PATIENCE IS A VIRTUE: INDEED IN THIS ADVENT OF THE DIGITAL ERA

In the not so distant past, patience was considered a virtue. Maybe not anymore. With the advent use of smartphones, the internet, social media and so on, we have no patience for waiting — for anything. Why for some reason do we all hate to wait these days? It’s almost like we all forgot about that character trait of patience and we need everything right now. Considering the rise of same-day delivery, 24/7 service, round-the-clock net connections, online services, instant downloads, and one-click ordering. We need everything on time without waiting.

With the ever fast-moving world, people are also becoming impatient to wait. Given how society has shaped our behavior and expectations, it’s easy to see that patience for most people would be quite difficult to come by. Who needs to be patient when you pretty much can have everything you want or need at your fingertips?

Although this may be true at a convenience level, this is far from true on other levels where for instance our goals are involved, or when dealing with other people. In such instances patience is absolutely eminent because we live in a convenience society — most people simply don’t have enough patience, and that is why they struggle.

How Society Views Impatience

Even though many of us continuously struggle with impatience, it is typically not something that we tend to tolerate in other people.

Have a think about a person who is impatiently getting riled up about something. Observing this person you might think of them as being bad-tempered, insensitive, arrogant, irritable, impulsive or judgmental. These are all certainly negative qualities that many of us tend to avoid, and yet we live in a culture driven by instant gratification. So even though we value patience, we find it difficult to practice it in our day-to-day lives.

 Is patience still considered to be a virtue?

According to research, patience protects us against experiencing negative emotions and enhances our happiness. There is only one empirically tested intervention that aims to help us develop our life through patience.

Yet it 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 is frustration or adversity—i.e., nearly everywhere—we have the opportunity to practice it. At home, at work, at society patience can make the contrast between annoyance and serenity.

Religions and philosophers have long praised the virtue of patience; now researchers are starting to do so as well. Recent studies have found that, sure enough, good things really do come to those who wait. Some of these science-backed benefits are detailed below.

People with patience experience better mental health

This finding is probably easy to believe the stereotypical impatient person: face red, head steaming. And sure enough, according to a 2007 study by Fuller Theological Seminary professors, patient people tend to experience less distress and adverse emotions, perhaps because they can cope better with upsetting or stressful circumstances. They also rate themselves as more mindful and feel more gratitude, more connection to mankind and to the universe, and a greater sense of abundance.

Patience is linked to good wellness

The study of patience is still in progress, but there’s some emerging evidence that it might even be good for our health. In the same 2007 study, Fuller Theological Seminary professors found that patient people were less likely to report health problems. Other researchers have found that people who exhibit impatience and irritability—tend to have more health complaints and worse sleep. If patience can reduce our daily stress, it’s reasonable to speculate that it could also protect us against stress’s damaging health effects.

Patience is key to success in life.

Patience is an absolute requirement for the attainment of any goal because some things simply can’t be rushed or hurried. Furthermore, some things just take time and effort on our part; they require a long-term commitment and dedication to follow through with a set of actions despite the various challenges and obstacles that might face along our journey. Having said that, patience isn’t about sitting idle waiting for things to happen. That is not patience, but rather procrastination. Idleness can actually breed impatience and stress. Moreover, success comes to those who are passionate, diligent, purpose-driven and who understand that impatience creates setbacks.

No matter how diligent and self-aware we are, there is always a chance that at times impatience can’t get the better of us. So here are a few ways to bring the waiting game back into perspective

1. Recognize Your Impatience

The first step is to recognize the moment you are getting a little agitated and impatient. To do this you must become more mindful of your thoughts and reactions to what’s going on around you. Becoming more mindful is a habit-of-mind that you can develop with practice. It requires regularly turning inward and reflecting upon your feelings in any given situation. The more mindful you are at any given moment in time, the more likely you are to recognize moments when you’re caught in the grip of impatience.

2. Breathe

This might seem like a funny suggestion, but really, trust me it will work. No matter how much things or surroundings annoy you, just be calm and breathe. Even if you have a place to be, stressing about it will not make things better. It only creates a negative vibe which brings into your next task for the day. Take a few moments and clear your head. You’d be surprised how much it helps.

3. Remember what is making you feel rushed

 Is there a certain trigger in your life that is causing you to be rushed and impatient? Maybe it’s time to re-think what is most valuable to you. Taking that specific trigger out of your daily life might allow you to feel less stressed and give you some opportunity at the same time.

4. Make patience a habit

 Each and every day, take a few minutes to wait. To slow down your daily routine and discern that it doesn’t have to be so rushed. Like anything else, being a patient person is a learned skill. So, there is nothing wrong with slowing down and allowing yourself to remember what that feels like.

All in all, patience is such a great quality and can help in all aspects of life. Being millennials, at times we do need patience in order to step back to gain a better perspective of the situation or the path we are traveling on. With this clarity-of-mind, we can then move forward in a more optimal way by making better choices and decisions toward our goals. Using patience for self-reflection, for gaining clarity, and for making the most of opportunities, that is after all where it will be the most valuable thing in whichever advent of an era we live.

 

In spite of this advent of the digital era, patience is yet considered as a virtue for every profession, especially for entrepreneurs. So let’s not forget the roots of patience which we all have. Thank you for reading till the end. Hope this was useful. 🙂