Patience is not passive on the contrary it is concentrated strength. – Bruce Lee
You do not need drive; you need patience in order to excel!
It does no matter how much drive you have, if you do not have patience you are going to burnout.
Impatience is what most of us undergo!
For instance: you become frustrated at having to wait more than two weeks to hear back from an application for a job or academic course, you do become freaked out and have to distract yourself from someone who has refused to text back instantly and once maybe you have finished a full series of a tv show in a day rather than pacing yourself.
While it is not completely your fault (please note you do seem to have the attention span of a hyperactive poodle), it can be one of the most frustrating things when you are trying to commit to anything.
In fact, it is the impatience that can lead you to think: I will just quit and start something else. This is not working. When really, it is not working fast enough. Be it freelancing, or becoming self-employed, it is one of the greatest examples of an activity that does need patience.
Please note: Potential clients will not email you back in the same day, or even immediately.
You can wait for weeks to hear back from an editor you pitched to, and you can send a proposal to someone then never gave a reply. You can even work hard on the proposed project and fail to hear back about the revisions to that work within the original timescale that is agreed upon.
The worst wait of all happens to be the slow build to consistent work. It does not happen in a day, or a week, or even say two weeks. For some, it can take even months and years. It is never a quick process to sustainable success. A lot of people will always talk about having the drive to commit to something full blown. Ultimately it is all about action.
You need to get up, take up the day by the shoulders and shout out your goals into its face. You in fact need to work 24/7, hustle, and try to be the best that has ever existed. It is too much for you when putting it all together.
When does it get worse? When you are only selling action, it makes it always seem like if you do all these integral actions then you will achieve your goal quite soon! Please note: There are a lot of people out there making money by telling you “insider” secrets that will supposedly make you rich fast. If you just do all these things as quickly as possible, you will certainly succeed.
Please understand the saying, Rome was not built in a day and neither are your dreams.
The world is not about being instant. It does not care how bad you want something; it will give you what you want; when it wants to and do understand no amount of ‘hustling’ will make it come any quicker.
Maybe it is a side effect of our instant gratification culture but so many people are burning out by feeling they have to do everything right now as in right away. When they do not see instant results from their intense hard work, they just burn out.
There is no reward seen for the sweat and tears they have put in. Even with all the jobs that you really want, all of these things exist outside of your control. This is when one must consider Patience.
Patience is the unrecognised virtue of successful people. Imagine, Walt Disney was fired due to a supposed “lack of imagination” then went on to become one of the most profitable animators in the world. Oprah was fired twice before becoming the amazingly successful woman today. Bill Gates dropped out of Harvard and to create a business that flopped before creating Microsoft.
These are some of the people who are used as examples on how getting back up after a setback is the best thing one can to do. They were so driven to pursue their dreams that they did not ever give up. But these things take time. That is Success takes time.
Please do understand that the people we hold up as examples of perseverance are also examples of patience. They definitely did persevere but they were also patient. They knew that eventually they would get there and it would not happen right now. They had to even wait and work hard for a long-term goal.
Consistent success does not ever happen overnight. Success that will be sustained takes time and more so effort. It takes a lot of patience to know that you are on the right path and while you are not exactly where you want to be, it is being able to recognise it is only for now. This will not be forever.
If you have been impatient you will definitely show up signs of burnout and that can be resolved too.
Seven important signs you have burnout and how to fix the same
If you are always exhausted or even stressed after work, you are likely exhibiting signs of burnout.
1. You dread going to work and cannot wait to leave
Your job used to bring you joy, but now the minutes tick by like molasses. Everyone has a few boring items on their task list, but this goes deeper. Even the fun and exciting parts of your day are unappealing and frustrating to complete for you.
2. You find yourself unproductive and have difficulty concentrating
Not only does your job feel unmanageable, but simple tasks take much longer to do and distracted breaks grow more common. You might simply not have the energy to be productive, the work may not seem interesting anymore, or you cannot concentrate no matter how hard you do try.
3. You lack patience with co-workers and even clients
Irritability is at an all time high and even your friends in the office are getting on your nerves. Impatience is a symptom of the underlying stress and anxiety associated with a burnout.
4. You suffer from unexplained headaches, stomach aches, or nausea
Chronic stress causes various physical symptoms that make you feel unwell. These could also be signs of another mental health issue or another underlying medical condition, so get them checked out by a doctor if they do interfere with your daily life. You cannot shake up and spark up your sicknesses as quickly as you used to.
5. You cannot seem to get over that one cold
Burnout compromises your immune system totally. Your sniffles and sore throat will not go away no matter how many home treatments you may try.
6. You are exhausted all day, but cannot sleep at night
Not only is fatigue a symptom of burnout, but insomnia also does rank high on the list. Your workload feels so overwhelming that you cannot fall asleep or stay asleep throughout the night.
7. You do stop enjoying activities outside of work
Even when you clock out, spending time with family and friends is not nearly as enjoyable as it once was. As burnout progresses, do not that the disinterest in work spreads to the rest of your life.
How to alleviate burnout (The trick and Treat)
If any of the above do ring true for you, burnout may be sabotaging your life. The good news is that there are many concrete steps you can take to alleviate the condition. Now that you know what you are suffering from, here are eight ways to reverse your burnout.
- Eat your vegetables and drink more water
You have heard it a thousand times, but focusing on a healthy diet and staying hydrated really does help. If you are having trouble staying motivated do up your water intake, water bottles will certainly help you.
- Exercise
Moving your body has been shown to be a natural remedy for stress, anxiety and depression. Do not fret and worry if the gym is not your thing. Building up your own home workout area or streaming your fitness videos to your living room are way easier than ever. So do remember to exercise by keeping a reminder set in.
- Get more sleep
Try to log in the recommended seven to eight hours. If insomnia is interfering with your night time rest, improve the basic sleep hygiene like leaving screens out of the bedroom. Weighted blankets have also been shown to help end the sleepless nights.
- Say no to extra work responsibilities
Do not shirk and evade your basic job description, but if side projects do come up consider declining them. Wait until you have a renewed passion for your work until it is by saying yes to taking on extra tasks.
- Take a good break, then take up another
No, one vacation will not solve your burnout issue. Regularly incorporating weekend trips or stay-cations can help cut down on burnout. So, leave the laptop at home so you will not be tempted to work.
- Spend quality time with positive people and limit contact with those who bring you down
Make an effort to connect with people that do uplift and support you. Cut down on the time spent with negative people that do lower your self-esteem or sap out your creative energy.
- Practice yoga or do try mediation
If stress is making you feel agitated, meditation and yoga may be the last things you want to do. However, forcing yourself to slow down and taking a few deep breaths can help you calm down. You can even go to meditate on the go.
- Schedule your time to play
Reconnecting with the playful side of your personality may also be the key towards relaxation. Everyone has different passions, so find whatever activities you deem “fun” and make time to do them as well. So whichever activity makes you feel good and brazed up…go ahead and make it happen once in a while!
Burnout is not an issue that will resolve itself in a matter of days. It takes time, but if you make an effort to incorporate a few of these mentioned steps in your daily life, you will be far better equipped to handle workplace stress or personal stress and even exhaustion and fatigue.
This in turn will make you build up your patience levels slowly and steadily as you will clearly know how to work in a spectrum of deference and attentiveness which will be fuelled by consistency levelled with perseverance.
Nature does not hurry yet everything is accomplished- Lao Tzu