10/09/2026
A little to an evening that reminded me how stretching our comfort zone can look different every day.
Sometimes it's taking a huge leap of faith despite feeling scared. Other times, apparently, it's sitting in a room full of Rugby Union people when you know absolutely nothing about Rugby. 😂
Recently, I attended an event at the showroom of my dear friend Richard Bowman in the city. Most of the room came from the world of Rugby Union and, as you can imagine, coming from Colombia (and not following sports at all :P), I had very little idea about any of it.
Yet, off I went.
Following my friend Shiana Tyler, I sat right at the front and listened to former Wallaby Richard Harry and legendary rugby commentator Gordon Bray AM talk about their lives, careers, the game and everything in between.
People started asking questions.
I honestly understood very little. 😂
However, me being me, with a journalist past that sometimes makes me very curious, and with my fascination with why people behave the way they do, I had to ask one too.
It felt a little odd because my question had nothing to do with Rugby and, at the same time, everything to do with it.
So I raised my hand and asked:
“From the perspective of an observer and a player, what makes a great team?”
Their answers, in short, were the quality of the leadership and the ability to become part of something rather than operating only as an individual. To work together towards a common goal and with a common purpose.
And suddenly, I was in familiar territory. 😂
Because that's not only Rugby.
It applies to business, leadership, relationships, communities... to being human.
But beyond their answers, something else stayed with me.
Asking that question stretched me.
I could have stayed quiet and decided I didn't know enough about Rugby to add anything valuable to the conversation.
Instead, I brought my own perspective into the room.
And I walked away thinking...
You don't need to know everything about the room to bring something valuable into it.
Perhaps that's part of what stretching our comfort zone gives us.
Not proof that we're fearless, but little pieces of evidence that we can enter the unfamiliar, feel the discomfort, and still be ourselves within it.
Maybe that's how Emotional Fitness is built too.
Not always through enormous leaps.
Sometimes, simply...
one raised hand at a time. 💗