The Learning Zone.
This article is part of Finding the Words, a newsletter that delivers practical insights on the day’s issues.
I was in my early 20s, navigating the first years of my professional career, when I remember thinking to myself: I have no idea what I’m doing here.
The pace was fast. The expectations were high. I was being asked to do work I had never done before, surrounded by colleagues who seemed far more fluent in it than I was. And I wasn’t about to admit how lost I felt.
Instead, I smiled and did my best to keep up. I watched others carefully. I asked questions when I could. And slowly, over time, my sense of confusion gave way to clarity. Over time, confidence began to take hold, too.
Back then, I thought my goal was to outgrow that feeling. To become the kind of professional who always knew what to do, what to say, and how to respond.
But now I see it differently.
That uncomfortable space wasn’t a sign I was failing. It was a sign I was growing. And it’s a space I now actively seek out.
Here’s why:
Years after starting my career, I learned there was a name for what I had been experiencing. It's called the Learning Zone, a concept rooted in the work of psychologist Lev Vygotsky and later popularized by educators studying how real development happens.
The Learning Zone sits between two other spaces: the Comfort Zone, where things feel familiar and growth tends to plateau and the Danger Zone, where stress is so high that learning often becomes impossible, because the nervous system is too busy trying to survive.
The Learning Zone is the sweet spot—right at the edge of what we know and where growth happens at its best.
Now, 25 years into my career, I don’t just value and seek out the Learning Zone—I feel a responsibility to help others thrive in it, too.
Because as I've learned, leadership isn’t just about setting the big, bold direction and then expecting others to implement it for you. It's about helping others set the direction, too.
And if we want teams that grow, adapt, and lead in a world that keeps shifting beneath our feet, we can’t simply assign stretch work and hope people figure it out.
We have to lead the stretch.
And we have to create the conditions for that stretch to be successful. Which means paying as much attention to what people are learning as we are to what they're producing.
So what does it actually look like to support someone in their Learning Zone?
It looks like giving someone a stretch assignment AND a safety net, particularly where there might otherwise be assumptions, such as:
“This is new for you, and that’s the point. I think this assignment can be a great way for us to learn and grow together.”
“I don’t expect perfection. I expect progress, and I'm going to be here to support you along the way.”
“Let’s define what success looks like before you start and check in along the way to make sure you're learning while you're doing."
These examples matter because they show how the Learning Zone can be a place where people build confidence that lasts—not because they were told they could do something, but because they were supported while they learned how.
So as you lead through this week and beyond, consider this: Who on your team is ready for a stretch—and what might it look like to journey beside them while they grow?
Because most people don’t need to be pushed harder. They just need to know they’re not alone in the stretch.
This post is part of the Finding The Words column, a series published every Wednesday that delivers a dose of communication insights direct to your inbox. If you like what you read, we hope you’ll subscribe to ensure you receive this each week.
