Sometimes, we end up feeling just a little bit out of our depth.

I remember an old friend of mine found herself literally whisked away to a situation she was not familiar with. Outside of her usual surroundings, the first thing she longed for was something familiar and reassuring, for her this was a really good cup of tea!

It’s a situation many of us find ourselves in at some point. It could be through starting a new job, being at a party where you don’t really “know” anyone else or finding yourself in a situation where you’re unsure of the correct etiquette. During those moments, the urge for something recognisable can be overwhelming. How we face up to and deal with those situations can make all the difference. Some people will do all they can to simply avoid them.

How many people do you know that have stayed in a job you know they aren’t happy in, because it’s easier than trying something new? Do you turn down party invitations because you only know the host but the thought of small talk with strangers leaves you cold?

In today’s ever changing world, new experiences are something that we can rarely escape altogether; even if you don’t actively go seeking them. It’s likely that something you weren’t expecting isn’t going to be too far off. So it’s better to try to embrace it, rather than run when a new opportunity presents itself.

You suddenly realise that your usual comfort zone is about to be blown wide open and you are faced with the age old choice of fight or flight? Choosing the latter might seem the safe option, but where does it get you? If you back away from new experiences, how will you ever find out which ones you’d actually enjoy? There also remains the possibility that you’ll even regret not having tried something sooner!

Let’s not fool ourselves in to thinking that things will always go smoothly. Often things may not turn out the way you might have hoped. Yet if you approach things with an open mind, if you are simply ready to learn through having experienced something then you are moving in the right direction. Perhaps that’s the biggest challenge – not simply to be dragged through life resisting change but to glide through life adapting and learning from the experiences as you go.

Sometimes, when you’re out of your depth, you just need to take a “time out,” to re-focus your thoughts and face the challenge. Like my friend, when facing up to the fact that things really weren’t how they seemed, all she really wanted was a good cup of tea. Sadly, a cuppa was not forthcoming. However, the thought of something familiar kept her going.