Are You Letting Comfort Creep Hold You Back?

Are You Letting Comfort Creep Hold You Back?

Lately, I’ve been diving deep into understanding why so many people are feeling stuck, discouraged, and not fully living out their dreams. I kept coming across a concept that hit home: Comfort Creep.
 
What is Comfort Creep? 
 
Comfort Creep is that sneaky process where, little by little, we start avoiding discomfort. We stick to what’s easy, familiar, and safe, unknowingly lowering our standards and holding ourselves back from growth. We might shy away from tough workouts, challenging projects, or difficult conversations—not because we’re incapable, but because we’ve become too comfortable. Over time, this can lead to a life that’s not only unchallenging but also unfulfilling. 
 
Why Does This Matter? 
 
Let’s talk numbers: 
 
  • 95% of diets fail because maintaining long-term lifestyle changes is uncomfortable.
  • 33% of Americans cite fear of failure as the reason they never start their dream business.
  • 92% of New Year’s goals go unachieved because the discomfort of persistence often wins.
  • Only 33% of employees feel actively engaged in their work, with many avoiding the discomfort of taking on new challenges or learning new skills, leading to career stagnation.
  • 70% of employees avoid difficult conversations at work, which can lead to unresolved conflicts and hinder personal and professional growth.
  • 25% of Americans have stayed in an unsatisfying relationship because they fear the discomfort of confronting issues or being alone.
 
These stats show that avoiding discomfort can keep us from reaching our fullest potential, whether it’s in our health, career, or personal growth. We’re all capable of more, but Comfort Creep quietly convinces us to settle for less.
 
So, how do we break free from Comfort Creep? 
 
Here are three powerful steps you can take today: 
 
1. Get Comfortable with Discomfort: Start by embracing small challenges daily.  Push yourself a little harder in your workouts, take on that project you’ve been avoiding, or initiate that tough conversation. The more you practice, the more resilient you become.
 
2. Shift Your Mindset: Reframe discomfort as a sign of growth.  Instead of seeing it as something to avoid, see it as a necessary step towards your goals. Remember, every great achievement was once uncomfortable.
 
3. Get in the Room with Growth-Minded People: Surrounding yourself with people who challenge and expand you is one of the most powerful ways to break free from Comfort Creep.  That’s exactly why I’m inviting you to join us at the Amplify Your Life Growth Summit on September 21st in Bend, Oregon. This is your chance to connect with growth-minded individuals, learn from top leaders, and take actionable steps toward the life you truly want. 
 
(Only 22 seats are left, so grab yours here for only $199: Amplify Your Life Growth Summit)
 
Don’t let Comfort Creep hold you back from the life you’re meant to live.
 

You’re capable of so much more, and it all starts with stepping out of your comfort zone. 

 

Here’s to your growth and greatness,

Carmen

For more, follow The Amplified Life Company @carmenohling on LinkedIn and Instagram 
The Power of Asking Better Questions In Community

The Power of Asking Better Questions In Community

I’m obsessed with asking better questions, specifically self-reflection questions. 

Why?

Because I’ve seen firsthand in my life and the lives of our clients – the power of self-reflection through asking better questions. 

I think seeing the right question at the right time can completely change the trajectory of your life, and I have been a witness to this many times over. 

Yes, they’re that powerful. 

Below are three of my favorite questions we’ve been asking this year within the Amplified Life Company as we are navigating substantial growth: 

  1. What can you do to become 1% better today? 
  2. If you keep your current habits, will your life and career become better or worse?  
  3. What is getting too much attention from you during your day?  What is not getting enough?

When was the last time you had time to think, reflect, and process using high-caliber questions that led to a breakthrough, idea, or growth? 

Watch the below video, where I share the reality of “doing it alone” vs “doing it in collaboration with others” – it’s honestly the cheat code to life and business!! THIS VIDEO 

Are you option 1 or 2 right now in your life and career? 

BE HONEST with yourself here.

For years and years, I ️chose 1.  It was hard, long, isolating, and frustrating, and I often thought, “Why not me, I am doing everything they’re doing!”  I know, so revealing, right, but we’ve all been there – you are not alone!  

Now, look at this:

Last week, surveyed several leaders and entrepreneurs, and they said unanimously that the one thing they were missing was the PEOPLE and COMMUNITY of high performers they know they need to surround themselves with to get to the next level of success and freedom in their life and business….

This is exactly why we are hosting the Amplify Your Life event, and if you are joining us at the AYL Growth Summit next month in Bend, Oregon, we will be asking questions like these and more!  

At AYL, you’ll have the opportunity to shift your perspective, learn, grow, connect, and collaborate at the HIGHEST LEVEL possible!!

Questions?  Email us at hello@carmenohling.com

 

For more, follow The Amplified Life Company @carmenohling on LinkedIn and Instagram 
3 Steps to Help You Check In with Yourself Personally and Professionally

3 Steps to Help You Check In with Yourself Personally and Professionally

 

 

As a leader, it’s important to have boundaries personally and professionally, but if you’re anything like me you might feel guilty enforcing them at times.
A great leader has a healthy, prioritized mix of selfish boundaries and unselfish giving.

You don’t have to always be all things, all the time, to everyone.   Sometimes you pour out your cup for others and sometimes you need to relentlessly refill your cup. 

As you’re reading this what does this moment call for?

How do you know?

It’s a delicate integration of energy, enthusiasm, empathy, and self-awareness, but it’s one you must master if you want to lead effectively without burning out, losing your passion, or becoming resentful.

 

Below are three steps to help you check in with yourself both personally and professionally: 

 

1. Pause and Reflect

Take a moment to pause and ask yourself, “How am I really feeling right now?”

Not the surface-level, autopilot answer you might give in passing, but a deeper check-in. Are you tired, energized, overwhelmed, or languishing?

This simple act of self-awareness can be revealing. If you’re running on empty, it’s a sign that you need to refill your cup. If you’re feeling full, maybe it’s time to pour some of that energy into others.

 
 

2. Assess Your Current Commitments

Look at what’s on your plate. Is it manageable, or are you teetering on the edge of overwhelm? 

This isn’t just about how much you have to do, but how those tasks align with your values and goals.

Are your commitments feeding your growth and well-being, or are they draining you?

If you find that your responsibilities are more of a burden than a blessing, it’s time to reassess and set some boundaries.

 

3. Check Your Energy Exchange

Consider the relationships and activities in your lifeare they reciprocal, or are you constantly giving without receiving? 

healthy energy exchange is key to maintaining your highest character and capacity. If you’re always the one pouring out, eventually, you’ll run dry.

Take stock of where your energy is going and adjust as needed to ensure that you’re not depleting yourself.

 

In these moments of reflection, you’re not just checking your capacity; you’re taking responsibility for your own well-being.

It’s not selfish to put yourself first sometimes—it’s necessary.

When your cup is full, you can give from a place of abundance, and that’s when you’re at your best as a leader.

So, what does this moment call for? Listen to what your body, mind, and spirit are telling you, and honor that.
For more, follow The Amplified Life Company @carmenohling on LinkedIn and Instagram 
What It Takes to Achieve Greatness: Lessons from the Paris 2024 Olympic Silver Medalists

What It Takes to Achieve Greatness: Lessons from the Paris 2024 Olympic Silver Medalists

I was in total awe watching the 2024 Paris Olympics.
 
I was energized and inspired by being able to witness athletes achieve such feats that many said were previously unachievable.
 
This led me to contemplate the high-performance habits we follow and teach at the Amplified Life Company, so we dug in a bit to research some of the best athletes showcasing their skills in Paris.
 
CASE STUDY:
 
Kassidy Cook and Sarah Bacon “Cook-n-Bacon”
 
Paris 2024 Olympic Silver Medalists, Women’s Synchronized Diving
 
To achieve a silver medal in women’s synchronized diving, both Cook and Bacon had to overcome multiple challenges, including devasting injuries that set them back multiple times from achieving their goals.
 
However, they both persisted, but that persistence would not have happened without three things:
  1. The support and encouragement of the right coach and community around them.
  2. The intrinsic drive they both embody is shown through the seemingly small acts repeated daily, which, over time, led to big results.
  3. Being willing to do things differently, to get uncomfortable, to fail and go back to the drawing board and go all in again.
Bacon attended the University of Minnesota as part of the elite diving team.  During her 4 years with the team, she was able to dramatically change her physique. Because of this significant change in her physique, she took her diving to the next level, spinning faster and making dives way easier, with her entries being even cleaner. 
 
This change was thanks to her coach, who sat her down her freshman year and told her that if she wanted to be exceptional at the sport of diving and reach her full potential, she was going to have to change something.  With that advice, Bacon committed to cardio every day, lifting heavy weights and diving three hours a day.  Read that again: she worked 3 hours a day on her craft.
 
When was the last time you spent 3 hours a day on something that you say you’re “going all in on?” 
 
After watching and listening to Cook and Bacon speak and reading multiple interviews, it became extremely apparent that they each hold a deep sense of intrinsic motivation and a drive and determination to do the mundane, small steps required daily to achieve greatness.  They are willing to go for it all, fail, go back to the drawing board, do things differently, and go all in repeatedly.
 
“It’s 90% mental, 10% skill is what I would say. If your mental game isn’t strong in this sport, you’re gonna fall apart and crumble,” Bacon said.
 
“It was that moment when all your hard work comes to fruition. Sometimes that doesn’t always happen. You don’t always get the result you want, and that’s happened to us before,” Cook told USA Diving.
 
“Once we landed in the water, we knew we landed in the water as Olympians and that we were going to Paris. We were just overwhelmed with emotion.”
 
Key in on what Cook told the reporter here, “You don’t always get the results that you want….” 
 
Isn’t that true with just about anything in life?  Unless you’re simply going through the motions of everyday life, cruising by and not ever challenging or stretching yourself.
 
Just watch this video of their dive in the 2024 Olympic Trials that punched their ticket to the Paris Olympics: THIS VIDEO
 

What did you notice? 

 

Their coaches? 

Their family, friends, and other team members that were there cheering them on? 

 

That’s what I noticed right away!  
 
When asked about mental resilience, Cook recently shared this, “It’s been hard mentally,” the Indianapolis native said. 
 
I remember having a conversation with my boyfriend before I decided to go to the Olympics. I just asked him, ‘Is it all worth it? What happens if I come back and end up not making the Olympic team.’ 
 
… And he looked me in the eyes and said, ‘No, you’re going to go back. You’re going to dive, and we’re going to make your dream happen.’ So happy that he talked me through that and pushed me to come back.”
 
I am still in awe.
 
I am next-level inspired, which is the true definition of aspirational!
 
That formula is: Inspiration + Action = Aspirational
 
In closing, the three themes that continued to be presented time and time again that amplified athletes from good to great, from skilled to exceptional were:
  1. Failure is part of the process.
  2. You cannot become an Olympian on your own.
  3. Intrinsic motivation is required to do the mundane, small steps required daily to achieve greatness.
Here’s to discovering greatness in your journey of life and business.
Need some direction, tools or resources on your journey?

Book a Walk + Talk Call with the Amplified Life Team HERE.

Empower Your Team: Transform Engagement with the Amplify Your Life Growth Summit

Empower Your Team: Transform Engagement with the Amplify Your Life Growth Summit

I want to share a story that might resonate with you.
 
Imagine two teams in a bustling office environment. 
 
The first team thrives on personal and professional development opportunities. They attend workshops, engage in growth seminars, and regularly participate in team-building activities. Their energy is palpable, their production levels are high, and they approach challenges with enthusiasm and creativity. 
 
In stark contrast, the second team lacks these opportunities. Without access to continuous learning and development, their engagement plummets. Morale is low, productivity suffers, and their approach to work is often characterized by frustration and stagnation. 
 
This contrast underscores a critical truth: personal and professional development is the cornerstone of an engaged, productive team. That’s why I want to introduce you to an incredible opportunity—the Amplify Your Life Growth Summit (AYL24)
 
Bring Your Team to AYL24! 
Teams that learn together stick together! Professional development opportunities are essential for successful organizations when it comes to engaging employees and driving future growth. Events like AYL24 and The Amplified Life Company Mastermind and Growth Catalyst Programs play a pivotal role in these professional development efforts.
 
Here are a few top reasons you should bring your team: 
 
  • Prepare Your Team for Success: Equip your team with the skills and mindset needed to tackle future challenges with confidence and innovation.
  • Empower and Engage Your High Performers: Foster a culture of continuous improvement and motivation by investing in your top talent.
  • Provide a Unique Team-Building Experience: Strengthen team cohesion through shared learning experiences that inspire collaboration and unity.
  • Save on AYL24 Tickets and ALC Programs: Take advantage of cost-effective professional development solutions that deliver immense value, often more affordable than traditional workplace training sessions.
 
The Amplify Your Life Growth Summit is more than just an event; it’s a transformative experience designed to elevate your team’s potential. By attending AYL24, your team will have access to cutting-edge insights, interactive workshops, and networking opportunities with industry leaders.
 
Plus, the Amplified Life team will work with you to develop a custom plan tailored to your organization’s unique needs – at no extra charge, it’s included with your team tickets!
 
Don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity to invest in your team’s future. Visit AYL24 to learn more and secure your tickets today.

 

Let’s amplify our teams and set the stage for unparalleled growth and success!

 
See you and your team in September,

Carmen + The Amplified Team

P.S. Act now to secure your spot and ensure your team doesn’t miss out on this transformative experience and save $300 per person off the standard ticket price! 

 

STOP TRYING TO DO IT ALL AND BE EVERYTHING TO EVERYONE!

Are you finally ready to let go of doing it all, feeling overwhelmed and not finding joy in your life? I remember the day I said “no more” and  I let it all go!  I’ve created this guide with 3 simple steps for you to get started and find more joy in your everyday life and way less stress!

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