“Patience is the best remedy for every trouble.”
—Plautus
Urgency might have been the force that led you to success in the past. The urgency of creating actions aimed to win might have been an advantage that helped you stand out in the world.
A sense of urgency may have accelerated your earlier career, yet is it still serving you? You may not have realized that with urgency comes impatience.
And impatience calls forth stress and frustration, which can lead to feelings of overwhelm, restlessness, and lack of motivation. Eventually, you may experience physical symptoms, such as high blood pressure, stomach upset, fatigue, and burnout. Overall, impatience can be detrimental to your well-being.
On the other hand, patience can have beneficial effects. Patience provides a sense of calm and ease in times of adversity. As you practice patience, your experience of stress, anxiety, and overwhelm begins shifting to that of happiness, joy, and relief. This can have a positive impact on your mental, physical, and spiritual well-being.
So, you can navigate your actions with a sense of urgency or a sense of calm—impatience or patience. The cultivation of patience, through the ensuing practices, will aid you on your journey to peace of mind…
1. Teach Others
“If you want something done well, do it yourself” is a proverb that the Type-A person can relate to. Yet, what if, when someone does a task incorrectly, you were to let go of frustration and take action to show them how it’s done?
You would help someone develop a new skill and become more understanding by seeing things from their perspective. Not only could you gain patience by teaching others, you’d also free up your schedule by delegating with confidence that the job will be done properly.
2. Listen
Don’t let your mind’s chatter eclipse the sounds of the present moment. At times you may feel a sense of urgency to take immediate action. The noise in your head is telling you to go, go, go, pushing you, so that you feel annoyed with the story your partner is telling or distracted from what your child is sharing about their day.
Listening to the dialog in your mind creates impatience, taking you away from being fully present and enjoying those you truly care about. Instead, tune in. Let the precious sounds of life fill your ears and your soul. You might even find your calm.
3. Be Flexible
Let go of your high expectations and perfectionism. They can only lead to frustration and annoyance. When you adjust your expectations, imperfection no longer holds you back from enjoying life’s journey. As you become more flexible and accepting, you may find outcomes that are even better than you expected.
4. Push the Pause Button
You might think you need a positive outcome right now! Yet a great way to practice patience is to push the pause button on your desires. Take a walk before dessert, wait a day or two before purchasing the item you want, or practice a mindfulness exercise before jumping into your day. You may find gratification or peace of mind in the delay itself.
5. Be Grateful
There’s always something to be grateful for, especially at times when you feel frustrated and impatient. When you choose to be grateful, you invite calm and ease into your experience. Minor irritations and inconveniences caused by impatience no longer matter.
Speak a positive mantra when you feel impatient, such as, “this moment will pass” or “all is well” and see how quickly impatient thoughts disappear.
Healthy well-being begins with patience, which guides your journey to peace of mind. And peace of mind allows you to feel more joy and ease.
