It's that place of quiet retreat behind clearly identified boundaries. It's that place in our heads and hearts where we feel safe.

The problem can be, however, that all too often we make our comfort zone our mental address - a territory of our own creation in which we choose to live ... a psychological fortress.

That's as potentially dangerous as it is impractical.

Our comfort zone should be a place of occasional retreat, not defeat.

The lessons we need to learn, the growth and progress we need to make are all outside the comfort zone we've created for ourselves.

There are points in our life when we have to stand still and catch our breath.

Accepting that, we must also understand that if we stop growing we start dying.

Our comfort zone can become our prison without us even realising that the change from positive to negative is happening.

The very best version of ourselves that we can possibly be will not be found inside the boundaries of our comfort zone.

The potential is there but the opportunities exist outside.

Real and lasting progress is not made in leaps and bounds. It takes courage and commitment.

Often the best we can muster is a quiet shuffle, one foot in front of the other, with purpose.

And that can be enough.