Give Up Comfort

Give Up Comfort(ˈkəmfərt)

By Leo Babauta

I was boarding an airplane(ˈe(ə)rˌplān) today, and the woman ahead of me had a huge travel(ˈtravəl) pillow(ˈpilō), a blanket(ˈblaNGkit), and a few other items designed(dəˈzīn) to give her maximum(ˈmaksəməm) comfort on the flight(flīt).

Someone I know was about to go on a trip(trip), and they spent a month(mənTH) worrying about whether they would have everything they could possibly(ˈpäsəblē) need to be comfortable.

Most of us are like this: we spend a good amount of time and effort worrying about our comfort, and a good amount of money buying things (and carrying things) that will ensure we have a cocoon(kəˈko͞on) of comfort surrounding us at all times.

This is understandable(ˌəndərˈstandəbəl), and I say it all without judgment. It’s how we react to the insecurity(ˌinsiˈkyo͝oriti) of travel, of doing something we’re not used to doing, of not knowing how to deal with a situation(ˌsiCHo͞oˈāSHən). The insecurity of everyday life. Myself, I go into research mode(mōd), trying to find out everything I can about an insecure(ˌinsiˈkyo͝or) situation. Then I might go into buying mode, getting the gear(gi(ə)r) I need to make myself more secure. Then I might go into planning(ˈplaniNG) mode, trying to get control(kənˈtrōl) of the insecure situation.

This is how we are. We spend time researching, buying, planning, worrying, stressing about the insecure situation, trying to ensure our comfort.

But what if we could let go of concern for our comfort? What if we could dive(dīv) fully into the insecurity of the situation, and stay in the insecurity without needing to change it?

It would transform our lives. It would transform us.

…
https://zenhabits.net/comfort/