On Discomfort, Evasion, & Challenge

Discomfort and evasion are natural responses to our world. Our ancestors, from a single-celled organism up to Mitochondrial Eve, all survived only because they had strong drives to avoid uncomfortable and dangerous situations. But in our modern world, avoiding all discomforts can stunt our growth, or make us seem more fragile than we really are.This is not about “grinding through” difficulty, or hurting ourselves in an effort to be “good”. After accounting for one’s own personal state of abil...