The Big P: Patience

Patience.

The ability to wait.

Shakespeare: “How poor are they that have not patience! What wound did ever heal but by degrees?"

Benjamin Franklin: “He that can have patience, can have what he will.”

Most days, I find myself to be a very patient person. I interact with hundreds of people a day: my husband, my 2 children (7 & 3.5), my 2 dogs (9 & 6 months), my students (90 per day on average, ages 11-14), and my colleagues. However there are moments that my impulses prevail and I react before I think or breathe. I honestly think there is a set amount of patience per day, and when that runs low I no longer have the ability to be proactive.

My go-to method for Patience is BREATHE. Simply take a breath before responding. Easy to do, but challenging to remember at times. Sometimes I add COUNTING in some way to the breathing. Count to 5. Breathe in and out 5 times. Count to 10.

Something I need to do is to figure out my TRIGGERS. When I do lose my patience, is there a pattern to the situations? Is it what is being said? Is it what is being done? Is it a time of day?

Two tips that I will start using to help with Patience: HUMOR and FORGIVENESS. When I feel impatient, I can use humor to defuse the feeling. Laughter can truly be the best medicine. And I should remember to forgive myself for being impatient. It will be impossible to be patient 100% of my life, so I need to take it easy on myself.

It will be interesting if I remember to use these tips this week and I find myself a little short on Patience.



Resources:
http://www.tinatessina.com/practicing_patience.html
http://www.wikihow.com/Be-Patient
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/43383729/ns/today-today_health/t/type-hurry-learn-patience-heres-how/#.UPLPxUQZwnU
http://www.positivityblog.com/index.php/2010/09/16/patience/
http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTCS_78.htm