Leaving the Comfort Zone
November 4, 2025
Recently, a group of Seven Hills teachers and parents gathered to watch a recorded presentation by Dr. Lisa Damour.
Lisa is a psychologist, author, parent, educator (and Ohio resident), who presented as part of a series from our accrediting body, ISACS, to help both parents and teachers best support today’s students. During the presentation, she shared a saying that she uses with both her children and her clients that resonated with me:
“Is this uncomfortable, or is it unmanageable?”
Dr. Damour urged parents to observe and allow students to struggle during uncomfortable times, only intervening when a moment became unmanageable. She went on to compare school life — and particularly adolescence — to strength training. Both are designed to help participants grow, which requires pushing ourselves beyond the comfort zone (and sometimes even the learning zone) and into what is often called the zone of proximal development — that golden area where learning and challenge are at their cusps.
In addition to learning foundational skills and important content, school is designed to challenge, to teach important life skills including resiliency and adaptability, to learn to work with and learn from people of different perspectives, and to help students make and learn from mistakes to become successful, independent adults. These growth moments are often uncomfortable. Yet they can also be joyful, exhilarating, and fulfilling.
The Seven Hills Upper School was also privileged to welcome Grammy Award winner Jon Batiste to campus this month. Although these events were unrelated, Mr. Batiste echoed many of the same themes from Dr. Damour: success comes from working hard, taking risks, finding your team, and recognizing that “your own voice is already with you; stop trying to cover it; build eulogy virtues, not resume virtues.”
“Your own voice is already with you; stop trying to cover it; build eulogy virtues, not resume virtues.”
Jon Batiste
In his life and career, Mr. Batiste alluded to many times that were uncomfortable. He also shared some that were unmanageable, and he spoke of how music, persistence, and relationships helped him to persist.
I’m grateful to be part of a community that comes together to support each other when things get unmanageable. Teachers, advisers, counselors, coaches, administrators, students, parents, and others are here to support each other, especially our students. We know our students as learners and individuals, and we are grateful for the trust that is shared.
In the meantime, let’s collectively continue celebrating the uncomfortable moments (and even stressors) that are forming our character and shaping our lives into even better versions of ourselves.
