Growth Is Uncomfortable Before It Is Beautiful

We each endure cycles of growth throughout the span of our lives. The beginning of new growth often starts with a seed. There’s something that happens to initiate development, be it personal or professional.

Overtime the seed grows into something larger and we find ourselves expanding. We bloom. Eventually, we grow so much in our current environment that we have to replant ourselves to continue the growth. The cycle looks like this: seed-grow-uproot-replant-settle. Then it repeats itself.

When a potted plant grows too large for the pot it’s in, its roots begin to grow out from the drainage hole on the bottom. The plant is seeking more opportunity for growth as the roots search for more soil and water. It has grown larger than what its current environment can sustain. If it’s not replanted, it’ll stay the same.

Growth continues after it’s been repotted. But there’s a process that the plant, and more specifically ourselves, go through before being settled in a new environment.

The experience of being uprooted is difficult. We have to leave the familiarity of our current circumstance for something that’s unknown. It’s uncomfortable to leave what no longer benefits us, experience a moment of being exposed and vulnerable, and then find courage to begin the process of growth once more.

But damn, the temporary discomfort is well worth the reward. We gain new friendships, we learn exciting things about ourselves, we find joy in places we never anticipated, we discover more of what’s important to us, and we achieve our goals.

There’s no limitation on how much you can flourish. Your personal and professional development is limitless so long as you allow yourself opportunity to grow. The only thing that restraints your potential is the pot you’re planted in. Have you outgrown a phase, a job, a town, a belief, a relationship? Are you seeking something different to become something more?