Patience emphasizes calmness, self-control, and the willingness or ability to tolerate delay: Our patience will achieve more than our force (Edmund Burke). - from Dictionary.com
The ability to be patient is not an easy thing to acquire. It's a skill that takes many, many years to perfect. Many think they cannot become a patient person, but I think they are wrong.
Patience isn't that tough, really. However, it is tough to have the right amount. Having too much patience causes a person to become a doormat, which everyone walks all over. Not having enough patience and the world sees you as an unstable bomb that they do not want to be near for any length of time, for fear they may trip the "live wire," and cause an explosion. Patience is a simple matter of "ignoring" the little stuff. Some examples are:
Loud or Annoying Kids: Let the kids be a little loud, and rambunctious when they are at home or a friends house, even though you would prefer quite time to read the paper or talk on the phone. Buy earmuffs, or a louder handset for the phone.- Cleaning: It's ok if the kids/hubby/wife didn't pickup after themselves every single time. The world doesn't come crashing to a halt because there is dirty underwear on the bedroom or bathroom floor... Now dirty underwear on the kitchen floor is a different matter. Yeah, you have told them 100 bazillion times to pick up after themselves. Think about this... Unless they are running around without any underwear, the reason the dirty ones are on the floor, is because they put clean ones on... Isn't that the most important thing?
Bills: Yes, you have to pay the bills; otherwise they take away whatever it is you are paying for. Arrange to have the bills due at the same time or two times a month (i.e. 15th and 30th). That way, you only have to deal with them once or twice a month instead of every other day. That leaves MOST of the month to not worry about them.
- Storage: The basement or storage area doesn't have to be alphabetized, categorized, and in perfect organization. If the stuff is out of the way, and you can find the Christmas decorations by Thanksgiving, it's organized enough. Spend your time playing with the kids who are being loud and rambunctious.
Plans: Planning upcoming events are a great idea, and a necessary thing. However, life happens, and plans often get changed. When life is happening, pay attention to it, and not the plan, or you will miss it. Enjoy the life, it only happens once! Plans can be rebuilt, remade, and redone. Try doing that with a life!
- Coworkers: People you work with or go to school with may drive you up a wall. They may bicker, backstab, giggle, fart, or clip their nails incessantly. If you are in a cube a work, slap on the headphones, do your job and ignore them. You will get more work done and those annoying people will get less done, because they are too busy doing the annoying things instead of their job. You will be the star employee, and you won’t need to brag (or kiss butt) to prove it! J They will be on the chopping block the next time the company does cutbacks.
Driving: Road rage is the hardest thing to control. There are idiots everywhere, including the road. Guess what? They can’t hear you when you yell and scream at them. Flipping the middle finger, or slamming the brakes, or the horn is not going to make a difference… Know why? Because they don’t care! If they did, they wouldn’t be driving the way they are… So don’t waste your effort… Smile instead… You’ll live longer.
There are many other simple things you can do… But it takes practice… You won’t develop patience over night… So don’t give up, keep smiling, and remember… You will be happier, live longer, and more people will want to be around you. I think that’s a good reason to ignore the crap that exists in this world don’t you?
