Not sure where to post this. It could be anxiety, but since it's a more social concept I decided to post it here.

I found people who'd talk about going out of the comfort zone to be hurtful - getting mad at people who achieve "nothing", who remind them of their former selves when they did "nothing".
Or get mad at people who seem to be doing bad, or avoid them.
I'm talking about me, of course. If there's one thing I've been doing bad at all my life is being social. But I wouldn't be judging myself so harshly, as I believe in myself.

I have fear inside me, as said by my therapist. Eh, I'm gonna leave him anyway, so I don't really regard what he says.

There are things I wanted to do to get out of my comfort zone such as going to a far away university, but it was not practical as I didn't get accepted to something useful. I could switch to something I want after about a year if I got good grades there. But I can also do that in my current university, which is near home.

But I want to get out of my comfort zone to achieve things, not just for the sake of going out of it.
For instance, allot of people don't understand why I don't get out of my comfort zone for sex. Why should I do that when I want a stable and loving relationship?
And shouldn't you be getting out of the comfort zone only when you lack something in your current comfort zone? Just my piece of thought which I sense is right.
I mean, if I can get a good job with a degree, and with a plan to the future to improve my salary and variate my work, why not go for it?

[BlueCrustacean]

You're right. Getting out of your "comfort zone" is something for you to decide. No one else gets to decide that. ESPECIALLY for sex. It seems to me that the benefits of "getting out of your comfort zone" are to increase the richness and diversity of your life experience, and to grow more as a person. But grow, how? What are your values? How exactly do you want to grow? Your growth will not look the same as somebody else's growth.

My therapist gave me great advice. She told me to list my values; words that represent what values are most important to me. In any situation, when deciding what I should do, I remember what is most valuable to ME, and if I'm moving further in the direction of my values, then that's good. If I'm moving away from them, then that's bad, obviously. Doing risky things doesn't necessarily mean they're in line with your values. That fear you're feeling may be because it's actually not a good choice for you, if it doesn't align with your true values.

She also told me that pushing yourself only works if you have adequate preparation and support. If you're hiking up Mount Everest with no clothes, no food, no training, no water and no friends, then it doesn't matter how hard you push yourself. You need to take care of yourself first in order to succeed.

[Carmina]

The Cognitive analytical therapy people make use of Vygotsky's concept of the Zone of proximal development to identify a zone for personal growth and challenges. The key thing is anything outside the 'comfort zone' needs to be not so far outside that you are setting yourself up to fail or risk of harm, it needs to be an achievable challenge, so just 'proximal' to what you feel comfortable with, and within a supportive relationship and environment.

[Shazerac]

I agree with Blue. Don't have any thoughts to add

Good post V.O. I have been pressured to go outside my comfort zone before. You are right. Only we ourselves can know if that is something that would be good for us. It is very frustrating when people in my own life have been so controlling. When I was younger, I didn't realize it. When I got older, I wised up.