The Un-Comfort Zone

I love being thrown out of my element. Last weekend, I told a filmmaker who I met at a commercial shoot that I would help him with a film. He was participating in a contest called Sidewalk Scramble in which filmmakers are given a theme and two props they have to incorporate into a four-minute movie all in a brief forty-eight hours. It is up to the filmmakers to organize the talent, provide all the equipment and play director. So, I did my part and offered to play a caring mother in a high-speed car chase. I lent my new friend Garrett, a ten-year-old boy, a brother and sister, and another guy about four hours of my time on Saturday. Anyone on the outside might think the experience was totally random. But I wanted to see what goes into the making of a short film. I wanted to do something different. Out of my element. Not in my comfort zone.

I tell this anecdote because it reminds me of some advice a professional once harped on: Go out of your comfort zone, Carly. I majored in public relations with a minor in Spanish. I worked as a sales representative selling ad space for the school newspaper. These were all things I was familiar with and it seemed logical to seek a job that fit into my field of study or my last job. So I was looking at PR firms and newspapers and magazines that wanted someone to sell ad space. But that very meetings I had with the professional changed my thought patterns. He said, “I see you were on the ad team. Why don’t you start thinking more seriously about ad agencies. PR overlaps a great deal there. And so will your account executive experience.” He continue to suggest, “I know you are comfortable with print ads, but how about broadcast. Contact this guy who leads the sales team over at ABC 33/40.” These two ideas really sparked within, and I started to realize that I didn’t need to meet the exact mold of people who typically work in these places.

To this day, I tell people that that meeting was really what catapulted me into getting where I am now. So remember, you are not glued to your degree. Get out of your element and you will surprise yourself at how versatile you really are. You will have a lot to bring to the table, even if it is just playing a caring mother in a high-speed car chase.