Whilst it was a dull day, the river looking rather muddy from the recent rains, I was very much enjoying my walk.
 
It was all the more special because of the activities on the river. Swans taking off and landing, seagulls swooping down to scavenge any morsel they could find. Elsewhere, anglers were busy fishing – I was speaking with an angler the week before and, at the moment, pike seems to be the catch of the day. I was shown a very fine 6 kg specimen that had just been caught. Apparently, he had caught one that weighed 10 kg a few days before.
 
What caught my attention, though, were some school pupils who were clearly having their first rowing lesson. The teachers keeping close, in case of a capsize I assumed; also, close enough to give instruction and keep a keen eye on what was happening in the boat with feet and posture.
 
I was reminded of the pyramid of competence that is scaled as we develop. There are five levels, the first two are:
 
·      Unconsciously incompetent
·      Consciously incompetent
 
I remember all too well when I was learning to drive a car. From the back seat it always seemed fairly straight forward, so I had little concern before my first lesson – I was unconsciously incompetent. It was only when I was listening to the instructor, and made my first attempt at driving away from the kerb, that I suddenly became consciously incompetent - stalling the engine within a matter of metres!  Over time I did learn to drive and pass my test.
 
So it was with the pupils – the instructions were clear, concise and encouraging, yet there were many mistakes. The teacher calling a pause and explaining a little more; the pupils having another go. More correcting instructions in bite sized amounts – ‘concentrate’, ‘don’t try and talk at the same time’, ‘keep it slow’, ‘bend from the knees’.
 
Soon progress was being made – yet the lesson was short. As good teachers know, a little and often is better than overdoing it. There was a quiet sense of learning and enjoyment in the boat as they headed for the riverbank.
 
At a young age life is about learning new skills, and, as in this case, going through the learning stages. The teacher taking their pupils outside of their ‘comfort zone’ into the ‘stretch zone’. Or better explained in this example as the ‘learning zone’ (which is not as far as the panic zone!).
 
Sadly, as we grow older, the majority of people seldom stray into the learning zone, content in their own ‘comfort zone’. True development only happens in the ‘stretch zone’…or ‘development zone’. If you are a lifelong learner time needs to be invested in the stretch zone on a regular basis – which, in time, increases the size of the comfort zone.
 
Insights Discovery provides a wonderful opportunity to learn about ourselves (and others) and how, by stretching ourselves, we can learn to adapt to connect with other people in a much better way – importantly with authenticity and integrity. Developing conversations that are richer for both parties, whilst holding true to who we are, not attempting to be someone we are not.
 
It takes time, it takes effort, plus some enthusiasm - a little and often goes a long way…as indeed these pupils will discover when they master their oars, the boat, the rowing technique. As they will, with good instruction, persistence and a wish to develop by stretching themselves. Then their comfort zone will increase as their skills develop and increase too – with a solid feeling of well-deserved satisfaction as they look back on what they have achieved.
 
So, a question:
 
When did you stretch yourself recently with new learning so you too can increase the size of your own comfort zone?
 
Or perhaps the sofa was just too comfortable, the TV too addictive, the effort too much…
 
My best wishes,
 
Peter