Link’s in the comfort Zone.
Just about every story starts the same way. The hero of our story is sitting around in their comfort zone, pinning away for an adventure. Stuck in their old ways. Wanting something more out of life. Wanting to swim in another direction.
Link from the Legend of Zelda, usually starts out in bed. He is awakened by some chickens and given a sword and away he goes. James Bond is on a train chasing a bad guy and is summoned to the office where Q or S or someone else with an important letter tells him he has to go be dangerous in another country. Harry Potter is almost killed by the world’s most dangerous wizard and is stuck in his Uncle’s house for 11 years.
They all yearn for adventure. The true sign of a hero is they get outside their comfort zone. Go be a real man or woman. Find the missing piece in their lives. They almost get themselves killed many times, or lose all that they had. Or find out some mystery about themselves that they had never known. This adventure stretches the hero, makes them work, makes them stronger.
They get their happy ending. They find the lost treasure. They get the girl or boy. They learn that they were stronger than they thought they could be. They learned to love, or laugh or cry. They brought down the villain, or the empire, or the crime in Gotham.
We are all inspired and leave the theater, book, the TV inspired to do better. So we try to leave our comfort zone for a little bit. What they always forget to tell us is what happens after the happy ending. You know what happens. You just don’t want to admit it.
THEY RETURN TO THEIR COMFORT ZONE.
Harry Potter chilling in the comfort zone.
They eventually have to go back to sleep. They eventually have to eat some food. They eventually have to get married, raise kids, get a job, and watch TV.
People have this crazy perception that we are supposed to work so hard to leave our comfort zone, that it is such a horrible place. It’s not. Just look at the origins of the word. It is comfortable. It is a zone. There is probably an invisible, impenetrable forcefield all around you when you are there. Is that really so bad?
The fact of the matter is that no matter who you are, no matter how adventurous you are, no matter how many days you go without eating food, you are coming back to the zone. Fight it all you want, you want the zone. You need the zone. You can’t live on adrenaline forever. Eventually, you are coming home from work. After your marathon, you are going to come home and sit on the couch. It is a magnet.
So stop fighting the comfort zone. Come sit on the couch. Come watch some TV. Go to your job every day. Make some money. Learn to love the zone as much as I do.
Just remember even Link returns to his bed. And James Bond is probably at home playing some 007 on his couch waiting for his next assignment.
ARRRGGGGHHHHH
Bitter Comfort Zoner Ben
Ben's Bitter Blog 
I agree. I detest the cliche about stepping out of my comfort zone to get more out of life. At work, the performance review includes developmental goals with questions about what I want to accomplish this year. Can’t I just stay in my warm and fuzzy place?
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The warm and fuzzy is where we should all be. Whenever we step out of our comfort zone, that is where bitterness lies.
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Do you think Bond sits on his couch and plays N64 Golden Eye when he’s off duty? I kinda hope he does….
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That would be cool. Perhaps he should start a Twitch channel so we can all watch him do that.
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I worked on some UFC subtitles recently and one fighter actually does that.
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What do you mean you worked on UFC subtitles? Are you doing voice acting work?
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No, but I am trying to get into that.
For about a year, I’ve been working at a company that specializes in software that inserts subtitles into various media content. UFC is one of our clients and I do quality control for the subtitles they order from us.
I fell into this job out of luck and it’s turning out to be more interesting than you’d think.
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Man how do I get a job like that? I’ve been trying for months to get a good job, and I feel like I need to just fall into one instead.
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Haha! Sometimes the whole going where the wind takes you thing works out. I do feel very lucky to have gotten this job. I was temping before this and I was unemployed for a year, so I do know what it feels like to be frustrated about job prospects.
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I’ve been unemployed like this before for 6 months and it is miserable. You start wondering what is real and what isn’t. Anyways, congrats on your so interesting job. I wish I could work there.
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Yeah, I remember how that felt. I hope you find something soon and thanks!
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I finally got employed, but it is nowhere near as good a job as you have.
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Hmmm, I just though that maybe you could do quality control/testing for video games. That’s probably something you could do remotely. It might not pay too well, but it could be a fun temporary gig for you.
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I have looked into it, and you’re right it doesn’t pay much, and I have a family, etc, but I had a friend that just started out testing at Nintendo, and he is now working for Retro, the people that made Metroid Prime and the Donkey Kong games.
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I never protested against comfort zone. Feels comfy there in.
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Yeah, nor should anyone protest. Why would anyone want to leave a comfy blanket.
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It is exactly as you say, Ben. You may run that marathon, bike in the Tour de France but once you are finished, you are coming to the comfort zone. Unfortunately, you will be dead but you can still manage to crawl into your bed or onto the couch.
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I would rather watch these weirdos do their stupid things that do them myself. Who has time for a Tour De France, when I could be doing the Tour De Pizza.
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Tour De Pizza probably has more benefits.
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Namely the pizza and the way that it makes you want to sit on the couch to eat it.
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Right. Because just eating it at a table seems weird.
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Yeah, who eats food at a table. That would require manners, which I really don’t have the time for.
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Does anyone?
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Yeah, people that eat at table’s are probably old and have nothing better to do.
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Too true. Superhero stardom and risky adventures are overrated. Why trek to the edge of the Earth when I can order a pizza and have it delivered in 15 minutes? These adrenaline-junkie-superhero types might look down on us couch-bound folks, but who needs endless adventure? That’s what they invented binge-watching for.
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Exactly. Why risk life and happiness, so you can possibly become a better person, when you could watch them on TV and maybe become a better person anyways.
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Hear, Hear, sir! Hear, Hear!!
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Ellen. Thanks for commenting on my blog every once in a while. So, looking forward to tomorrow?
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It’s about time someone said it. The comfort zone rocks! I mean yes, it’s cool to try something new once in a while, to relieve boredom or stretch one’s limits or whatever. But let’s face it – a comfortable, content life is nearly always the goal.
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Exactly. People do tend to get outside the zone for a little bit, but let’s be honest. Most of them go right back to the comfort zone pretty quickly. And no one can constantly live outside the zone, or that outside becomes the new inside.
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The outside becomes the new inside… Wow, that was deep. Like, Mariana Trench deep. :O
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I don’t know where the Mariana Trench is. Is that the lake thing on the moon?
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I don’t know, could be. Or maybe it’s a stylish jacket. Or maybe just this thing:https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariana_Trench . 😉
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Oh yeah, that thing. Now I remember. But maybe it should be the name of the jacket.
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Resistance is futile…
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