumulate way too many clothes. Once or twice a year I go through my clothes and I purge. I used to only get rid of the things I didn’t like anymore or were decidedly out of fashion.
These days, I have a different standard for what stays and what goes. I still get rid of those things I just don’t like and won’t wear again, of course. But I also get rid of some things that I do like and still wear.
Sometimes, an article of clothing has just run its course. I can look at a dress I’ve worn a hundred times and will probably wear again in the future and just instinctively say enough. It’s time for someone else to discover this at Goodwill and enjoy it.
The same goes for much bigger things – jobs, apartments, even relationships.
You don’t have to wait until something has gone south to move on to something new. I’ve left jobs not because I hated the job, but because I knew that moving on would open me up to something new and better. And I was right. Every single time.
The familiar can be so comforting, addictive even – but it can be a trap. If you don’t let yourself move on past your dreaded “comfort zone”, you risk waking up one day to discover your situation has gone from being “OK” to being “Oh sh*t”.
How many times in your life did you look back and think “I really should have let go of X a long time ago. What took me so long?” If it’s a dress, not a big deal. But what if it’s something a lot more significant?
What new person or opportunity do you risk not having because you don’t want to let go to something comfortable?
Chances are there’s something in your life right now that has outlived its benefit to you. You’ve probably had something or someone in mind as you’ve read this email. Don’t ignore your instinct to examine and release it, whatever it might be. At least consider what might be possible for you.
I’m excited for whatever’s on the other side of your comfort zone – are you?
xo
Francesca