The comfort we feel when we do what is expected keeps us from developing the skills we need to face uncertainty.

The more comfort the less courage there is.

Comfort is the enemy of progress

We can choose courage or we can choose comfort, but we can’t have both. Not at the same time.

We can choose courage or we can choose comfort, but we can't have both. Not at the same time.

Under the new conditions of perfect comfort and security, that restless energy, that with us is strength, would become weakness.

Comfort can be dangerous. Comfort provides a floor but also a ceiling.

Comfort makes cowards of us all.

choose courage over comfort

Much of aging comes from a misunderstanding of the effect of comfort.

Practice the art of small daily discomforts. Modern life is optimized for convenience and comfort. Your food can be delivered straight to your door. Your car seats can be heated. Your favorite show is available at the press of a button.

We all enjoy convenience and comfort, myself included. But our bodies and souls yearn for challenge. We want to be stretched. A deeper satisfaction awaits after pushing yourself to learn a challenging concept or complete a humbling workout or have an important but difficult conversation.

Should the whole day feel difficult? No, I don't think that's necessary. But a good day — a meaningful and fulfilling day — requires small moments of discomfort. Growth demands discomfort. We need something to push against to learn how strong we can become.

Those who don't love themselves as they are rarely love life as it is either. Most people have come to prefer certain of life's experiences and deny and reject others, unaware of the value of the hidden things that may come wrapped in plain or even ugly paper. In avoiding all pain and seeking comfort at all cost, we may be left without intimacy or compassion; in rejecting change and risk, we often cheat ourselves of the quest; in denying our suffering, we may never know our strength or our greatness.

It is natural, even instinctive to prefer comfort to pain, the familiar to the unknown. But sometimes our instincts are not wise. Life usually offers us far more than our biases and preferences will allow us to have. Beyond comfort lie grace, mystery, and adventure. We may need to let go of our beliefs and ideas about life in order to have life.

There’s a certain comfort that comes with knowing how you fit in the world. Anything that shakes up that comfort — even if it could potentially make your life better — is inherently scary.

"Yes, that's the bore of comfort," said Lord Warburton. "We only know when we're uncomfortable."