How do you handle being put into a situation to do something you’ve never done before? Like run an important meeting that has serious consequences? Or give a presentation to a sophisticated audience? Or take on a huge responsibility that you feel unprepared for? It certainly is outside your comfort zone and you may never have considered it if it were up to you.

How you respond to these situations reveal what you’re really made of. If you take them on, they put you on the spot and you HAVE to perform. Will you rise to the occasion and expand your comfort zone?

Here are three examples of what happened to people who took on the situation before them.
1. A manager returned from a vacation and quietly reported that he conquered his fear and jumped out of an airplane. He faced himself and did what he thought was impossible for him. Since then, his demeanor was noticeably different—he was more confident, the things that used to bother him no longer did and he demonstrated a can-do attitude that was absent before.
2. A client was being harassed and dealt with unfairly by the federal government—a gross misuse of power. He struggled to keep his business afloat during the whole ordeal. What was most impressive was how he conducted himself through it all. While not perfect, it was admirable. He didn’t win to his satisfaction, but he was no longer intimidated to take on anyone who opposed him unjustly.
3. A friend faced the birth of his very ill child who should not have lived and endured tremendous difficulties the first few years of life. He developed a sense of confidence that he could take on anything, having survived that ordeal.

What are you made of really? Who do you become when you’re tested? Do you look at difficult situations as unfortunate and unfair circumstances or do you view them as opportunities to find out what you’re made of? Your answer defines you and your career.