The "Comfort Zone"

For most people, stepping out of your comfort zone can be your worst nightmare. There are so many different cases for this, but I know that for me personally (as seen in my post on insecurities which can be found here), I am extremely self-conscious and when it comes to dressing myself; I am stuck because I do not dare touch most tight clothing, including jeans, and I'm always concerned about how people look at me. I also know that I am not the only one. (In this case, take a look at that post I linked to, I'm quite proud of it!).

But, you see, there are ways in which you can compensate for you remaining in the "comfort zone". For some people, it's the way in which they do their make up in the mornings which brings them so much more confidence to use to speak to people. It may be that they are extremely bright and brainy, so their excellent results shine through the intellectual challenges that they face, or they are a passionate ice skater and soar across the slippery surface as quickly as their legs would let them.

For me, it's performing. I discovered this when I was around 7 years old. I'm not terribly sure where exactly it sprouted from, I just felt like starting one of the new extra-curricular clubs and I haven't stopped since. Maybe it was the lovely teacher who motivated us to keep trying, or maybe it was the friendly faces surrounding me, but I don't remember. I now have a huge passion for the theatre and drama, whether it be devising my own performance or following the strict stage directions and the director's interpretations. I may not be excellent at maths or have a super skinny body, but I sure can perform my little heart out in front of an audience filled with people that I adore. I can allow the adrenalin to race through my body which forces me to shine as an actor and express myself through this creative way. I also love to write (hence setting up this blog with my two best friends), and read, and sing, and play music.

I know, I have gone quite off topic, sorry!

What I wanted to say in this blog post that there are so many different ways to express yourself, so there is NO reason to put yourself down because you're not "smart enough", "creative enough" or even "pretty enough". You are you, which is the best that you can be.
Yes, it is great to stay in the "comfort zone", it is safe and secure. But life gets too boring after a while in there, so it's brilliant to spice things up and try something new. I never thought that I would be able to even comprehend what different pieces of make up do, but now I can't put it down! It's great fun to try something new, even if it means taking a step down a different route which you are not used to. But sometimes it's nice to stick to things that you enjoy the most, such as sports, reading, baking, you name it!

To summarise: you do you, don't let anyone judge you for it.

Thank you for reading this far into my ramblings,
- LF, LR and MG
xxx

Insecurities

We all have them. Those tiny aspects of your face, body or personality that stick out to you like a sore thumb. They play on your mind and cause you to think endless things, such as how you can best hide your bingo wings or whether your foundation has enough coverage to conceal the atrocity that you call your acne-ridden forehead. You feel almost paranoid as soon as anyone looks in the direction of your 'thunder thighs' or your gigantic nose.

These are your insecurities. 

They are a huge deal in your life.

But they are not a huge deal in anyone else's.

Nobody is going to look at you and think "oh dear that person's face is utterly horrendous because they have freckly cheeks, that means that they are an awful human being and should be thrown of the face of the earth".

Nobody is going to glare at you from a mile away because you have bigger or smaller feet than they do.

Nobody else will notice these things.

They are interested in you. As a person, not as an object. They will look at you and wonder how you manage to retain such an incredible personality with your beautiful smile and adorable laugh. They will wish that they could be your friend because they know how much you genuinely care about each individual person that feature in your life. In fact, they would probably be stood there, worrying to death about you noticing the couple of miniature but stubborn strands of hair that are out of place on their own eyebrows.

This is the one thing that every person always forgets. They are your insecurities because nobody else cares. 

All you need to be concerned about is carrying on being that brilliant person that you are. The high-achieving, optimistic, bubbly, kind, helpful bundle of joy that you always were and always will be.

That is all.

-LF, LR and MG