Patience

I always wanted to be patient. I was taught that patient people are strong and wise; able to meter out their attention, play the long game and reap the benefits.  I’m told, however, by those that work with me that I am not “known for my patience”.

 It’s true.  When I was a kid and was told “I had to be patient and wait”  for something, it almost always meant it was never going to happen - my parents still owe me a skateboard!

 I get impatient when things seem to take too long. To me it’s an indication that there is something wrong and we are either blind to it, or tolerating it without really understanding why.  I also tend to reject goals that are too distant in the future. Instead, I like to break them down into a series of shorter finish-lines that we can celebrate earlier and often.

 I know leaders who say they have benefited from their patience. For me it seems the opposite might be true, I am addicted to finishing things and putting them behind me.  They say that you grow more patient as you mature through life. Despite having the privilege of learning a ton of stuff in the last 20 years, I think I might have actually grown less patient.  I write a lot about focus and communication and clarity; these are the operating principles I value most. Somehow my overall lack of patience should not really fit well with these principles; but for me, it has.

I don’t think a lack of patience needs to lead to hasty decisions or skipped steps. I think of it more as a state of mind that helps me optimize things and remove obstacles in the way.  Of course, this only makes sense if you can prioritize and know what it is you really want or need. This is why we tell kids to patient – because they often seem to need everything they can think of and need it right now (for the avoidance of doubt…I did, in fact, NEED that skateboard).  So when I meet people who present as impatient, I try to see if it’s an important part of their decision-making process that has worked for them; or are they simply and ubiquitously addicted to immediate gratification.

The Sistine Chapel ceiling’s most famous panel, entitled “The Creation of Adam.” Michelangelo created these legendary frescoes by painted non-stop for four years.