Hi Friend
I ran three times this week. It’s been a while since I’ve gotten in multiple runs. I always run with Joe on Monday morning at 5am. However, for the last several months that’s been it. I’ve had sporadic one-offs here and there, but nothing consistent. There are a variety of reasons why, fortunately this week none of them prevented from throwing on my shoes and going out.
The weather certainly is a factor. It’s been beautiful in Oklahoma this week. Also, I signed up a while ago for the OKC Half Marathon, which doesn’t happen till the fall, but know I’ll start training soon and don’t want to die. There seems to be a lot going on at the moment in my head too, which is always helped when I get out and exert some energy.
It’s fascinating to me. Two weeks ago, I had an idea. Last week I took an initial step to explore the possibility. Then I ran. A gusher of ideas came from those runs. This week, it’s possible the idea will come to fruition. Running never ceases to be my best creative well. I wish it didn’t come with all the physical exertion tied to it. 😝
I think why it seems so exciting to me is that most stuff takes forever to pan out. I have multiple things in my personal and professional life that are “in process”. And they’ve been in process for a long time now! Or at least in my estimation. Heck some of them won’t even offer a next step for almost another three months.
I Hate Waiting!
I know no one is naturally inclined to patience. Our technology and society have wired us for immediate gratification. Human nature certainly likes it. The brain is tickled without having to do much work. Our senses are gratified with it. Overall it seems like NOW is a good time for everything to occur.
However, there is something to the “aging process” that creates a depth of quality, unavailable via instantaneousness. What stinks is often I don’t know or appreciate the difference. What’s worse, I only find out after I rushed to make it a reality, to realize if I had just paused, the results would have been better in every way.
This is something I’ve struggled with most of my adult life. On one hand, I like instigating and causing things to happen. It’s literally the wiring of my DNA: Create, initiate, compel and materialize. I love that progression. On the other hand at the core of my faith is: Plant a seed, water it and it will eventually spring to life.
I’m not a very good gardener.
Rules to playing the Waiting Game:
1) Waiting is not passive. Spend the time gathering data, becoming better and acting in good faith.
2) Waiting is not worrying. Keeping the mind from exerting extraordinary energy on the unknown is difficult.
3) Waiting is not conjecture. Playing out every possible scenario plus extra ones is not a good use of imagination.
4) Waiting is not wasteful. Despite our desire to accelerate, time is not being wasted during the maturation process.
I lose at this game frequently. I like metrics that are outcome based. Maybe because I’m simple and it’s easier to grasp (and see). The process of patiently waiting actively lacks a bit of satisfaction. “I watered dirt today.” End of story. Not terribly exciting. 😟
Instigating Ideas
1. Identify an item you are preemptively inflicting your will on instead of waiting on the process.
2. How could you change your communication with someone you feel is “holding you up”?
3. Acknowledge where you are trying to take short cuts to override the natural process.
4. Tell someone something you are going to be more patient about.
I’m hopeful, even convinced, that playing the waiting game with intentionality will generate an outcome far superior to any consequence I’ve forced previously. That doesn’t make it any easier. And it doesn’t mean the outcome will be what we want. That’s why we tend to press the process to get it to produce our preference.
Knowing when to be patient seems like the best of wisdom we can access. I hope you act patiently where, when and with whom it is needed.