A ship is always safe at the shore – Albert Einstein

A beautiful quote by Albert Einstein talking about taking risks and moving out of your comfort zone. A ship is always safe at the shore, but that is not what it is built for – talks about our purpose in life metaphorically. Setting out in the ocean shows risks and getting out of your comfort zone. However, without these risks, we will never know what we are capable of.

A ship is always safe at the shore, but that is not what it is built for

Albert Einstein

The central part of this quote is about getting out of your comfort zone to seize your opportunities. Our comfort zone can sometimes act as a prison and hold us back. Without moving away and taking risks, we will never find out our purpose or capabilities.

A ship is safe at the shore Meaning – Albert Einstein

If we play in our comfort zone, we won’t fail easily. It is safe and we’re just protecting ourselves. When we don’t fail, it helps our ego and manage the feeling of superiority. But what good is this when there’s no real progress in life? Although this means that we will be vulnerable, this vulnerability helps us go beyond our limitations.

I mean, think about our capabilities – what can we achieve and do if we don’t limit ourselves? The limiting reasons will always be there to hold us back. But remember the quote, the ship is always safe at the shore. We might be ok in our safe space. But there comes a time when we need to stretch beyond this comfort zone and go after what we truly desire.

The problems with our comfort zones are:

• There are no challenges, it doesn’t push us to go beyond our limitations.
• Without challenges, we feel lazy and without growth, we sink.
• Risks are the only way to get our rewards, without these risks, there is no growth

A ship is not built to be at the shore

The shore is safe, nothing ever happens there. It is a place where your fears don’t hurt you but this is also not the place to grow. This growth is beyond our fears and challenges.

Going beyond the shore demands courage and strength.

• There is a sense and desire of aspiration, dreams and goals. In addition to this, you have a sense of adventure and magic which keeps opening your eyes to the glorious futures you can conquer.
• On the flip side, there are doubts, questions and challenges. You have a fear which questions about how you navigate through these challenges

Who do you listen to? Your adventurous spirit or the fears?

The answer depends on your experiences and the nature of this challenge. You can at any point decide where you want to stay.

• A lot of wonder and amazement lies outside the comfort zone
• The sea is harsh, but is also wonderful and joyous. You do meet magical creatures along the way and encounter amazing experiences.

References:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein

https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/9810.Albert_Einstein