Nurses, Is It Time To Leave Your Comfort Zone?
What is a comfort zone?
A nurse’s “comfort zone” is performing routine clinical duties while minimizing stress, change, and risk. When we find ourselves outside our comfort zone, we feel unsure, nervous, and out of place. Our natural inclination is to value comfort and stability, however, staying stuck in our comfort zone prevents us from reaching our highest career potential.
With all the changes and challenges in the 2026 healthcare landscape, there will be new and exciting career opportunities for nurses. Although you may not feel ready or feel underqualified, you may be the best person in the organization for the job. The key is to challenge your fears and focus on the benefits of saying yes.
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did. So, throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor, catch the trade winds in your sails.” - Mark Twain
A Note from Andi
During my nursing career I did feel the fear (frequently!), but I did it anyway and I have always been glad I did. My very first career “fear” was as a 2nd year nurse. I took a new job at a 120 bed Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) as a Unit Manager.
After 4 months, The Director of Nursing (DON) retired and the Administrator offered me the DON position because I was the only RN as he put it, “left.” I didn’t feel qualified or ready and was sure I would fail. There were a few early bumpy roads, but I listened to my staff and began to understand how important my leadership was for my patients and the team that cared for them.
I continued to grow into the position, facing challenges and learning from them to expand my leadership and clinical skills. By the time I left to have my first baby, I was very sad to leave my patients and the amazing team I had built.
Why is it so hard to embrace change?
It is easy to get stuck in a cycle complaining about our current work environment while taking no action. It is easier to stay stuck and unhappy than it is to face our fears and initiate change.
Fear of failure is the most common reason people give to avoid moving outside their comfort zone. It feels safer to stay inside our day-to-day routines rather than move into a new situation where we risk failure, criticism, and external judgment. Instead of focusing on the negative outcomes of change, we must focus on the positive outcomes - namely the unlimited growth potential we achieve when we embrace change. The challenges we face and overcome become learning opportunities to refine and hone our skills.
How can I get out of my comfort zone and further my nursing career?
‘”I recommend that to move outside your comfort zone you must take the first step of not focusing on all the possibilities of failure and begin self-reflection of how to learn and grow” - Author David Van Rooy
Rooy has identified the 6 benefits of transcending your comfort zone:
Let go of being perfect. A need to be perfect can hold you back. Acknowledge that with risk comes the chance of failure but also the possibility of greatness.
Inspire others. When you take risks in a new direction, others will notice and be inspired by your actions as a role model which will allow team members to come forward with fresh ideas.
Have no regrets. Almost every nurse I know who stepped outside of a comfort zone had only one regret: that he or she didn’t do it sooner.
Define yourself authentically. By pushing yourself into new areas, you will shape the career and life you want for yourself.
Gain control. Taking control of your decisions gives us more control over our lives. When you force yourself to take risks, you gain increased confidence in your abilities.
Experience life more fully. When you leave your comfort zone, you learn what you are truly capable of doing and achieving. As you are exposed to new challenges.
Are you ready to step outside of your comfort zone but don’t know where to start?
My Kaleidoscope Coaching programs are customized leadership experiences for those seeking to become nursing leaders or wishing to refresh their current skills. Kaleidoscope is a leadership style that, like a kaleidoscope, integrates multiple shifting perspectives to create new patterns and solutions. It involves using diverse qualities like vision, empathy and adaptability to respond to complex clinical and professional situations. These programs will help you develop the mindset, confidence and creativity to adapt, embrace change, and lead with purpose and passion in today’s dynamic healthcare environment.
If you are stuck in your comfort zone, my Kaleidoscope Coaching programs will help you embrace new challenges, reach your goals, and get rid of self doubt.
Contact me today to start achieving your career goals.
Selected references
Sherman, R. (2017 September 21) Transcending your Comfort Zone. American Nurse Journal. https://www.myamericannurse.com/transcending-comfort-zone/;
Van Rooy DL. Trajectory: 7 Career Strategies to Take You from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be. New York: AMACOM; 2014.
