I can’t remember the last time I got a highlighter out while reading a book, but this week I did while reading “How to be more Pirate“, written by my friend Alex Barker and the follow-up to “Be More Pirate” by Sam Conniff. In short, read the book!
How to be more Pirate is all about those who loved the ideas in Be More Pirate and then “made s**t happen”, case study after case study, each inspiring in their own way, and all of a theme around what it means to “Be More Pirate”.
The pages open in the photo above are p22-23 in the paperback edition, and one line highlighted (which is from the first book) was:
We need to become more comfortable with being uncomfortable
This is an adage I have lived by for years. In April 2018, while at a “beta test” week of the Modern Elder Academy in Baja, Mexico, we are asked to think of “five things you, as a Modern Elder, would like to share with Millennials that they could do that would make a big difference for their future lives”. My five are in the post: “Drink before you are Thirsty“, and I share one of them here:
Get Comfortable being Uncomfortable
You will never know what you can achieve by stepping out of your comfort zone unless you do it, but how far can you stretch beyond what is comfortable.
For years I went to a weekly stretching class with the amazing and dear Kate Dunne of Flow in Cayman. Kate used to talk to us about finding our “comfortable uncomfortable”, that point where we were not in pain, but were certainly well beyond what felt comfortable.
As, week after week, we found that “comfortable uncomfortable”, gradually we could stretch more and more as our body adapted and built flexibility.
Whatever areas of life this is a metaphor, the earlier you start to get comfortable with being uncomfortable, the easier you will find it when you need it, and the more you practice the more expansive your comfort zone will become.
Kate Dunne has had a profound and lasting impact on my life, from her mastery of all things movement to her beautiful and generous spirit to her openness and authenticity. Love you, Kate, and I am so happy to share your learnings widely through my own life and sharing learnings.
A search on my own site with the name “Kate Dunne” brings up a number of posts with inspiration around growth, stretching, as well as getting comfortable being uncomfortable. A few of them I share here and hope you enjoy browsing them:
- Elite Mindset – Be Connective
- Make your Intention at least a little bit Scary
- To play it safe or closer to the edge?
- Effortless Effort (also another adage that Kate Dunne uses, perhaps hence the name of her business, “Flow”)