Connecting the Dots - Patience
How do you become more patient? Take a breath and be grateful for what you have. THAT will empower you into the gift of more patience….
Patience. What a tricky little thing to get a grasp on much less to understand how it even works or is earned. In theory, this seems simple. Just wait for things to develop and “BAM” there they are, just as you wanted.
No way. No freaking way. That is so far from the actuality of earning patience or being patient. Not to even mention that society isn’t really doing us any favors. Amazon prime, movies on demand, door dash/uber eats, and the list goes on. More now than ever we can have the things we want in almost no time.
Remember in bygone years...Let’s go back there for a moment. You had to order something by submitting an order form and a check (what is that?) for the price plus shipping and handling. Then, and only then, could you wait 6-8 weeks for delivery? That was forever, or so it seemed.
Were we more patient then? No, we were not so maybe it isn’t a “society” thing. Maybe it’s a human thing. Humans are so perfectly imperfect yet highly trainable and adaptable. Yes, trainable and adaptable. We can learn, develop, and grow. That means that we CAN learn to be more patient.
I bet you are saying “Duh, why don’t you tell us something actually helpful?”
Is patience really as simple as “Breath in and Breathe out”? No, it is not. It takes practice, repetitions, and losing it to understand how to have it.
The 3 keys that I use to help me balance it out when I have an opportunity:
- Does it make me happy?
- Will it make someone else happy?
- Will it matter tomorrow?
Now, these are not hard and fast rules but they work when it comes to the point where I need to determine how patient I need to be.
What is the best way to learn patience? Start with yourself. Are you willing to be patient with yourself? Allow yourself the room to grow, succeed, win, and lose. When you start to become more patient with yourself, you then will start to develop the skills to be more patient with others.