Several things took place in the last week where I recognized I was expecting immediate results and noticed I felt impatient.
The first incident that took place where I expected immediate results was when I was booking tickets to visit Chateau de Versailles for eight of us for our upcoming trip to Europe. After receiving an email advising me to download the tickets to my apple wallet, I proceeded to follow the instructions and was surprised when the tickets did not appear immediately. I think they should have and I do not know why they didn’t, but I decided I would go to bed and check my apple wallet first thing in the morning and of course there they were - all eight tickets.
The second event was when a person sent me an e-transfer for something I was selling. I received it in bed just before I was about to go to sleep. I was certain I had completed all the proper steps; however, when I checked my bank account it wasn’t there. Once again, I decided to wait and check my account in the morning and of course it was deposited. Having experienced these two incidents got me curious and wondering if there was a reason I was losing my patience.
What I learned was that as a society we are losing the art of patience due to a heightened expectation for immediate results.
A few reasons why the art of patience is disappearing:
- The "Now" Culture: Our brains are designed to adapt, and in an age of high-speed internet and on-demand services, we have become accustomed to instant gratification. When expectations for speed are not met, the brain often responds with stress or anger.
- A Focus on Speed over Quality: Society has placed a high monetary value on speed, often leading us to settle for "poor fruit" just to get it to market faster.
- Uncertainty and Fear: Impatience is often rooted in fear of the future or a lack of trust in systems (political, financial, or personal).
- Age and Technology: While some gain patience with life experience, others become less patient with age due to frustration with rapidly changing technology and physical discomfort.
"Sometimes things aren’t clear right away. That’s where you need to be patient and persevere and see where things lead."
Mary Pierce