You don’t simply become successful by performing ordinary tasks; success requires intentionally developing new capabilities in areas you aim to improve by tackling challenging experiences. This principle holds true in many domains, including physical fitness.
The Fitness Analogy: Embracing Discomfort
Take bodybuilding, for instance. If my goal is to transform my physique, casually walking around the house or engaging in everyday tasks won’t yield significant results. However, intentionally increasing my daily steps to, say, 10,000 steps a day might spark some noticeable improvement. Yet, if I aspire to substantially grow my muscles, lifting light weights or short rep range won’t suffice. Significant muscle growth demands heavy weights and/or prolonged periods of tension—it’s through this deliberate discomfort that growth happens.
Applying Uncomfortable Growth to Professional Success
The same principle applies when developing expertise and achieving broader success. Embracing uncomfortable growth accelerates your path to success and typically involves two key factors: not fearing failure and being comfortable with occasionally being wrong. Just like with exercise, we truly experience growth we intentionally spend time under tension.
Overcoming the Fear of Being Wrong
These two challenges—fear of being wrong and fear of failure—often prevent individuals from reaching their goals. Consider the discomfort of being wrong, particularly in professional settings. Imagine you’re in a meeting, recognized as a subject matter expert. You share your insights based on extensive study and experience but make a mistake. How do you react?
For many, being wrong can trigger embarrassment and self-doubt, causing them to retreat and limit their contributions. Yet, this reaction overlooks an essential truth: no one knows everything. It’s possible—even likely—that someone without your expertise may ask a question that stumps you. The healthiest response isn’t silence or withdrawal but honesty and humility. Admitting, “I don’t know that yet—let me investigate further,” humanizes you, creating productive dialogue and genuine opportunities for growth.
Learning Through Experience and Failure
While some mistakes have serious implications, such as financial loss or critical decisions, the best way to prepare for high-stakes scenarios is by embracing opportunities to learn in lower-risk environments. This approach helps you gain valuable experience to better gauge the impact of your future decisions.
This illustrates why uncomfortable growth is crucial. Failure is often our greatest teacher. You can read countless books, learn best practices, and study design patterns. You can even watch hours of instructional videos on house-building, for instance. However, it’s not until you attempt to physically build a house or perform a specific task that you realize gaps in your knowledge. These experiences—particularly the failures—build resilience and expertise.
The Difference Between Being Wrong and Failing
There is a subtle but important difference between being wrong and failing. Being wrong typically involves an assertion or a belief you’ve expressed publicly that’s proven incorrect. Failure involves taking action—doing something you’re not fully prepared for—that doesn’t produce the intended outcome.
Using the house-building analogy again: If you confidently tell others you know how to build a house but lack hands-on experience, you’re likely to encounter situations you don’t understand. Misunderstanding foundational principles, like proper wiring or construction sequences, can lead to a failed project. Being wrong would be incorrectly advising someone about roofing techniques or materials, only to have them quickly discover your advice was incorrect. Failure, by contrast, would be completing the house only to realize it’s structurally unsound.
Embracing Discomfort for Growth
To truly embrace uncomfortable growth, you must accept that being wrong and experiencing failure are inevitable aspects of your journey toward success. Many successful entrepreneurs even insist they won’t hire or collaborate with anyone who hasn’t experienced significant failure—viewing it as an essential indicator of resilience and learning.
Ultimately, uncomfortable growth is vital because it rapidly develops your skills and expertise. By embracing discomfort, you accelerate your path to genuine and lasting success.
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