Madison Robinson
Journal #23
Disrupting my Comfort Zone, Brian Grazer
Disrupting my Comfort Zone written by Brian Grazer expresses the belief that without challenge and discomfort, growth is not possible. He writes about his experience of learning to surf and the fear he felt being there, knowing that everyone around him was aware that that was his first time. This example shows the reader that putting yourself in a difficult or new situation can be beneficial in the long run. One idea that I circled while I was reading was “so maybe I’m not the best surfer on the North Shore, but that’s okay” (Grazer, 92). This stuck out to me because I have always pushed myself to try and be the “best”, mostly in an academic setting. His words reminded me that it is okay to not be the best, and it’s about the process rather than the outcome. By learning how to surf even though he was uncomfortable, he developed a skill that he would not have had otherwise. One part that I would not do is reach out to other people to better myself. I think that you can learn a lot and better yourself simply by using your own personal experiences and build off what you already know. I would much rather take time to myself than connect with others.
Journal 23:
Disrupting My Comfort Zone, written by Brain Grazer, was a good piece to read. The main idea of this mini chapter was the dedication to working hard. Brain has had trials in his life in many different things, before he had some successes. This was a good piece to read to look at another person’s trials, so you know it’s okay to have your own. A line in this writing piece that I liked was “Disrupting my comfort zone, bombarding myself with challenging people and situations, this is the best way I know to keep growing.” I really like this quote because it shows that being out of your comfort zone is not always a bad thing, it can be a good thing. Being out of your comfort zone can help you grow as a person, you might realize that you can accomplish more than you think. I couldn’t find anything that I disagreed with in this writing piece. I think going out of your comfort zone is a good thing, but it should be something that nobody is pressured into. I liked the meaning of this writing piece and believe it is something that everyone can relate to.
Journal #23
The main idea of this piece is that you’ll never know if you can succeed unless you put in the necessary effort and hard work to reach the top. I thought this was a really good short chapter because it highlights how, even when the people he knew didn’t always give him attention or support, he kept pushing forward and worked his way up to success. One line I highlighted from Brian Grazer was “They say life is tough enough. But I guess I like to make things difficult on myself, because I do that all the time. Every day. On purpose. That’s because I believe in disrupting my comfort zone.” Brian recognizes how hard life is already but he initially pushes himself even harder everyday. He chose to step out of his comfort zone because he believes that real growth and improvement come from facing discomfort and taking on new challenges. I didn’t find anything in this chapter that I disagreed with. I completely agree that, as humans, we have the ability to push beyond our limits in order to learn and grow. Stepping outside of your comfort zone demonstrates your willingness to improve and become a better version of yourself.
The big idea in Disrupting my comfort zone by Brian Glazer is all about going out of your comfort zone and doing things you may not always do even if you know you may not be the best. This piece talked about challenging yourself and always pushing to do what you may not alway be used to.
I really liked the second paragraph on page 92 but more specifically “if you are not growing, you’re dying.” I really like this quote/ way of thinking because if you always just live life in your own little bubble and you don’t go out to try new things or push your comfort zone then you really never will grow as a person and find out new things you like or new things about yourself in general.
I did not find anything in this piece I disagree with. I think it is important that people go out of their comfort zones a bit and it really is so important to try new things.
The whole point of Brian Glazer’s Disrupting My Comfort Zone was to tell his story about how he is always trying to get out of his comfort zone. He finds that if you are not challenging yourself with difficult situations then you aren’t able to grow. One ideal that I liked in this piece is, “…if you’re not growing, you’re dying.” (Glazer, 92). I really like this statement because I too agree with him. I believe that the whole point of life is to be constantly growing as a person both mentally, socially, and physically. It is very important to be constantly trying to improve yourself and understand yourself. Growth is essential to human life. There wasn’t really anything in this piece that I didn’t understand or disagree with. I really like the concept of this belief and I find myself relating to it heavily.
The big idea of this piece, written by Brian Grazer, is his belief that true growth can only occur in life when we are outside of the things we feel comfortable doing. It is easy to fall into a routine and not push ourselves to do the things that make us feel nervous, but the author states that is precisely what we need to do: to take on the challenges that fear holds us back from. In the reading, one part I especially liked was when the author quoted a biologist that he had once met, who told him, “if you’re not growing, you’re dying”. While this does not mean dying in a literal sense, I think that it implies that if we as people never change or grow from our experiences, then we are missing out on all of life’s great potentials, and, I guess, then in that way, we are dying because we are never truly living. This quote really applies to my life because I am a person who is big on routine and doing much of the same things I have always done, not necessarily because it’s what I want to do, but because I know it is safe and predictable. But as I have started going to college, I have definitely experienced going outside of my comfort zone more times than I can count, and it has already led to so much personal growth because I have accomplished many things I never could have imagined doing even a few months ago. In the reading, there weren’t really any quotes I disagreed with outright; a majority of what he brought up on the importance of going outside of your comfort zone were things that I agreed with too.
I liked this piece of writing because it made me think. I perceived it as simply when you get out and do things that you don’t like when you grow as a person. I have done many things I don’t like, and I feel that it is true sometimes. At the very least you had an experience. The part I circled was right after the introduction where he made his main point. I liked this because it is clear and specific. I also liked the way he used punctuation to emphasize the point he was trying to get across. The part that I disagreed with was the quote from a biologist: “If you’re not growing, you’re dying”. I think you can also just enjoy yourself, instead of either growing or dying, but I understand what it is supposed to mean.
I really loved the ideals in Disrupting my Comfort zone by Brian Grazer. The concept that you never stop growing and learning is one I have myself. Experiencing everything you can is so important because we only live once. Challenging your mind keeps your mind sharp and active and doing this all throughout your life is really beneficial. I love a good challenge and always want to learn more. One of my goals is to travel to each continent and learn as much as possible in each country as possible. Life is hard but having a diverse range of experiences helps you have a different perspective on problems. I really loved the ideas in this piece as my family shares similar ideals on experiencing everything possible.
Brian Grazer’s piece “Disrupting My Comfort Zone” is all about how going out of the familiar can positively impact your life. He describes all of the ways he has pushed himself out of his comfort zone, and how he continues to do so, and how it has shaped him into the director he is today. I really like when he talks about how he steps outside of his comfort zone because he wants to continuously grow, and how a biologist once told him that if you aren’t growing, you’re dying. I believe that this is such a good mentality for life. Humans are not meant to be stagnant in what and who we are, so attempting to always grow makes sense to me. I dislike when he talks about meeting the father of the hydrogen bomb, Edward Teller. He mentions begging and pleading to meet with this person, and when Edward finally did, Edward insulted Brian and ridiculed him. Brian then says that it wasn’t that interesting to meet with him anyways. I would be pretty annoyed if someone kept trying to disrupt my peace with constant phone calls and messages about meeting with me, especially if they couldn’t take no for an answer.
This piece was about growing through exploring the bounds of your comfort zone. Specifically, it’s about going out of your way to get out of your comfort zone. The author gives lots of his personal experience with how he’s gone out of his comfort zone. He writes about how he put himself in some very uncomfortable situations, but he’s thankful he did because he learned from them, and that was the point. My favorite part is when the author writes, “They say life is tough enough. But I guess I like to make things difficult on myself, because I do that all the time. Every day. On purpose. That’s because I believe in disrupting my comfort zone.” I love this! I absolutely live by this. I, too, put myself in uncomfortable situations on purpose, because I’ve found where I learn the most and when I have the most fun. I wouldn’t say there was a specific line that I didn’t like, but I would say that after reading the title, I was hoping for more from this piece. It felt a little lackluster, which surprises me! I don’t not like it, but I was hoping for more oomph. It felt somewhat surface level. However, I did enjoy it overall, and I completely agree with the message.
Disrupting My Comfort Zone by Brian Glazer’s
What is it? What’s the big idea in this piece?
Glazer argues that disrupting your comfort zone and exploring new ideas turns into growth. He believes that by seeking new and sometimes uncomfortable experiences, people can expand their horizons and find things that they enjoy. Grazer sees being uncomfortable as a necessary part of life and it teaches people how to learn and recognize personal development.
See if you can locate 1 idea/concept or line in the essay and circle it. Explain why you like what you circled.
“…if you’re not growing, you’re dying.”
When you avoid change or things that are outside of your comfort zone it leads to a closed mindset. Growth is essential for feeling alive and being engaged with the world and all of the opportunities it has to offer you.
See if you can locate 1 idea that confuses you or you disagree with. Explain as best you can what confuses you or why you disagree with what you circled.
Although I agree that stepping outside your comfort zone leads to growth and personal development, I can also see why people would disagree with Grazer on this idea. Many people find that a routine and stability can also lead to happiness. These people may also feel that too much disruption or discomfort can do more harm than good.
The big idea in Disrupting My Comfort Zone by Brian Grazer is that stepping outside familiar routines can lead to unexpected connection, personal growth and a deeper understanding of others and yourself. One thing I liked was how the author Grazer used his presence as a way to challenge his own assumptions. It showed that discomfort can push someone to become more open minded which made the message feel honest and that much more relatable. Something that I didn’t like was that certain moment in the piece felt rushed over or under explained making it harder to fully understand his feelings in those scenes. Despite that the piece effectively highlights how small disruptions and stepping out of your comfort zone can create meaning fun change in your life, but sometimes that can do more harm than good it just depends on what kind of risk you do or how you are stepping out of your comfort zone.
12 thoughts on “JOURNAL # 23”
Madison Robinson
Journal #23
Disrupting my Comfort Zone, Brian Grazer
Disrupting my Comfort Zone written by Brian Grazer expresses the belief that without challenge and discomfort, growth is not possible. He writes about his experience of learning to surf and the fear he felt being there, knowing that everyone around him was aware that that was his first time. This example shows the reader that putting yourself in a difficult or new situation can be beneficial in the long run. One idea that I circled while I was reading was “so maybe I’m not the best surfer on the North Shore, but that’s okay” (Grazer, 92). This stuck out to me because I have always pushed myself to try and be the “best”, mostly in an academic setting. His words reminded me that it is okay to not be the best, and it’s about the process rather than the outcome. By learning how to surf even though he was uncomfortable, he developed a skill that he would not have had otherwise. One part that I would not do is reach out to other people to better myself. I think that you can learn a lot and better yourself simply by using your own personal experiences and build off what you already know. I would much rather take time to myself than connect with others.
Journal 23:
Disrupting My Comfort Zone, written by Brain Grazer, was a good piece to read. The main idea of this mini chapter was the dedication to working hard. Brain has had trials in his life in many different things, before he had some successes. This was a good piece to read to look at another person’s trials, so you know it’s okay to have your own. A line in this writing piece that I liked was “Disrupting my comfort zone, bombarding myself with challenging people and situations, this is the best way I know to keep growing.” I really like this quote because it shows that being out of your comfort zone is not always a bad thing, it can be a good thing. Being out of your comfort zone can help you grow as a person, you might realize that you can accomplish more than you think. I couldn’t find anything that I disagreed with in this writing piece. I think going out of your comfort zone is a good thing, but it should be something that nobody is pressured into. I liked the meaning of this writing piece and believe it is something that everyone can relate to.
Journal #23
The main idea of this piece is that you’ll never know if you can succeed unless you put in the necessary effort and hard work to reach the top. I thought this was a really good short chapter because it highlights how, even when the people he knew didn’t always give him attention or support, he kept pushing forward and worked his way up to success. One line I highlighted from Brian Grazer was “They say life is tough enough. But I guess I like to make things difficult on myself, because I do that all the time. Every day. On purpose. That’s because I believe in disrupting my comfort zone.” Brian recognizes how hard life is already but he initially pushes himself even harder everyday. He chose to step out of his comfort zone because he believes that real growth and improvement come from facing discomfort and taking on new challenges. I didn’t find anything in this chapter that I disagreed with. I completely agree that, as humans, we have the ability to push beyond our limits in order to learn and grow. Stepping outside of your comfort zone demonstrates your willingness to improve and become a better version of yourself.
The big idea in Disrupting my comfort zone by Brian Glazer is all about going out of your comfort zone and doing things you may not always do even if you know you may not be the best. This piece talked about challenging yourself and always pushing to do what you may not alway be used to.
I really liked the second paragraph on page 92 but more specifically “if you are not growing, you’re dying.” I really like this quote/ way of thinking because if you always just live life in your own little bubble and you don’t go out to try new things or push your comfort zone then you really never will grow as a person and find out new things you like or new things about yourself in general.
I did not find anything in this piece I disagree with. I think it is important that people go out of their comfort zones a bit and it really is so important to try new things.
The whole point of Brian Glazer’s Disrupting My Comfort Zone was to tell his story about how he is always trying to get out of his comfort zone. He finds that if you are not challenging yourself with difficult situations then you aren’t able to grow. One ideal that I liked in this piece is, “…if you’re not growing, you’re dying.” (Glazer, 92). I really like this statement because I too agree with him. I believe that the whole point of life is to be constantly growing as a person both mentally, socially, and physically. It is very important to be constantly trying to improve yourself and understand yourself. Growth is essential to human life. There wasn’t really anything in this piece that I didn’t understand or disagree with. I really like the concept of this belief and I find myself relating to it heavily.
The big idea of this piece, written by Brian Grazer, is his belief that true growth can only occur in life when we are outside of the things we feel comfortable doing. It is easy to fall into a routine and not push ourselves to do the things that make us feel nervous, but the author states that is precisely what we need to do: to take on the challenges that fear holds us back from. In the reading, one part I especially liked was when the author quoted a biologist that he had once met, who told him, “if you’re not growing, you’re dying”. While this does not mean dying in a literal sense, I think that it implies that if we as people never change or grow from our experiences, then we are missing out on all of life’s great potentials, and, I guess, then in that way, we are dying because we are never truly living. This quote really applies to my life because I am a person who is big on routine and doing much of the same things I have always done, not necessarily because it’s what I want to do, but because I know it is safe and predictable. But as I have started going to college, I have definitely experienced going outside of my comfort zone more times than I can count, and it has already led to so much personal growth because I have accomplished many things I never could have imagined doing even a few months ago. In the reading, there weren’t really any quotes I disagreed with outright; a majority of what he brought up on the importance of going outside of your comfort zone were things that I agreed with too.
I liked this piece of writing because it made me think. I perceived it as simply when you get out and do things that you don’t like when you grow as a person. I have done many things I don’t like, and I feel that it is true sometimes. At the very least you had an experience. The part I circled was right after the introduction where he made his main point. I liked this because it is clear and specific. I also liked the way he used punctuation to emphasize the point he was trying to get across. The part that I disagreed with was the quote from a biologist: “If you’re not growing, you’re dying”. I think you can also just enjoy yourself, instead of either growing or dying, but I understand what it is supposed to mean.
I really loved the ideals in Disrupting my Comfort zone by Brian Grazer. The concept that you never stop growing and learning is one I have myself. Experiencing everything you can is so important because we only live once. Challenging your mind keeps your mind sharp and active and doing this all throughout your life is really beneficial. I love a good challenge and always want to learn more. One of my goals is to travel to each continent and learn as much as possible in each country as possible. Life is hard but having a diverse range of experiences helps you have a different perspective on problems. I really loved the ideas in this piece as my family shares similar ideals on experiencing everything possible.
Brian Grazer’s piece “Disrupting My Comfort Zone” is all about how going out of the familiar can positively impact your life. He describes all of the ways he has pushed himself out of his comfort zone, and how he continues to do so, and how it has shaped him into the director he is today. I really like when he talks about how he steps outside of his comfort zone because he wants to continuously grow, and how a biologist once told him that if you aren’t growing, you’re dying. I believe that this is such a good mentality for life. Humans are not meant to be stagnant in what and who we are, so attempting to always grow makes sense to me. I dislike when he talks about meeting the father of the hydrogen bomb, Edward Teller. He mentions begging and pleading to meet with this person, and when Edward finally did, Edward insulted Brian and ridiculed him. Brian then says that it wasn’t that interesting to meet with him anyways. I would be pretty annoyed if someone kept trying to disrupt my peace with constant phone calls and messages about meeting with me, especially if they couldn’t take no for an answer.
This piece was about growing through exploring the bounds of your comfort zone. Specifically, it’s about going out of your way to get out of your comfort zone. The author gives lots of his personal experience with how he’s gone out of his comfort zone. He writes about how he put himself in some very uncomfortable situations, but he’s thankful he did because he learned from them, and that was the point. My favorite part is when the author writes, “They say life is tough enough. But I guess I like to make things difficult on myself, because I do that all the time. Every day. On purpose. That’s because I believe in disrupting my comfort zone.” I love this! I absolutely live by this. I, too, put myself in uncomfortable situations on purpose, because I’ve found where I learn the most and when I have the most fun. I wouldn’t say there was a specific line that I didn’t like, but I would say that after reading the title, I was hoping for more from this piece. It felt a little lackluster, which surprises me! I don’t not like it, but I was hoping for more oomph. It felt somewhat surface level. However, I did enjoy it overall, and I completely agree with the message.
Disrupting My Comfort Zone by Brian Glazer’s
What is it? What’s the big idea in this piece?
Glazer argues that disrupting your comfort zone and exploring new ideas turns into growth. He believes that by seeking new and sometimes uncomfortable experiences, people can expand their horizons and find things that they enjoy. Grazer sees being uncomfortable as a necessary part of life and it teaches people how to learn and recognize personal development.
See if you can locate 1 idea/concept or line in the essay and circle it. Explain why you like what you circled.
“…if you’re not growing, you’re dying.”
When you avoid change or things that are outside of your comfort zone it leads to a closed mindset. Growth is essential for feeling alive and being engaged with the world and all of the opportunities it has to offer you.
See if you can locate 1 idea that confuses you or you disagree with. Explain as best you can what confuses you or why you disagree with what you circled.
Although I agree that stepping outside your comfort zone leads to growth and personal development, I can also see why people would disagree with Grazer on this idea. Many people find that a routine and stability can also lead to happiness. These people may also feel that too much disruption or discomfort can do more harm than good.
The big idea in Disrupting My Comfort Zone by Brian Grazer is that stepping outside familiar routines can lead to unexpected connection, personal growth and a deeper understanding of others and yourself. One thing I liked was how the author Grazer used his presence as a way to challenge his own assumptions. It showed that discomfort can push someone to become more open minded which made the message feel honest and that much more relatable. Something that I didn’t like was that certain moment in the piece felt rushed over or under explained making it harder to fully understand his feelings in those scenes. Despite that the piece effectively highlights how small disruptions and stepping out of your comfort zone can create meaning fun change in your life, but sometimes that can do more harm than good it just depends on what kind of risk you do or how you are stepping out of your comfort zone.