Are you a patient person? How do you react to a long line at the supermarket checkout, or a traffic jam on your way home from work? In a world where we demand quick service and instant results, minor inconveniences quickly escalate into major stressors. We’re just not willing to wait for anything. Today, on Simple Living Sunday, we’ll take a deep breath and look for ways to improve our patience.
The key to everything is patience. You get the chicken by hatching the egg, not by smashing it.
Arnold H. Glasgow
Three simple pleasures and highlights
Continuing my practice of celebrating the simple things in life, here are three simple pleasures and highlights of the last week.
- We enjoyed a wonderful birthday dinner with my Mum last weekend. After not being able to celebrate her birthday in person last year, it was pure joy to get together.
- Monday was a holiday for us in Ontario. It was sunny and 6 degrees—so there was definitely a feeling that spring might be coming. My husband, daughter and I took advantage of the day off and the sunshine, and went for a walk together in the afternoon.
- In these days of rising inflation, what can you get for $10 USD ($13.29 CDN)? Well, this week I adopted a sea turtle nest in The Philippines. I have been so inspired by the stories of hope and pictures of baby turtles posted by Markus + Micah on their blog. The good feeling I got when I received a picture of my adopted nest was worth way more than $13.29. To learn more about the wonderful work of the Pag-Asa Pawikan Protection and Conservation Center, check out Thank you for helping us make it the Year of the Turtle. (Cuteness alert! When you see the pictures of baby turtles, you might want to adopt a nest too!) Here’s a picture of my nest.
This week’s simple living focus: small steps to improve our patience
Growing up, I remember my parents telling me, “Patience is a virtue” whenever I wanted something and didn’t want to wait for it. Looking back, I realize the pace of the world was much slower in those days. That wasn’t a bad thing.
Maybe it’s the advancement in technology that has made us more impatient, but these days everything is based on speed. Heaven forbid we wait more than two minutes for our food at the drive-thru. And if we don’t get that promotion as quickly as we think we should, we jump ship to seek greener pastures on the other side of the fence. And why should we wait and save for that sun vacation when we can just charge it and worry about how to pay for it later?
But does all that speed make us happy, or does it just leave us dissatisfied with everything?
Personally, I have always had a lot of patience when it comes to the big things in life. If I didn’t get that job or promotion, no worries! I had faith my time would come. Other than a house or a car, I’ve never gone into debt to pay for something I wanted. Another thing my parents taught me was to save and wait until you had the money before buying anything.
On the other hand, small day-to-day annoyances try my patience. I hate waiting on hold, waiting for web pages to load, or standing in line for anything. I’m also pretty hard on myself if I can’t get the hang of something new as quickly as I’d like.
Have patience in all things. But, first of all with yourself.
Saint Francis de Sales
So, what can we do to improve our patience?
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Three things to do this week
Ask yourself “Will I care about this tomorrow?”
Most of the things we stress about in life really don’t matter. So what if we have to spend 10 minutes in line at the supermarket? And if that traffic jam makes us a few minutes late, is it the end of the world?
Stop and ask yourself “Will I care about this tomorrow, next week, or next month?” 99 times out of 100, you’ll probably answer no. So why worry about it today?
Use your waiting time wisely
Let’s face it, it’s inevitable that we’re going to have to wait in line for something. Commit to making the most of your waiting time so it doesn’t feel like wasted time.
- On hold to talk to your cable company or bank? Squeeze in a quick meditation or mindfulness session or just some deep breathing.
- Waiting in line at the supermarket? Fit in a quick workout: calf raises, glute squeezes or deadlifts are all easy to do. Check out this site for some ideas for quick exercises you can do anywhere.
- Sitting in traffic? Listen to an informative podcast or your favourite playlist!
Look for the lesson
Patience is waiting. Not passively waiting. That is laziness. But to keep going when the going is hard and slow—that is patience.
Leo Tolstoy
Life is full of hidden lessons. If you’re waiting for something big that you think is taking too long to happen, ask yourself what you can learn from the experience and how you can make the most of this time.
Ultimately, it’s important to find a way to keep moving forward—even when it’s frustrating.
In the end, all this stress and impatience won’t reduce the time we have to wait. You might as well make the most of the time and just roll with it.
Do you have tips to improve patience? Tell us your ideas below.
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Excellent post!
Thank you so much for reading and commenting.
I consider myself the MOST impatient person in the world lol so this post was perfect for me.. I felt it speak to me! 🙂 I don’t know what it is but with everything I do, I always look for the most efficient way to do it (whether it’s a project for work or mopping the floor or folding laundry..) I hate the idea of wasting effort and time… however, I am someone who tends to look for the lessons, make better use of my waiting time (always have a book on hand or something to do) and I have started asking myself questions like… “will this matter in a year or a couple years?”…. thanks for sharing, Michelle! 🙂
I’m also big on efficiency and avoiding unnecessary work. It saves time but it can increase the stress level when other things get in the way of my plans. It sounds like you have some great habits to fill your waiting time.
I really need to be more patient, but with the boys rather than myself. The 10 mins it takes them to brush their teeth drives me bonkers.
Ha ha. I remember when my girls were small, it was so hard when they would dawdle and take forever to tie their shoes, especially when we were in a hurry to get out of the house for work in the morning. It took everything I had not to just do it for them.
I am not very patient especially those day-to-day waits. I especially dislike being asked to arrive at an appointment early then being left to sit for a long period of time.
Oh that is annoying. I try really hard to respect the time of others by being on time for appointments. It’s frustrating when you don’t get the same courtesy in return.
I love your Simple Living Sunday posts! SO cool that you have adopted a sea turtle nest – I especially love that you can see the specific one that’s yours.
Thanks Caroline. Yes, the turtles are so cute. I can’t wait to see them hatch.
This was WONDERFUL Michelle! I needed this like words for my soul. I am going to try to remember them now on a daily basis! Thank you!
Thank you so much Kat. That’s so kind of you to say.
As an impatient person, I’m definitely remembering these tips. 😀
Thanks Rachel. It is hard to be patient sometimes but I think it’s a skill we can all develop.
Good call 🤗 Patience is a great virtue. And the good news is that we can develop and grow it.
It is a great virtue. I always admire people who are patient. Overall, I’m more patient with others than with myself. Definitely a skill we can all work on. Thanks for reading and commenting.
What a great post! I was waiting on line (twice, because I forgot something and then had to start all over again) last week at a small South Asian grocery store in my neighborhood. I used it as an opportunity to breathe and to observe what all of the South Asian folks (some traditionally dressed and some very yuppy) were buying… I always appreciate when virtues (such as patience and faith) are re-illuminated for me. And I like being reminded of how they are connected and overlap — such as how patience is often buttressed by faith. Thank you for sharing your wisdom and experiences along with the wisdom (great quotations!) of others.
Thanks for sharing your experience Will. I really believe we’d all be happier if we slowed down a little and took time to savour and enjoy these moments instead of rushing off to the next thing.
Thank you for the turtle shout-out, Michelle! Your support is everything for the community. We’re glad the nest made you smile. Just wait until you see your hatchlings come out!
My pleasure! I am so excited to see the hatchlings. 💚🐢💚