Hey everyone and welcome back to the Easy English Podcast.
I'm your host Oliver, and today we are looking at a topic that I think is very interesting and essential for making any real progress in your English learning journey.
And that is stepping outside of your comfort zone.
But before we get started, let me ask you a question.
Have you ever felt maybe nervous or even a little scared to use your English?
Maybe you're worried about making mistakes or unsure if others would understand you?
If so, you are not alone.
Myself and many learners of languages and really everyone in life.
With almost anything, they do feel this way from time to time.
And that's perfectly normal.
But today we're going to explore how stepping outside of your comfortable space can lead to very fast growth.
And we're also going to look at some of the science behind it.
So what is the comfort zone?
Why do we have it and how to escape it?
So to step outside of it.
So let's get started.
So first, let's start by understanding what a comfort zone actually is.
So scientifically speaking, your comfort zone is a psychological space.
So it's a mental space, a space in your mind, in your brain, where you feel safe, secure and in control.
It's where you can function without stress or anxiety.
And for English learners like yourselves, this might mean sticking to familiar activities like studying vocabulary on your own, maybe watching movies with subtitles, or speaking only to people who you know won't judge you or think badly about how you're doing.
Our brains are actually wired.
They are made to seek safety, to look for safety and to avoid potential threats, which is why staying in our comfort zones feels so good.
But there is a catch to this.
There is a negative.
While comfort zones can protect us from stress, they can also limit our growth, particularly with our skills and things that we are trying to improve.
And you can think about this topic outside of skills or language learning, and it's quite often with people regarding social activities.
Sometimes going to a party or meeting new people can be stepping outside of your comfort zone too.
But there is a psychological concept, a theory, called the Yerkes-Dodson Law.
And this concept suggests that a moderate, so a medium, level of stress...
Just enough to push us outside of this comfort zone can really enhance.
It can improve your performance and learning.
In other words, stepping into what we can call the stretch zone.
And this is just beyond your comfort zone, but not so far that it's too stressful.
And this is where the real growth can happen.
And we're going to find out exactly how to do this a little bit later.
So stay around and keep listening.
Think of it like this.
When you're at the gym, lifting slightly heavier weights helps your muscles to grow.
The same principle applies to learning English.
Stepping outside of your comfort zone challenges your language learning muscles, and this helps them to grow stronger.
So, before we continue, I'm going to take just a minute to tell you about a very exciting project the Patreon Easy English.
If you're already a member or you don't want to listen, you can skip ahead a couple of minutes.
Okay, welcome back.
So first let's look at some of these crazy great benefits by pushing ourselves out of our comfort zone, and then let's look at how to do this.
So the first one is improved confidence.
Every time you face a challenging situation and you come out on the other side, your confidence grows.
It increases.
For example, imagine for the first time you are introducing yourself in English to someone new.
The first time definitely feels nerve-wracking.
It makes you nervous.
But once you do it, you'll realize, oh, I can do this.
It's not so scary.
And that confidence builds with each new experience. and this can lead to faster learning.
When you push yourself, your brain has to work harder and this increases the speed that you're learning.
For example, trying to have a conversation with a native speaker will force you to think on your feet, choosing words, forming sentences and responding in real time.
And this real world practice is, in my opinion, far more effective than just studying grammar or practicing on your own, and it helps you to overcome your fear of mistakes.
I have a full, separate episode on this about overcoming your fear of mistakes, but just briefly, mistakes are how we learn.
Research shows that when we make mistakes, our brains are much more likely to remember the correct information afterwards.
And also, as well, most people are more kind than we expect.
And they will also appreciate your efforts much more than they notice your mistakes.
Okay, so how is the brain affected as well once we step outside of our comfort zone?
So this is something quite fascinating.
It's very interesting.
Whenever you challenge yourself, your brain actually physically adapts.
Your brain creates new neural pathways, parts in your brain, these new signals, and it makes tasks like speaking and understanding English easier over time.
In science, this is called neuroplasticity in science.
And to sum up neuroplasticity, I've said it right that time, grit.
It's your brain's way of saying, let's get better at this.
And it strengthens those memories of how to do things, those skills and those habits.
And as well and I have a lot of personal experience with this when you have stepped outside of your comfort zone, you are opening the door to new experiences.
For example, you could join an English speaking club and make lifelong friends, or you could take on a new role at work where English is required.
And these opportunities will lead to unexpected and rewarding outcomes.
If I think of my life, if I didn't step outside of my comfort zone and start learning Russian language and then to go to Russia, I never would have had those years of experience and I never would have met my wife.
So it's crazy to think about how stepping outside of our comfort zone can actually change our lives.
So, now that we've kind of looked at the science behind this and how it helps our English, how do we actually do it?
And there are some kind of small practical ideas to help with this.
The first of these is to start small with it.
You don't need to do like this giant jump out of your comfort zone straight away.
I mean, you can if you want, but I would begin with something simple like ordering a coffee in English or maybe asking a stranger for directions.
And these small wins build momentum.
Another way you might do this, or you might push yourself out of your comfort zone, is to join a conversation club or class, or they might be called a speaking club or speaking class.
And you can look for these locally in your area or online English conversation groups too.
And there's many apps that can help with this.
And the next is whatever you're doing, whether it's grammar or writing or reading, push yourself a little bit further.
Take more risks with it.
For example, if you usually write short sentences, challenge yourself to write a short story, maybe an email, maybe a journal entry, something a little bit bigger, and share it with someone who can give you feedback.
That might sound a little bit scary, but that's the point.
It is pushing yourself into that stretch zone outside of your comfort zone.
And you could also, if you take English classes at school or in work, Volunteer to answer a question.
Put yourself out there and it might feel a little bit scary at first, but it is one of the best ways to grow.
Participate, ask questions, answer them and really push yourself a little bit further than usual.
And finally, I said it before, with the writing, but this is something that's very hard for people, and that is to ask for feedback.
Ask friends, teachers or colleagues for honest feedback on your English.
And this constructive criticism although it might feel a little bit harder at first is invaluable for improvement.
So it just goes to show that these easy, small little steps can really start to help push you out of that comfort zone and really start to speed up and improve the rate or the speed of your English learning.
Although we can feel like we're doing a lot often, we are not pushing ourselves as much as we could.
There are so many little extra things that we can do, just that we might be avoiding, for example, certain things that we think that we don't like or that we don't want to do because they're uncomfortable.
But it's often these things that help us grow the most, And I had so many of these experiences myself.
I used to be so scared to speak in Russian, but I had to push myself and to stop being worried about making mistakes.
And once I did that, my language growth improved so much.
And it can be simple things like in a cafe, I would try to order in English first.
And then after a while, I decided to start trying to order in Russian when I was there.
And this small little step started to give me more confidence speaking in public.
And I think it really helped improve my language learning growth.
And I think it can help you too.
And of course, it doesn't have to be speaking.
It can be anything else as well.
So here's my challenge to you.
This week, take one small step outside of your English comfort zone.
It could be starting a conversation, watching a movie without subtitles or even writing a letter in English.
Remember, the goal isn't to be perfect, it's to make progress.
Every step you take, no matter how small, is a step towards becoming more confident and fluent in English.
So thank you so much for joining me today on the Easy English Podcast.
If you find this episode helpful, please feel free to share it with a friend or a fellow student.
And as always, just keep pushing your boundaries and your comfort zone.
You are capable of more than you think with English.
Have an amazing rest of your day.
Goodbye.
