Getting out of your comfort zone is really hard. Well, maybe it’s not hard everyone. I know people who have confidence to do anything with anyone watching.

There was a time that I could not and would not speak in front of people. Giving presentations in front of a class was among the scariest moments of my life. I once took an F on an assignment to avoid giving a presentation in the 12th grade. It was a really important assignment, and my teacher warned me I would probably end up failing the class. I took that chance; I was so scared. I ended up passing with a D-. In a college class I was almost in tears while I gave my English presentation. I was the only one in the entire class, and the oldest by far too. I didn’t use a PowerPoint because I didn’t know how to use it. I could have just learned it or gotten from my kids. I had all the tools right at home, but I didn’t want to learn. That wouldn’t happen today.

Something happened when I turned 50. I wanted to learn things. I was never much for the learning process before then. I learned necessary things, like how to do my jobs and how to do things around the house and take care of my kids. But that’s different. I’m talking about learning and growing for yourself. There are so many terms for it: personal enrichment, self-improvement, personal growth, etc. Whatever you want to call it, it’s important. You can’t just think because you’re grown up and you’re in a good place in life that it’s ok to stop learning. Some growth will come natural because it’s out of our control, like a breakup, death or a loss. But consciously learning new skills and challenging yourself to be a better person is good for your mind, body and spirit. This is why when I turned 50, I just knew it was time to get out of that comfort zone and grow in every way. I had a new love and appreciation for myself that’s hard to explain.

I started with serve in ministry in a capacity like never before. I’m on a women’s ministry team that comes up ideas for how to bring our women together through fellowship and fun. We plan activities and hope they’re well received. Some are and some, not so much, but we do it anyway and it’s very rewarding. We’re coming up on 3 years, praise God.

I’ve taught myself how to record and edit videos and upload them to YouTube, although not anymore. I’ve gotten over the discomfort of seeing myself on camera and that was a big one. I used to worry way too much about how I looked, my hair had to be done and my makeup fresh. Not anymore. When I see an opportunity to make a video, I do it. And it doesn’t have to be perfect (I’m recovering perfectionist). I’m also reading a lot again and joined a book club. I’m reading books I never thought I’d ever read and although I still have my favorite genre, I’m growing because of reading outside my genre and growing an appreciation of all types of books.

I ‘ve learned handling rejection is just a muscle you have to strengthen. Not all rejection is personal. But even if it is sometimes, you to be okay with it. I’m not letting the fear of the unknown or the fear of failure hold me back anymore. I see everything now as a learning experience. Not everyone has to love us, like us, want to be our friend. Not everyone cares what we’re doing or saying or what we’re excited about. For instance, this blog, is just me writing my thought on stuff that most people won’t care about. I’m not a writer, but I like to do it for fun and that’s enough. I’ve grown a whole lot in that way. But I still have a long way to go and I do have goals. I have personal goals, goals in work and business, and in spiritual growth goals most importantly. I have an idea how to get there. With God all things are possible.

Matthew 6:34