“The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”― Lao Tzu
We have probably all been given the advice to take it ‘One step at a time’. The great UCLA basketball coach John Wooden often questioned his players ‘If you don’t do it properly the first time, when will you have time to do it over?’ We continuously hear how pacey things these days are and how quickly things change. However, we have to be very careful that we don’t overly hurry towards the important goals. In doing so, we might take short cuts or expect great success will happen quickly.
Things that are meaningful in life normally take time to accomplish. The processes involved of proper planning, trial and error and building capability all require significant development. Journeying sustainably towards important achievements and outcomes in our lives is also an important aspect of achievement. There are two essential skills necessary for our success journey. These can be defined as developing resilience and a growth mindset and seeing failure as opportunities to learn.
So what is patience actually about?
Patience is as much about attitude and our ability to regulate our emotions as it is about behaviour and the actions we put in place to sustain our push forward. Attitude and emotional regulation skills are critically important to ensure we institute good impulse control. Solution focused attitudes that build patience come from our ability to show gratitude towards ourselves. Focus on what you have achieved and the effort put in, not what you still need to complete. In other words, adopt a ‘glass half full’ approach rather than a ‘glass half empty’.
Success is built on a foundation of Diligence (hard work and planning), passion, relationships, teamwork and trust. These blocks for success are only useful if we maintain them at a high level for the duration of our journey to success. That takes patience and stickability. It is important that we enjoy the journey, not just the destination. That is where being passionate about what we do and working with others who are like minded is so critical. This helps us enjoy each day we are pushing forward. It is important to see any hurdles along the road to success as challenges rather than demotivating problems. Using these opportunities to put energy into finding solutions helps us evolve and move forward with passion and ongoing endurance.
How do we implement patience in our daily life?
Celebration of the small steps achieved along our journey of patience is also very important. As noted earlier it is important to stop and reflect upon what we have achieved. This helps us show gratitude to ourselves and others involved in the pursuit with us. We can then knuckle down and continue on our way. It is also important to reflect regularly about ‘why’ we are doing what are are doing, and striving in our pursuits. What are the benefits to ourselves and others? What positive legacies might we leave as we persevere and put great effort into those worthwhile pursuits?
I would like to leave you with these words: NEVER GIVE UP. Change direction, transform yourself and what you are doing or the way you are doing it as part of learning and growth, but always persevere with patience and self-gratitude. Even when you do not realise it, you will be succeeding. If you persevere with patience you become an ‘energy injector’ not an ‘energy vampire’ for yourself and others.
Remember effort is the real foundation behind successful outcomes
