An Interview With Maria Angelova
Know who provides provisions amid expanding your comfort zone. For me that is God. He has never led me where His grace hasn’t provided me what I needed at that time.
It feels most comfortable to stick with what we are familiar with. But anyone who has achieved great success will tell you that true growth comes from pushing yourself out of your comfort zone. What are some ways that influential people have pushed themselves out of their comfort zone to grow both personally and professionally? As a part of this series, I had the pleasure of interviewing (Dr. Cornelia Gibson.
Dr. Gibson has called Solano County, California home for the past 45 years. She left a 23-year career in the telecommunications industry to pursue her passion for counseling and motivating others. Dr. Gibson has a BA, MA, and Ed.D. in Counseling Psychology, is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, and the founder of Agape Counseling Center and Network in Fairfield, CA.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we start, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your childhood backstory?
I am number 4 of 5 siblings. I lived in Richmond, CA for the first 10 years of my life until my parents divorced. My mother then moved us to Solano County, CA where I have resided for fifty years. As a teen mother, battered wife, and living ten years with a brain tumor, being a brain tumor survivor, I have many experiences of fear from stepping outside of my comfort zone.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
My favorite life lesson quote, besides my favorite quote from the bible, is one that I came up with. Along with my faith, this quote has helped me tremendously. Life will bring us stressors, but it doesn’t have to bring us stress. This quote is sketched into my mind as I face expected and unexpected life stressors.
Is there a particular book, podcast, or film that made a significant impact on you? Can you share a story or explain why it resonated with you so much?
I have written a book called Surviving Broken Promises, which closely chronicled my life. In writing the book, it was very therapeutic in that I was in control of all aspects where I wasn’t in control of what real life threw at me.
Let’s now shift to the main part of our discussion. Let’s start with a basic definition so that all of us are on the same page. What does “getting outside of your comfort zone” mean?
Getting outside of my comfort zone means doing something new, different, unfamiliar, scary, fearful, and anxiety provoking, especially when I’m unsure of how it may turn out.
Can you help articulate a few reasons why it is important to get out of your comfort zone?
Yes, to never do anything new and different means that one is either satisfied with where they are in life, or they may be scared of the unknown. I am of the belief that we all have something to learn and give, especially when that means someone else will benefit. I have often felt comfortable in my fear and mediocrity which kept me from expanding my comfort zone for the benefit of someone else.
Is it possible to grow without leaving your comfort zone? Can you explain what you mean?
I do not believe it is possible to grow without leaving your comfort zone. Don’t get me wrong, people can have large and expansive comfort zones and still need to be a little uncomfortable to learn and grow even more. As for me, at one point I had a very small comfort zone and little by little I’m allowing myself to be uncomfortable one assignment at a time. Through each experience I felt more comfortable and never regretted stepping out on faith rather than staying put in the comfortability of fear.
Can you share some anecdotes from your personal experience? Can you share a story about a time when you stepped out of your comfort zone and how it helped you grow? How does it feel to take those first difficult steps?
I know that I have a lot that God wants me to share with others, however truth be told I have felt paralyzed with fear. When I started praying for God to expand my comfort zone so that others may be blessed, so many opportunities to do so were immediately presented. While no one knew about this prayer, I was immediately asked to moderate an event on mental health. While I didn’t know the person who asked, I immediately said yes, which was totally out of my comfort zone. Just the action of saying yes was out of my comfort zone. The thought of moderating was out of my comfort zone. What brought me comfort was in knowing that God would be with me. At the end of the event, I was approached by someone who said she was most impacted by the personal account of my disability I shared. She didn’t know that what I shared was totally unscripted and not a part of what I had planned. This experience helped me to say yes to the next opportunity to step out of my comfort zone.
What are your “five ways to push past your comfort zone, to grow both personally and professionally”?
- Know who provides provisions amid expanding your comfort zone. For me that is God. He has never led me where His grace hasn’t provided me what I needed at that time.
- Know that there is growth for self and others in being uncomfortable while doing your part in being prepared as much as you can. When I tell myself that I’m doing something for the greater good, it becomes a little less scary.
- Know that the discomfort, fear, anxiety, etc. is temporary and think about the long-term benefits. Years ago, I would experience anxiety for days and days until it was time for me to expand my comfort zone. I learned through experience that there was no benefit to worrying in advance. Now, rather than worry about the fear I replace that with thoughts of the benefits.
- Know that someone else needs what you can provide when and as you grow. Don’t be selfish by sitting in your comfort. Do it for someone else even if that someone else remains unknown.
- No one can provide what you can provide. It is so rewarding to take small steps in doing something you never thought you could or would do.
From your experience or perspective, what are some of the common barriers that keep someone from pushing out of their comfort zone?
It is very common to allow fear and anxiety to keep us comfortable. We can have both fear of the unknown as well as fear of the known. Sometimes knowing that we are destined for greatness can produce fear that looks similar to fear of failure.
There is a well-known quote attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt that says, “Do something that scares you every day”. What exactly does this mean to you? Is there inherent value in doing something that pushes you out of your comfort zone, even if it does not relate to personal or professional growth?
For example, if one is uncomfortable about walking alone at night should they purposely push themselves to do it often for the sake of going beyond their comfort zone? Can you please explain what you mean?
To me, that quote means to push past your comfort zone at every opportunity you have. Of course, that applies to healthy and safe opportunities. It means trying something scary at every opportunity especially if it will benefit someone else whether personally or professionally. Allow yourself to grow beyond your comfort zone and if you’re anything like me, it will get a little easier each time, while discomfort is growth. Never stop growing.
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?
God has given me a major made for television project that will mentally and spiritually heal a massive number of families. I have stepped out of my comfort zone by saying yes to what He is asking me to do.
Is there a person in the world whom you would love to have lunch with, and why?
Maybe we can tag them and see what happens! Tyler Perry’s life experience continues to be inspirational, and he would be the perfect person to partner with this once teenage mother, battered wife, and now doctor.
How can our readers follow you online?
I can be found on Facebook and Twitter as DrCornelia.
Thank you so much for sharing these important insights. We wish you continued success and good health!
Dr Cornelia Gibson On How to Go Beyond Your Comfort Zone To Grow Both Personally and Professionally was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.