PATIENCE

Have patience

Are you in a hurry to get somewhere? Are you hurting your chances of getting there by being impatient? Are you being patient with your dreams or mistaking passivity for patience? Being patient is a necessity to a life of achievement because it is the nature of things and the law of time that you cannot immediately reap where you have sown. Anything worthwhile takes time to grow and mature. So your dreams too require this time of nurturing and growth. It is during this time, when the fruits of your labor may not be evident, that your patience is most required.

Have patience – don't just wait

There is a proverb that goes “all good things come to those who wait.” It is a well-known saying which holds a lot of truth. But, I have come to learn, it is a saying that is flawed, in that it is incomplete. Waiting alone is not enough. Good things do not come to those who wait. Good things come to those who wait, but who also actively do something about their situation whilst they are waiting. If waiting was all it took to have good things in life everyone could achieve their dreams because waiting is effortless. Good things rarely come effortlessly.

Have patience – passivity is not patience

Passivity is a habit that must never be confused with patience. In this country passivity is one of our biggest weaknesses. This manifests itself not only in personal lives without any real direction and conviction, but also in our politics, and our moral and ethical standards. Patience is not passively waiting for things to change. “That is laziness. But to keep going when the going is hard and slow - that is patience.” So if you are simply being passive and patiently waiting for a brighter tomorrow you need to think twice about your strategy. Patience goes hand in hand with consistent action. It is easy to be patient when you are doing something about your situation because then you are in control and you are able to determine the progress made despite the seeming lack of tangible results.

Have patience – avoid procrastination and fear

Linked to passivity is procrastination and fear. George Jackson said “Patience has its limits. Take it too far, and its cowardice.” This is very true in that quite a few people actually fear doing something and hide in the assumption that they are being patient and simply waiting for the right time to come in order to do something. But, we all know, that procrastination is a thief of time. It should never be confused with being patient.