Hello, everyone! I want to talk to you for a minute about Covid & The Comfort Zone.
Like everyone else, I found myself working from home more than usual because of the Corona Virus Pandemic. I took this opportunity to take “Paradigm Shift,” a seminar by Bob Proctor. Bob has a great channel on YouTube which I highly recommend to everyone. See, Bob has been teaching about goal setting and achievement for over 50 years now and Paradigm Shift is, in my opinion, one of the most effective goal setting and achievement seminars in the world! Bob really know what he’s talking about.
Well, one thing Bob does is break down exactly what a “paradigm” is. A paradigm is a set of thoughts, or beliefs, lodged waaayyy down in a person’s subconscious that have almost exclusive control over how we, as humans, act or behave. So, basically, paradigms are habits. Things we do without even thinking.
Paradigms are where the concept of “Comfort Zones” come in. We’ve all heard of comfort zones before. And we probably realize that it’s hard to get other people, or ourselves, out of them. That’s because comfort zones and habits are related. Habits determine your behavior and your routine and habitual behaviors become habits. We tend to get very comfortable with our habits, and that is where the Comfort Zone comes in. The thing is, it doesn’t matter if the Comfort Zone is a bad place, it’s just an easy state to exist in because the habits kick in and take over so we don’t even have to think about what we’re doing or the results we’re getting. .
Most of our paradigms, or habits were formed early on in our youth and were obtained from our parents or guardians. Things we saw people around us doing, hearing what they were saying, eating what they gave us, etc. Paradigms can be good or bad, but, once again, they have almost exclusive control over our behaviors and actions because we do them without consciously thinking about them..
This got me to thinking about the concept of comfort zones and how it affects our children. Especially in education. As we know, a majority of students are taking classes online at home now. CPS schools log in by 8 am. I know children who sleep until 7:45, or later, and wake up and log in at or around 8 am. Right when classes start. Think about it. Because of online classes, you can literally roll over in bed, log-in and start classes. Without washing up or taking a shower. Without breakfast. Without even changing their bed clothes in some cases!
Now, research indicates that after about 3-4 weeks a behavior becomes a habit, or paradigm. This then becomes a comfort zone.
But the question is: do we really want our kids to get into the habit of waking up right before school starts? True, they don’t have to commute or get ready like they normally do (i.e.,putting on a uniform), but what happens when schools open up again and require classes to meet in person? Whether it’s next month, or next year, you can imagine how difficult it’s going to be for that child (and parent!) to shift, or change the paradigm, break out of that comfort zone, and go back to waking up maybe an hour or two earlier and go through the whole process of getting ready. This is in addition to the “normal” stresses that will come with adjusting to being back in a physical classroom around teachers and peers again.
Is that setting them up for success to hit the ground running?
Paradigms stay with us our whole lives unless we change them. Now, paradigms, as I’ve said before, in themselves aren’t necessarily bad. Being groups of habits, some can be very beneficial. For instance, waking up early, getting dressed and starting their day ahead of time, is a paradigm that many successful people have. Paradigms are so powerful that you won’t even feel right, initially, if you’re not acting by them. We see that in life when, for instance, we find ourselves between jobs, or retire from work. Most people still feel almost compelled to wake up early and do something, anything, even though they don’t have to! After years of waking up and doing the same activities at the same times over and over again, it feels odd to, all of a sudden stop doing them.
My own thoughts are that we should get our young people into the habit of getting up early, getting ready and then starting their day in a certain manner no matter where they are or what the situation is! See, if the paradigm, or habit, that we instill is to begin your day an hour early, go over and work on your goals, or read for 20-30 minutes, it doesn’t matter what happens in the future, chances are that young person is going to adjust their life to do this every morning no matter what. They’ll probably take this habit with them to college and beyond, once they become adults. Getting up early is going to be their comfort zone. Getting up early is going to be their paradigm.
The benefits to getting up and starting your day early are many. For one, it leads to being on time more because you give yourself extra time if unexpected delays occur at home or on the way to work or school. This leads to less stress so the day starts out better. Secondly, it leads to more focus because, in addition to planning out your day, week, month, etc., your thinking tends to be sharpest first thing after you wake up as opposed to later on in the day when your energy has been sapped by work, school and other activities.
I could go on and on about paradigms, comfort zones and the benefits of getting the day started early, but I want to close with this: anything we want our children to do, they have to see us doing it as well. Do you get up early? Do you think, read, study, and plan on a daily basis? Are you always on early or on time for work?
In the end, children grow up to be like their parents or guardians in many ways. So, during these Covid times, and all times frankly, I think we have to be careful to make sure that, despite the extraordinary circumstances, we are working with them (and ourselves!) to make sure that they are developing positive, successful paradigms that will stay with, and benefit them, for the rest of their lives.
Do you have a passion for education? For community work? Well, I have a non profit, 501 (c) 3 organization, Touchstone Tutoring & Mentoring Services, Inc. that’s doing great work in youth and community education! If you have an organization or business and would like to partner up, or would like to volunteer or donate, please contact me! Together, we can change a lot of paradigms for the better.
So, until next time remember: “Time waits for no man...or woman! So, Carpe Diem, my friends! SEIZE THE DAY!!
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