Proud Dad and comfort zones.

My youngest daughter is performing in the Fremantle Eisteddfod today, singing in three categories and my eldest daughter is competing in the State final of Rotary's Four Way Test Speakers Challenge on Wednesday evening. Win or lose I am very proud of them and most particularly because of their involvement and participation.

The risks these young people take and the effort they put into their activities is both instructive and inspiring. They remind me of Tom Haupt's words which run along these lines: "to always retreat back to or simply stay within one's comfort zone will ultimately see it shrink in size. To take risks and leap beyond and keep doing so is to ever expand our comfort zone." We will achieve more and believe we can achieve more the more we take the risks and push out from it.

Those of us with children know this wisdom well as we live it daily encouraging them to strive and achieve more and more of their potential but most of us adults participate in "do what I say, not do what I do." That is to say we should listen to our own advice, we should learn from own wisdom and we should ever seek to move beyond what is comfortable. What am I doing that right now? Certainly I am comfortable in writing my thoughts, certainly I am even comfortable enough to take the risk of derision and censure but am I prepared to expand the circle? We shall see.

Cheers, Jonathan.