Generally in life, if you are comfortable, you aren’t playing a big enough game. What can you do to challenge yourself, to stretch yourself, to learn something new, to build a new muscle?

One tool I use with my clients to do this is a “What Scares Me List.” Write down the things that scare you. And then do them, one at a time. Are you afraid of public speaking? Sign up to do a presentation. Are you afraid of networking? Try to meet one new person a week.

Entrepreneur, author, and motivational speaker Tim Ferris makes this a regular practice in his life.

He is constantly pushing himself past his edge to expand his range of what he can do.

He tells a story about he and a friend assigning New Year’s resolutions to each other. His friend assigned him a 1-kilometer open-water swim. And Ferris had a fear of water. Before the end of that summer, he went out into the ocean and swam not just a kilometer, but a mile, open water, parallel to shore.

He said he felt like superman coming out of the water, and it was one of the proudest moments of his entire life.

What is on your what scares me list? Then take action! 

Another tool I use is to make 2 columns on a piece of paper. On the left hand side, write down, “I’m the kind of person who…. “ and then list things that you think about yourself. On the right hand side of the column, what would it look like if you flipped it around? For example,

“I’m the kind of person who keeps to myself,” could become “I’m the kind of person who is interested in other people.”

“I’m the kind of person who is risk averse,” could become “I’m the kind of person who tries new things.”

Whatever is in that right hand column should feel edgy to you, make you uncomfortable, and have you stretch.

What edge are you going to lean into? I’d love to know.