🧭 Patience Isn’t What You Think - What Top Performers Know

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Here’s Where We Are Headed Today:

• Michael Jordan on Patience

• How to Build the Muscle of Patience

• Favorite Posts I Found This Week

• Free Mental Fitness Links 👇

How To Build the Muscle of Patience

Today’s post dives into patience because it’s a critical skill often overshadowed by the rush for immediate results. Patience isn’t just about waiting - it’s about how you wait. It’s about staying calm, focused, and intentional, even when progress feels slow or uncertain.

What you need to know: Success never happens overnight. Your ability to balance the ambition of pursuing high goals with determination while understanding that meaningful progress often requires time is necessary. It's the balance between striving for excellence and allowing the process to unfold naturally.

Why it matters: In today's fast-paced world, the pressure to achieve quickly can lead to burnout and frustration. Elite performers must recognize that sustainable success is a marathon, not a sprint. Balancing ambition with patience ensures longevity and continuous growth in one's career.

What the Science Says on Patience

Study: "An Examination of Patience and Wellbeing" by Dr. Sarah A. Schnitker - Schnitker’s study revealed that patience serves as a protective factor against stress and anxiety. Participants who rated higher in patience experienced lower stress levels in situations involving delays, adversity, or uncertainty. The study found that patience allows individuals to regulate their emotions effectively, reducing reactive decision-making and improving problem-solving skills under pressure.

Takeaway: Patience acts as a tool for emotional resilience, helping individuals remain calm and clear-headed in challenging situations. Patience isn’t just about waiting - it’s about enduring difficult periods without losing focus on your long-term goals.

Actionable Insight: Develop stress-management techniques like deep breathing, journaling, or mindfulness exercises to strengthen emotional regulation during frustrating moments. Build routines that promote good habits to handle frustration.

What do the Experts say?

Successful people, elite athletes, and high performers know that success doesn’t happen overnight. They know that choosing patience is intentional. Just look at athletes that compete in the Olympics only once every 4 years.

• Usain Bolt: “I trained 4 years to run 9 seconds, and people give up when they don’t see results in 2 months.”

• John Wooden: “Patience should be practiced in all areas of life, but especially in the pursuit of success.”

• Dawn Staley: “A lot of people notice when you succeed, but they don’t see what it takes to get there.”

What’s the difference between delayed gratification and patience?

Elite performers master both delayed gratification and patience - one helps them make the right choice, the other helps them endure the waiting period without losing focus.

We talked about delayed gratification a few months back, and here is how it differs from patience.

• Delayed gratification is the decision to wait for something better.

• Patience is how you handle the waiting period without frustration or giving up.

Example: A runner training for a marathon demonstrates delayed gratification by committing to a strict training regimen instead of sleeping in. They show patience when dealing with slow progress or minor setbacks along the way.

So how can I preach patience and make this actionable?

Patience is easier when you know what you want, you believe you have a chance at what you want, and you trust the process to unfold in its own time.

It means starting with clarity about your goals, paired with daily habits that align with those goals. Patience thrives when hope meets consistent action.

The right mindset combines optimism for the long term with emotional regulation for the short term.

• Set Dual Goals: Establish ambitious long-term objectives alongside achievable short-term targets to maintain motivation and direction.
  🧠 Ask Yourself: What’s my long-term goal, and what’s one thing I can do this week to move toward it?

• Practice Mindfulness: Engage in mindfulness techniques like meditation or focused breathing to stay present and reduce anxiety about future outcomes.
  🧠 Ask Yourself: How can I ground myself when I feel impatient?

• Seek Feedback: Regularly consult mentors or coaches to gain perspective on your progress, helping balance ambition with realistic expectations.
  🧠 Ask Yourself: Am I being realistic with my timelines and goals?

• Build Emotional Regulation Skills: Strengthen your ability to pause, reflect, and respond intentionally in frustrating moments.
  🧠 Ask Yourself: How can I remind myself to pause before reacting when I feel impatient?

Bottom Line: Patience isn’t about doing nothing—it’s about doing the right things consistently while trusting the process. It’s the bridge between where you are and where you want to be.

• What area of my life needs more patience?

• How can I practice small acts of patience today?

Patience isn’t weakness—it’s strength under control. It’s the quiet power that turns long-term goals into reality.

Favorite Posts I Found This Week

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