The other editors and I were talking about leadership and comfort zones while in class the other day. It was an interesting conversation because it made me reflect on my time at Simpson after deciding to become a multimedia journalism major.

My sophomore year is when I decided to major in journalism knowing I would have to leave my comfort zone. I was hoping I would grow into a more outgoing and social person like most of my family was. By declaring a journalism major and having to interview people, I was making it happen. I was going to have to leave or expand my comfort zone.

My first semester writing for The Simpsonian was scary because I didn’t know exactly how to interview people. Yet, I figured it out. Interviewing skills can always be improved upon. I’m still working on it, but it’s definitely better than it used to be.

Leaving your comfort zone and learning to be comfortable with new environments is how you become a leader. Being able to do things that make you uncomfortable is a big part of being a great leader.

This semester, I am editor-in-chief of ID Magazine. If I had not pushed myself this far out of my comfort zone my sophomore and junior year, I’m not sure I would be where I am today. I’ve even become one of those people who will walk up to random strangers and ask them questions, which is something I never thought I would do. 

While interning at the Blank Park Zoo over the summer, I had to work during Zoo Brew to help sell items for a non-profit called Conservation Fusion. The zoo was helping to fundraise for a school in Madagascar to be built. The founder Susie Lewis was in town to speak at Zoo Brew. Channel 5 News is always at Zoo Brew and since I was there early to help set up, the news crew was there as well. I walked right up to the two anchors, introduced myself, and started asking them questions. Never in a million years would I have expected myself to do that.

Of course, there are still times I am uncomfortable, but I am confident in my abilities as a journalist. It’s crazy to think of how I went from a six-year-old girl who would throw a fit and cry through an entire Christmas pageant until my mom pulled me out, to a 22 year-old-woman who is able to walk up to a stranger and start a conversation.

If I have learned anything from my four years here at Simpson, it would be how beneficial and life altering leaving your comfort zone can be. I’m so thankful I’ve had so many opportunities to be pushed outside of my own.

I’ll leave you with this piece of advice: If something scares you, go for it because it could be life changing.