A FISH ON LAND
"That night, I carried my torn Ghana Must Go bag and left the house. When I got to Accra or Kumasi, I didn't even have 1000 (now 10 pesewas) or a kobo. I started selling medicine or spare parts with just 1.0 cedis, and now here I am, being invited to tell you my story."
For many of us, "leaving your comfort zone" has meant moving from ZaleZale to Cape Town or from Susi to Sosa. There are even images of a fish leaving the water, its comfort zone, only to die—a humorous post in regards to the comfort zone.
Honestly, I've always thought of the comfort zone as a physical place where I stay and enjoy being, that's because of the stories I've heard. If you had asked me months ago, I would have gladly told you that my comfort zone is my sister's place in the Volta region, where I eat well, sleep well, and enjoy the comforts of life.
However, starting in May, I realized that my comfort zone is more mental than physical. I now believe it is all in the mind. If I psych myself up to face my adversities in a particular area, sleep well despite the heat, eat well, and be at peace with myself, I can thrive anywhere. Whether I had to walk daily from the Volta Region to Greater Accra, I could still do it. It all depends on the mind, how I prepare it, see it, perceive it, and believe it.
On the 24th of February, my sister was robbed at dawn. The thief made away with her smartphone, keypad phones she uses for mobile money, accessories, television, and other things. When I heard about it, I was worried about how she was coping and wanted to keep her company since the experience might have been traumatic for her. However, I couldn't go because I was working, and she insisted I finish my work and come later.
On the 30th of April, I went to her place, but I couldn't rest well, haunted by the thought of what happened to her. Every movement outside made me think the thief had returned. My once comfort zone was no longer comforting. I used to sleep well where I was, despite there being more thieves compared to where my sister lives. A couple of days after I arrived, there was an attempted break-in, which made things worse. I couldn't even sleep in the afternoons.
My focus on the thief at my sister's place occupied my thoughts over other things. The fish might not find comfort in water, because other animals are on to it, that fish won't survive on land either, it only has To learn how to survive there though there are threats. Imagine leaving a place where you sleep well for a place where you don't, just because it's labeled your comfort zone. How productive can you be at work if you're constantly sleep-deprived?
Yes, sleep is for the weak but what about peace of mind?. I know a lot of people will automatically question someone who is a psychologist or does psychology about reading the mind because they believe that's what psychology is about. (Just seeing them and reading the mind). So instead of preaching and making the comfort zone look like leaving heaven to hell, why don't we preach the comfort zone of thinking and acting so the fish doesn't die, leaving the water?
I’m not disputing the reality of a place equally being a comfort Zone, but only saying it is more mental than physical. I'm not equally disputing the reality that growing up in a particular environment has an effect on our way of reasoning or seeing things, but I'm only saying that's not what comfort zone is all about. You can be in Keta and think, do things, or more just like those in Accra. You can stay in Keta and still not make it your comfort zone though you've been there all your life and feel safe there. And you can equally be successful in a safe secure place while exploring other things. You have to psych your mind, and if you need to leave Zalezale to make it happen, then go for it, but don't go to Zalezale just because Ato left Zalezale to make it, you might die just like the fish.
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