Stepping out of your comfort zone

1. Look at the pictures and choose the best definition of the phrase in the
lesson title.

a) doing things that you usually don’t feel comfortable doing in order to gain new
experiences
b) spending time doing activities that help you become smarter, richer or fitter
c) trying out new things because you want to surprise people
[Ask students to look at the word cloud and do the following tasks:
• Find five adjectives that are generally
positive and five that are generally
negative.
Generally positive: cheerful,
enthusiastic, fulfilled, grateful,
peaceful, proud
Generally negative: anxious, awkward,
exhausted, foolish, frustrated, irritated
• Choose three adjectives and say in
what situations a person might feel
that way.
• Say how you feel when: you finish a project, your neighbour is noisy, you are
in a crowded supermarket, you start a holiday, you step out of your comfort
zone.]

2. Look at the activities and discuss the questions.

go on holiday alone do a digital detox host a dinner party for 20

give a compliment to a stranger speak in front of a group of strangers

[Encourage students to use the words in the word cloud.]

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 Stepping out of your comfort zone

• Would doing these activities mean stepping out of your comfort zone? How do
you or how would you feel doing them?
• Which of them would you like to try or do more of? Why?
• Why might some people find them stressful?
• Why do you think it’s easier for some people to leave their comfort zone than
others?
• What other activities would you consider as stepping out of your comfort
zone?

3. Watch the first part of a video [https://youtu.be/iPDdUoiUbQc] (to 00:58) and

say what you think the woman’s new job is.

4. Watch the second part of the video (from 00:58) and check your answer.
Then, discuss the questions.
[She is a coach who inspires people over 40 to incorporate fitness and adventure
into everyday life. She mostly works with women and hopes to be an inspiration to
people of colour.]
• Does the woman in the video inspire you? If so, how?
• What do you think about the woman’s
business idea? Would you ever use such a
service?
• Would the idea be successful where you
live?
• What expectations regarding fitness and
adventure does society have of different
people? Consider gender, age, race or
social status.
• How do these social expectations influence
us?
• Would you like to take on any of the fitness challenges mentioned in the
video? [The video mentions: skydiving, jumping off a cliff, flying to the top of a

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 Stepping out of your comfort zone

mountain and snowboarding down, paddleboarding, kayaking, rock

climbing, trail running, mountain biking and surfing.]

5. Read about the activities and say what a person could learn by doing them.
Then, explain why you would or wouldn’t like to try them.

Improv classes. Improv (or Say ‘yes’ to everything that

improvisational theatre) is a form
of theatre in which nothing is
planned or scripted, so the plot,
characters and dialogue of a
scene are made up in the
moment. You don’t need to be a
professional actor to participate.
You just play games, create
scenes and feel silly with a fun
group of people.
comes your way. For one
week, accept all invitations,
suggestions and opportunities
that life brings. Open yourself
to new experiences, take on
challenges and live with an
open heart. Who knows?
Saying ‘yes’ to something
boring or difficult might change
your life.

A silent retreat. Spend a week Volunteering. Help your

in a peaceful, natural setting.
Meditate and take long walks.
Speaking is not allowed during
the retreat, so even though you
will be with other people, you
will only be able to listen to
yourself.
community through one of the
many projects that support
different causes: tutor kids, work
with the elderly, clean parks or
help homeless animals. We all
have skills that can be used to
make the world a better place.

6. Look at the quotes and say whether you agree with them or not.
• “The further you get away from yourself, the more challenging it is. Not to be in
your comfort zone is great fun.” Benedict Cumberbatch
• “Life always begins with one step outside of your comfort zone.” Shannon L.
Alder

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 Stepping out of your comfort zone

• “Sometimes it is good to be in uncomfortable situations because it is in finding

our way out of such difficulties that we learn valuable lessons.” Idowu
Koyenikan
attain:
• “Lasting success is not attained outside our comfort
reach, achieve
zone, but rather inside it.” Kristen Butler

[You can show students the graphic here and ask them if they agree that this is how
stepping out of your comfort zone works. They could also think about a time when
they stepped out of their comfort zone and use the ideas in the graphic to describe
what the process was like.]

Copyrights by ESL Brains