One of the things I've heard over and over from certain faculty members is to 'get out of your comfort zone'. This has always bugged me and continues to do so because the assumption made by these people is that I/you/we are in fact 'in a comfort zone' or have been doing the same thing artistically over and over and over for years. We have never ever tried anything new. How would any of these people actually know what our respective comfort zones are? What also makes this cliche 'get out of your comfort zone' infuriating is that often these same faculty members have either been doing the same thing themselves for years or recommend other artists who have (Cindy Sherman, The Becher's etc).
They also seem to think that by simply using a new film or shooting color/b&w instead of what you're currently doing is the answer. For me, getting out of the so-called comfort zone is to do a different kind of photography than what you normally do. Not just change film and/or move to color but do something that makes you actually look at something new or have a different approach visually. If you continue to shoot the same kinds of things but just in black and white instead of color (or vice versa) how does that really change anything? You simply become proficient with another technique while doing the very same thing.
Right now I'm in the early stages of something that has made me as uncomfortable as I've ever been. I'm photographing total strangers on the street in the city where I live. That alone wouldn't be too difficult except in my case most of these people are new immigrants and many of them don't speak English or are initially skeptical as to why this white guy wants to take their photograph. So each time I want to take someone's portrait I have to ask their permission and explain why I'm doing what I'm doing. Every single time. It takes all my nerve to sometimes just leave the house, let alone approach total strangers. But, when I get permission and when these portraits work out well, it's an exhilarating experience. Worth every rejection and every uncomfortable moment along the way.