Day 46 (Forty-six) of 365 days
Remaining calm and not becoming annoyed when dealing with problems or difficult people. This could mean paying attention to something for a long time without becoming bored or losing interest. It’s often exhibited behind closed doors, not on a public stage: A student waiting to graduate out of school, a footballer waiting for his injury to heal. In public, it’s the impatient ones who grab all our attentions; drivers honking in traffic, grumbling customers in alow-moving lines.
Patience is essential to daily life - and might be key to a happy one. Having patience means being able to wait calmly in the face of frustration or adversity, so anywhere there's frustration or adversity - i.e nearly everywhere - we have the opportunity to practice it. At school with our mates, at work with colleagues, at the grocery store with half of our city's population. Patience can make the difference between annoyance and equanimity, between worry and tranquility.
Imagine for instance, that you're waiting for someone to finish compiling a report you need to submit. You're already late, you can feel your body getting tense, and you're starting to get angry. Suddenly, you lose your temper and yell at the person for putting you behind schedule. You can tell that you're shocked and upset by your outburst, but you can't help it. We likely all lose our patience occasionally. But doing so frequently can harm your reputation, damage your relationship, increase stress, or escalate a difficult situation.
When you feel impatient, it's important to get out of this damaging frame of mind as quickly as possible. Try to develop strategies to deal with your impatience as you notice it. Take deep, slow breaths, and count 10. Doing this will slow your heart rate, relax your body, and distance you emotionally from the situation. sometimes you might need a longer count, or to repeat the process several times. Force yourself to slow down. Make yourself speak and move more slowly. It will appear to others as if you're calm - and acting patient often makes you feel more patient.
Patience is a vital quality in the workplace. It can reduce stress and conflict leading to better working relationships, and help you to achieve your long term life and career goals. Many of us struggle with impatience, but once you understand the causes of your impatience, you can develop strategies to prevent or overcome it. These could include attending to your physical well-being by using deep breathing or relaxation techniques, and developing your empathy and emotional intelligence skills.
