Where the Magic Happens

“I don't know what it feels like when I really get out of my comfort zone, so I'm not sure I'm stretching myself!”

A student recently said this to me while I was teaching an IDEO U course called Insights for Innovation, which made me stop to ponder what it feels like for me. Here’s what I came up with.

When I'm out of my comfort zone, it's ultimately a satisfying and...big...experience. In the process, I feel open/free/fluid, somewhat vulnerable, occasionally nervous, often conspicuous, and extremely sensitive (i.e., attuned to what I'm seeing, hearing, smelling, touching, etc.).

I get to this place by stretching myself. And stretching myself during qualitative research (i.e., observational work) looks like this: gathering lots of details (i.e., behavior prompts, body language, hacks, values, body language, patterns, surprises) and coming up with LOTS of questions (more questions than answers).

Sitting with these details and questions is what creates the discomfort for me (at least for my ego), because "sitting with" means not allowing myself to immediately interpret, judge and know, but simply to wonder. When I give myself this time in "wonderland," I can slowly develop a range of hunches about the Why behind the What and How that I'm witnessing.

I’m curious, what does it feel like to YOU when you get out of your comfort zone to see the world with new eyes?