Patience is an Action

It’s Tuesday early in the morning, and I am attending a spiritual meeting via Zoom with a group of friends. I love participating in these sessions whenever possible because they remind me of what is most important in life … faith and family.

In the second half of the meeting, one Brother shares a thought that resonates with me and is something I hope has a lasting impact on the way I live my life.

He said, “You know … after many years on this earth and many ups-and-downs, I’ve learned that patience is an action.”

He continues with a very impactful share that accentuates the value of patience.

Do More in Less Time

Over the course of the past 30 years, I have listened to hundreds of self-development books, including authors like Dale Carnegie, Brian Tracy, Tony Robbins, Stephen Covey, and Napoleon Hill.

David Allen writes about “Getting Things Done” and Laura Vanderkam reinforces the value of time management in her book, “168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think.”

My point here is that nearly everyone is telling us how much more we should get done per day, and we are falling short of expectations when our work to-do list has failed to be cleared by the time we leave our office space.

The Challenge

In my younger years, I measured success in life by cash flow. If more money came into the bank account and less went out, I was doing well. Of course, this presents a never-ending challenge because my goal was to constantly increase the deposits that hit the bank.

I quickly realized that the more money I generated, the more I wanted to spend.

We needed to remodel the house, purchase a new car, travel on an exotic vacation, and so on.

I’m sure you get the picture.

Back to Patience

Recently, I stood in front of an MBA class, and I shared how much my perspective in life has changed in the last five years. It’s true that I am still as eager to excel in my profession, and I don’t foresee this perspective changing anytime soon.

However, one thing that has notably changed is I am no longer willing to put my faith and family on the backburner.

Instead, even though work and other activities will still be part of my life, they will encompass a smaller piece of the pie. They are valuable but no longer the top priority.

I sometimes ponder the many things that have happened in my life, and I think about many challenges I have encountered. During this time of reflection, I am also thankful for all the blessings that have come my way.

I’ve heard of the value of patience many times over my lifetime.

I get it.

However, the share delivered by this friend during an early morning spiritual meeting had a profound impact on how I will practice patience.

For me, the best course of action is to prioritize what really matters in my life, and I know that the monetary stuff will be lower on the list.

Homework Inquiry

During the next week, here’s your homework inquiry: How will you slow down and enjoy life?