Tag Archives: patience

“Do not plan for ventures before finishing what is at hand.”

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“Do not plan for ventures before finishing what is at hand.”

—Euripides, Ancient Greek Tragedian

Where are you getting ahead of yourself these days? Where might your impatience, a shiny object or the next interesting diversion cause you to take your eyes off the people, projects, or other priorities of the moment?

There is a wise saying that goes: “If you try to chase two rabbits, both will get away.” How many rabbits are you chasing in your professional and personal worlds? How many new ones come into view on what seems like a daily basis?

EXERCISE

Where would taking the “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush” approach help you tackle a significant priority before you venture forth toward other matters?

Friday Review about Patience

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FRIDAY REVIEW: PATIENCE

How would you rate your level of patience on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest? Here are a few patience-related posts you may have missed. Click the link to read the full message.

 

“Patience is the Companion of Wisdom.”

 

 

 

 

“If you want to gather honey, don’t kick over the beehive.”

 

 

 

 

“Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.”

 

 

 

Patience is the calm acceptance

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“Patience is the calm acceptance that things can happen in a different order than the one you have in mind.”

—David G. Allen, Author of Getting Things Done

image of Getting Things Done book cover

In my very early years as a coach, I learned a variety of reasons why people get upset, such as unfulfilled expectations, and thwarted intentions.

Given the realization that many things can and do happen in different orders, or at different times, Allen coaches us to exercise greater patience, resulting in fewer upsets in our days.

EXERCISE:

How and in what ways can greater patience and acceptance of life’s upsetting moments bring greater peace of mind and calmness to your world?

Good ideas are not adopted automatically

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“Good ideas are not adopted automatically. They must be driven into practice with courageous patience.”

—Hyman Rickover, 20th Century U.S. Navy Admiral

How many good or even great ideas ever see the light of day and come to fruition? If you have ever participated in goal setting or strategic planning sessions, you clearly know the percentages are fairly low.

Consider the field of venture capital, and all those many start-up and Silicon Valley hopefuls. Even the popular Shark Tank TV show has a pretty modest scoreboard on which hopefuls hit it out of the park.

Perhaps it is due to a lack of courage and/or patience that many good ideas never come to pass.

EXERCISE:

Where would mobilizing your own courageous patience be the key to the adoption of more of your brightest ideas? How would greater courageous patience also be a key ingredient to a happier and more fulfilling life?

Friday Review Patience

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FRIDAY REVIEW: PATIENCE

How would you rate your level of patience on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest? Here are a few patience-related posts you may have missed. Click the link to read the full message.

 

“Have patience. All things are difficult before they become easy.”

 

 

 

“Your mind will answer most questions if you learn to relax and wait for the answer.”

 

 

 

“Patience is also a form of action.”

 

 

 

 

Quotes on Patience

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FRIDAY REVIEW:  Patience

How patient are you on an average day? Here are a few patience-related posts you may have missed. Click on the link to read the full message.

qc-1155a

 

“Your mind will answer most questions if you learn to relax and wait for the answer.”

 

 

 

qc-1155b

 

“Patience is also a form of action.”

 

 

 

qc-1155c

 

“If you want to gather honey, don’t kick over the beehive.”

 

 

 

 

 

unbeatable combination for success

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“Patience, persistence, and perspiration make an unbeatable combination for success.”

Napoleon Hill, America’s foremost success/motivation author

Image from www.newinki.com

Image from www.newinki.com

I recently finished a chapter on Personal Mastery for a book titled Essential Wisdom: Personal Development and Soul Transformation, which will be published soon. As I researched my topic, I discovered how relevant Napoleon Hill’s statement is to virtually every journey of success.

When we combine these three qualities, they appear to have far more helpful impact than their additive effects. We say that 1+1+1=3, but perhaps 32 or 3 to the second power, might more accurately demonstrate their potential synergies.

EXERCISE:

Where would combining greater patience, persistence, and perspiration make the biggest difference in your personal and profession endeavors?

Threshold of your Mind

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“The teacher who is indeed wise does not bid you to enter the house of his wisdom, but rather, leads you to the threshold of your mind.”

-Kahlil Gibran, Lebanese-American artist, poet, and writer

image from itu.edu

image from itu.edu

Take a moment to get into an imaginary time machine and go back to your youth.

Specifically, I’d like you to visit your grammar school, middle school, high school, college, and if you had them, post-graduate educational experiences.

As you explore each of these periods in your life, take note of the teachers who have made the most memorable and lasting impact on your life. How many of them challenged your thinking and encouraged greater personal inquiry, rather than simply pouring their reservoir of knowledge into you?

EXERCISE:

Who are the current teachers, mentors, and coaches that lead you to expand the threshold of your mind? How can you be such a resource for others in your personal and professional communities?

Learning to Overlook

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“Wisdom is learning what to overlook.”

—William James, American philosopher and psychologist

QC #908The first book I ever read by Robin Sharma was The Monk who Sold His Ferrari. It is an amusing and insightful story of a hard-driving attorney, determined to win every case and annihilate his opposition while he reaps the material rewards of success.  As you may guess from the title, he experiences various life events that literally stop him in his tracks, and had him re-evaluate his life from a new perspective. He begins to seek a life of greater meaning and significance.

EXERCISE:

What issues, obstacles, life complexities, and other barriers are you facing that would be better overlooked?

From the Errors of Others

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“From the errors of others, a wise man corrects his own.”

—Publilius Syrus, ancient Syrian writer

QC #906

A highly notable technique to support personal growth and development is to encourage people to embrace failure. When we fail, we have the opportunity to pick up experiential lessons from the event.

Today’s quote, however, suggests that not all lessons need to occur from our own failures, setbacks, and stumbles. All we need do is pay particular attention to the misadventures of those around us. From them, we can glean additional nuggets of knowledge and wisdom.

Given the fact that there is only one of you, and so many people in your personal and professional worlds, the odds favor the open and receptive mind in picking up a higher proportion of lessons this way.

EXERCISE:

Where and in what ways can you use the errors of others to pursue greater success and mastery throughout your day?