be more patient

When I think about it many of the items listed on my 43 things are related in some way to each other. I used to view my life in a triangle- there was work, there was relationship, there was fun. Whenever these didn’t add up to an equilateral triangle then something was off. I haven’t thought about “my” triangle for a while, a long while. But as I was going thru all my 43 things just now something clicked. I am more patient now, yes. But why? I’m not making a super conscious effort, just a little one. Well, without holding grudges I am not feeling stressed or on edge. Similarly, I’m out enjoying life, doing what I enjoy, and trying to do the work/life balance, which is very possible if you’re stubborn about it and make it work. I’m not sure I’ll be expecting any major promotions anytime soon, which is unfortunate as I once again reached 100% but don’t work the 60-80 hours some people do. I stick to my 40 and that’s that. I me, it should be about what I do and not how long it takes. I digress… the bottom line is that my triangle is equalateral again and with everything clicking at the moment it keeps my stress levels really low which is usually the culprit of patience.

Yes, I am VERY happy about this goal. I think I have been able to be super patient. Maybe it’s just a mental thing and you have to think about it. I don’t know. But I know when I explain things to people, esp when they have a hard time understanding or “getting it”, I am very good at just taking a breathe and walking them thru it again. This was definitely not me a couple yrs ago.

Sometimes, esp recently, I always seem to want to be ahead of people. I don’t know why. Maybe it’s b/c I know what I want and people take forever sometimes. For instance, if I let people through a door first, then I have to find a way to get around them to get to where I’m going. Or if I let people in front of me in a buffet line, they either load up their plates so much that they could hardly hold it or they sit there and stare trying to figure out what to get. I have been really good about taking a few deep breathes, trying to relax, and let things happen. I don’t want the life of rushing and I want to slow things down. Getting rid of TV and the Internet will slow it down that much more… haven’t quite gotten there yet! ;)

I was home this weekend for a funeral. There was a lot of stress during the trip and LOTS of people around all the time. I did a good job being really patient and laid back. I have been getting really good at taking a step back, taking a deep breath, and explaining things to people until they understand what it is I am trying to convey. On the way home, we had a layover which ended up being 15 min. Instead of freaking out, I slowly calculated in my head it would be about 5 min before we could exit the plane so I sat back and waited as everyone slowly exited. It is sort of like waiting for a stop light- they’re like 60 seconds long yet it seems like eternity. As it turned out, the gate was across the hall from ours and I made that flight with no prob!

While my mom was in town, she told me that she was frustrated b/c sometimes she doesn’t understand everything people say (she’s from Poland) and then people get impatient and she doesn’t want to ask them any more so ultimately she doesn’t learn. In the last 2 weeks, I had to walk my mom through some things like TiVO and at times I just wanted to throw the phone across the room. Instead, I stayed REALLY calm and patiently walked her through the process of recording a show. I kept reminding myself of what she told me and I felt bad b/c I never really knew that. I guess sometimes we take those things for granted…

I probably have to work more on this goal than any other. For some reason, I have a short fuse when it comes to patience with some things or some people and I need to chill out. Sadly, I realize people don’t always just get it and I need to walk them through it but somehow I find myself frustrated by it sometimes. Flip it around and I would hate to deal with someone like me! I mean, I always try to look at it from the other person’s point of view so I try to be calm and help people. I think maybe I need to count to 10 sometimes before opening my mouth. I think this is a really BAD quality to have- lack of patience- and somehow some way, I want to fix it! Suggestions??!