Have you ever thought about going back in time by 100 or 500 years just to see what it was like? Do you think it would be more or less stressful, or just as stressful but the stressors would be different than they are today? On one hand I feel like the lack of knowledge would make things less stressful, but on the other hand it would be very stressful not having any ability to get real answers like we can get today for so many things thanks to technology and our connected world. There are so many lessons we could learn from people back then, one of the biggest ones they could teach us would be on the topic of patience. I've been thinking a lot about the topic of patience recently, and not just in one area of my life or the world, but in many.
Sometimes success takes patience. Sometimes no matter how "right" you do things, how well you plan, how many resources you have at your disposal, there's just no way of moving things along faster or making someone move faster or working through the questions, challenges and checklist items faster. Sometimes you just have to remember to take deep breaths and take one step at a time at the pace you can move and anyone else you're working with can move. These moments are good reminders that not every part of life needs to speed along all the time, sometimes things meander more than race.
But patience doesn't mean not taking action. Just because you're waiting or moving very slowly doesn't mean you can't be moving forward. When I get stuck in traffic if I don't have someone to talk with I start thinking about my grocery list or blog posts to write or newsletters to write or I start planning out the rest of my day in my head. I may not be going anywhere fast physically, but thinking about these things or talking with someone means I'm still making progress.
And patience doesn't mean that you can't be polite. It may seem strange that I mention this, but I know many people who can recognize when a moment needs some patience yet get so focused on being patient (and getting done with being patient) that they ultimately take away from the potential that came with their initial efforts to be patient, and they start getting pushy or agitated. It's especially hard to be patient when you've been moving really fast and really getting stuff done and now you're slowing down and being patient. Just like cars and planes don't turn on a dime, neither do our brains or bodies (which means we need to be patient with ourselves too in these situations).
In all of this though, the first or second biggest hurdle to cross is accepting that patience can be good. It's really hard for some people to not be doing something every second of the day or not have answers in the next 10 seconds to their question or to stop and listen to their significant other when all they want to do is accomplish the huge list of things they're stressed over or hear someone out even if you know you're right. But it's healthy to be patient throughout the day as well as to do "crazy" things like incorporating quiet time or nap time or learning time into your day. So the next time the topic or opportunity of patience comes up in your life, relationship, career, or day, consider embracing it just as thankfully as you do that first cup of coffee each day and see how your life, relationship, career, success (and stress levels) can benefit from being patient.
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