Embracing Uncomfortability

I can't believe it's been more than 4 years since I quit my job and gave up my 9 to 5 life.

I've had many unbelievable life experiences since then. I've also had a lot of difficult experiences, and been through times of adversity and hardship. But looking back, it's been those darkest and most difficult of times that I have grown the most from, that have transformed me into the person I am today.

To climb a mountain you have to get uncomfortable

Salkantay, an equally grinding and rewarding 6 day trek to Machu Picchu - Peru, 2017

Two skills I have developed since walking the path of the wanderer is resilience and toughness.

These are perhaps the two most valuable life skills or qualities I have learned - ones I would never have had a chance to develop if I had not given up the 9 to 5 lifestyle. That's because office life is, in a word, comfortable.

Our modern society idealizes a comfortable life, one of minimal physical hardship, material excess, ultimate convenience and short term gratification. I did, for a time, enjoy this comfortable life. Years ago though I had a growing suspicion that this comfort was a trap that bred contentment and apathy, and was a barrier to achieving real and fulfilling happiness. My instincts also told me that a comfortable life insidiously leads society down a road to chronic stress and chronic disease.

But I didn't know this through experience yet - I only had an instinct about it. So I decided to stop letting comfort stop me from chasing this happiness. I started by quitting my job. And, since then, I put myself in countless uncomfortable experiences, and learned to embrace this feeling.

Exhausted but satisfied at having finished one of the toughest hikes in my life

My legs were pretty beat up from several stumbles and falls - no pain no gain

I applied this lesson at first on a small scale - in order to get to the top of a mountain, I had to engage in the uncomfortable task of walking up a steep, uneven slope with a heavy backpack. At first I got easily frustrated with muscle pains, hunger pains, and environmental conditions.

But I slowly learned to embrace the uncomfortability of it all, and with each hike, I noticed myself embracing the pain, my resilience growing. Over the years I've done a lot more long hikes and treks, and spent lots of time camping in the wilderness. Mosquitoes, for the most part, no longer bother me; fatigue a minor annoyance rather than a serious barrier.

Besides hiking and nature, I've extrapolated this lesson to other areas of my life. I've taken on a number of odd jobs, most requiring physical labour. I've engaged in gardening, warehouse work, delivering food by bicycle, carpentry and cherry picking.

Those first jobs I worked since quitting my job, I remember getting frustrated and fatigued easily, taking many breaks. I remember some of my bosses and homestay hosts getting frustrated with me for carrying out my tasks meekly and clumsily. But over time I learned to stop complaining and power through my tasks. I learned that my body was capable of much more than I thought, and I pushed my body grow into its natural potential. And though it "suffered" and was pushed to its limit, it felt activating and ultimately more fulfilling to push my body in this way.

My first job after quitting my office job? Picking cherries - summer 2014. A humbling experience - I was terrible at it.

Picking morel mushrooms in the Yukon for 1 month during summer 2016

Working as a carpenter, summer 2017 - a physically demanding job, but one that taught me toughness

Finally, through low budget traveling, through hitchhiking, dumpster diving, wild camping and Couchsurfing, I discovered a more fulfilling way to enjoy my travels without the expected comforts.

Since quitting my 9 to 5 job, in many aspects of my life, whether it be going out into nature, work, or travel, I've learned to embrace uncomfortability in order to reap rewarding life experiences and to learn and ultimately become a better person from them.

Embracing uncomfortability goes hand in hand with embracing challenge - and challenging myself is the only way to learn and grow. Embracing uncomfortability has become so ingrained within me that I often find myself avoiding taking shortcuts, preferring the longer, harder way instead. I also become hyper-aware when I get too comfortable, because I notice that I get bored easily and stop learning.

In the end it's all about finding a balance. So while I do beat myself up for spending too much time connected to social media, I make sure to spend more time connecting with nature. While I've rarely showered this summer, I've scrubbed myself down in plenty of lakes and rivers! While I occasionally feast and be merry, I can also tolerate periods of fasting. And while I can tolerate a bit of small talk, I prefer having challenging but open and honest conversations.

Skinny dipping in a cold glacial lake, a practice of overcoming the discomfort to activate the human body

Meditating involves the uncomfortable task of sitting erect and concentrating - with positive results!

I resonate with the Buddhist lesson that suffering is a part of life. When you choose a path of suffering in order to achieve a higher goal, whether that be to climb a mountain or learn a skill such as an instrument, the result is a rewarding outcome which makes the suffering worth it. And when suffering comes when you don't expect it, you can approach that adversity in one of two ways: you can lean into it, overcome it and grow as a person, becoming tougher and more resilient; or you can cower or run away in fear.

I've learned to lean into it and grow tougher and more resilient. I've learned to embrace adversity and tension as an opportunity to grow and become a better person. Because life is not meant to be easy. Since thinking this way I've addressed tension in my relationships, and have come through tough times with a newfound self confidence and peace of mind that no amount of money can buy.

Sometimes I wonder what my life would have been like if I stuck to my office job, and if every step on my life journey was smooth and easy. There's no way of knowing how life will turn out. Some people never encounter significant adversity throughout their lives - that's pretty fortunate. But I know many who have built safe lives for themselves, minimized risk, and yet still encountered unexpected adversity. If I decided to stay in my 9 to 5 bubble, I know I would have crumbled under unexpected adversity.

What's your resilience in the face of unexpected adversity? What's your balance between sinking into comfortability and embracing uncomfortability?