On January 2nd, 2018, I stepped out of my comfort zone and never looked back. I was given an ultimatum — to relocate to Phoenix or Dallas or I would lose my job. I had always wanted to move from my small town, but never had the courage to actually do it. I owned a house and was extremely close to my family, but most importantly I had no idea if I could actually move away from something so familiar.
I had only been to Arizona once to visit my grandfather in Surprise. He was 90 at the time, and if you’ve heard of Surprise, then it’s no surprise there are a lot of elderly people. It’s the happenin’ place to live, and “PeePaw” always said the air was better. This was literally the only impression I had of Arizona. So, I did what any girl would do: I hopped on Pinterest and looked up Phoenix.
I had some work in Dallas and I was not a fan. I’m passionate about the outdoors, and Dallas made me think of a concrete jungle. No offense to the Dallas folks — it just wasn’t for me. So, I knew my options would be to either leave my job and stay in Bristol, or head to the desert.
I decided to sign the contract for Phoenix. To give you a glimpse into how fast this transition was, I signed the contract in December, flew to Los Angeles for a company Christmas party, then flew to Phoenix to begin working and look for an apartment. I only had three days to find a place; Holy Moly, was that crazy! Thank God for my mom, who flew out and helped me narrow it down between my final two choices. I came back to Tennessee, stuck a For Sale sign in my yard, packed up a U-Haul with everything that would fit in my new one-bedroom apartment, and drove across the country two days after Christmas.
I moved into my new apartment on January 2nd. My brother stayed with me the first night. We walked to a coffee shop for breakfast the next morning, and I thought it was the coolest thing in the world to be able to walk to get food. I felt so small walking around downtown Phoenix. Coming from a small town, it was a huge culture shock, and the fact that I didn’t know anyone walking down the street was foreign to me.
I kind of panicked when my family left me. They’re just finding that out now as they’re reading this — sorry, guys. But, it’s the truth. I didn’t know a soul, I was living downtown in this massive city and I had no idea what to do. I’ve never met a stranger, but trying to make friends when you’re older is so freaking hard. I remember facetiming my best friend Ashton and sitting on my patio, just crying. I was so scared and second-guessing my decision, but she basically said, “Get up and go outside.”
I had daydreamed of moving since I was younger, and here I was in this new place, crying in my apartment because I was scared to go outside and make new friends! What the heck?! So, I walked outside and literally started introducing myself to people. I was making friends in coffee shops, while walking the dog, and even in the elevator of my apartment complex, too. Someone’s gotta break up that awkward silence, right? The apartment complex I lived in was INCREDIBLE — the management company made it incredible (shout out to Alliance). They hosted events and that’s how I made my friends. Here I am, two years later, and those folks are still my good friends.
It’s incredible what happens when you step out of your comfort zone. Even a simple hello to a stranger can change your whole perspective on a place.
I stepped so far out of my comfort zone and now I’m thriving in Arizona. This is my home now. I’m surrounded by incredible people and places to visit, and it’s all because I took that big leap to move and the small leap to make friends. Steps out of your comfort zone are a must; without those steps, how would you grow, experience new things, or meet that cute guy at the bar? Get out there and take that step. You never know where it might take you.
