‘To Know how to wait is the great secret of success ‘– Joseph de Maistre
I debate whether to share this simple story because it happened so long ago. Yet whenever I find myself in a period in my life when things are taking longer that I would like to pan out, I find myself remembering how once a long time ago, I was too impatient to wait for the bus.
I always enjoy walking. Whenever the opportunity presents itself, I never hesitate to put on my sneakers and set off. While working in Australia, I would try to walk to and from work as often as possible. It was about a half hour walk and that’s how I justified my daily exercise. One particular day, I decided to take the bus home, mainly because I wanted to go to the shops that were about fifteen minutes away from where I lived. As soon as I got off my shift, I ran to the bus stop, happy to just make it before the bus arrived. Now in Australia, buses worked like clockwork, but on this day, it ran slightly late or so I thought. After about five minutes of waiting for it, I suddenly decided to walk, after all, I was losing precious time! I jumped up, crossed the road and began my attempt at speed walking. Seriously, five minutes had not passed by when I heard the bus arrive and since there was no-one at the bus stop, it literally stopped for seconds and moved on. Damn! I was too far to run back, and unlike our Kenyan buses, this bus had no intention of stopping for me at a non-designated spot.
Sigh….my impatience made me forget the big picture, the reason I had wanted to take the bus in the first place! If I had just waited the 10 or so minutes, the bus would have come, I would have made it to the shops in good time, and I would have gotten back home with time to spare. Instead, I got home late, exhausted from all the walking and not very happy with myself.
To Know how to wait is the great secret of success. Had I waited for the bus patiently, I would have done what I needed to in a shorter amount of time, with better focus and energy to spare. When I reflect back on my career and life journey, I realize there are many moments when I was in hurry. I wanted the promotion, the new challenge, the change of scene. I wanted everything now! I have realized however, that as much as I did conquer the promotions and challenges that I desired, there are times I needed to wait for them to come my way. My failure to wait and understand the who, what, why and when often made me make some wrong decisions. Being in a hurry with my career and life choices at times made me loose focus of the bigger picture. The impact of my impatience led to the journey of where I am today; taking longer than it needed.
The wait is an important space to be in, because the wait can prepare, focus and grow you. When the door finally opens, you will be ready. The wait allows for you to weigh your options and even seek the right advice.
