This is from the Aria Newletter.  Written by a new friend of ours, Michael Tate that we met at RAB.  Read when you have a free moment.

One of the greatest hurdles in living a successful life is the condition of being and feeling comfortable with our lives.

You know that place, not succeeding but not failing. Dreaming yet not living the dream. Quietly living in the in-between but not really living life to the full at all.

“I’m comfortable, everything’s okay”, we quietly convince ourselves. But are we really comfortable with our reality deep inside? For most of us I expect not.

We are so emotionally tied to this ‘comfortable place’; we’re just not willing to do what it takes to succeed because the actual process implies the possibility of failure.

Going for that big account; running your own business; meeting new people; stepping out in faith; learning new things; presenting your ideas with conviction; having an opinion (doing something about it); taking a chance; and exerting yourself; right through to the dilemma of surrendering to things as they “really are” around you. These are all very uncomfortable things to deal with, yet they’re all very necessary and pivotal points to overcome in pursuit of true fulfillment of our lives.

I once heard someone say “comfort the disturbed, and disturb the comfortable”. I like the idea of this sentiment.

You can have anything, do anything, and be anything you want, or you can have nothing, do nothing, and be nothing you want - its entirely up to you, and frankly no one else will really care what you decide, other than you.

Take a hard and critical look around you today. At your parents, your partner, your children, your friends, your work colleagues, the guy you buy your lunch from, and at your clients; are they happy? Are they being who they want to be? Who they’re meant to be?

Take a moment and look at what it is you do (at yourself) each day. Try and understand what’s at the heart of your actions and the ‘why’ of your decision-making processes. Seriously ask yourself why is it you do the things you do? Why is it you make the decisions you do, and at what your motivations are? Are you passionate at any point in the day? What about the ideas of being happy, joyous, and free? Are your days always familiar, comfortable, and seemingly secure? Do you get apprehensive when you think about sticking your head outside your comfort zone? Are there things that you avoid doing because they might cause you some pain and uneasiness?

Do you procrastinate about you?

Do you ever have longings and doubts about you, your life, and your current path?

“It’s my belief this inward un-comfortability you feel is the quiet voice of God deep within you, seeking to call you out of all that is contrary to how you have been created. Contrary to how you should be, of how you really are; and how you really are deep down inside.” But this is what I believe.

Living our lives to the fullest requires we step outside of what is known and not known - it demands we step out of our comfort zone.

The truth is when we dare to go beyond our self-imposed and worldly created boundaries, our comfort zone opens out, and it grows as we grow. Slowly as it happens, success in some area of our life will give us more confidence to continue to grow and increase our comfort perimeter to seek out more, to live more.

Don’t allow yourself to accept a comfortable no-risk, low-risk life, and I beg you; steer away from a life of mediocrity because that’s no life at all. A short period of discomfort is far superior choice when compared against a lifetime of doubt, disappointment, and regret, and of course so much shorter in duration.

Do you ever have longings and doubts about you, your life, and your current path? I urge you to listen to your quiet inner-voice’s gentle direction today. It’s your intuition and its part of the key to you.

Sell with out regret.