Every Monday in July, I will be sharing a different mindset that has helped me pursue Godโs call on my life. In this blog, Iโll be talking about patience.
There is one severely undervalued virtue that is crucial for building wealth, a business, the Kingdom, your career, and pretty much anything else. Itโs patience. However, in America especially, we value fast-paced, quick results, and instant gratification (more on that later.) Oftentimes, patience is seen as the enemy, not the solution.
Patience is the ability to cultivate endurance with the end goal in mind. Biblical patience requires having faith in the unseen and trusting that God will supply you with the tools and opportunities to get you where you need to be.
There are three critical areas of leadership where Iโve found itโs difficult to exercise patience: with people, process, and power (rather than passivity). I have to constantly remind myself to be patientโit doesnโt come naturally. If youโre like me, the rest of this blog is for you!
[Related: Kingdom Mindset–What it is and why you need one]
Patience with People
โI therefore, a prisoner of the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, nearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit and the bond of peace.โ Ephesians 4:1-3 (ESV)
Learning how to deal with people effectively is one of the fundamentals of leadership. However, people can be frustrating. Itโs often easier to do the work yourself rather than to delegate, however, itโs certainly not the most effective way. In order to grow any organization, the people at the top must be willing to move from being doers to being leaders. Donโt get me wrongโentrepreneurs and people with more responsibility in an organization will often wear many hats. They lead, they manage, and they do. However, there has to be a shift where leaders pass the baton so they can work on their organization more than they work inside of it.
Many small to medium-sized organizations donโt implement this concept. A lot of people start a business because they are passionate about the good or service they are offeringโnot business itself. Take a hair salon, for example. A woman opens her own salon because she loves the craft of styling hair, but after a number of years, she wants to grow her business. In order to do this, sheโll have to train new employees (which takes time away from working with new clients), pay them (or split referrals), and potentially rent/purchase a bigger space in due time. At first, she will lose money. In these situations, you have to see the forest for the trees. Whatโs the 10-year vision? How many young stylists can she impact through mentorship and employment?
As you can see, thereโs an element of trust and discipleship as well. Think about it this way: God didnโt have to trust a bunch of flawed humans with the world He created, but He did. We mess up over and over and over again, yet God still has patience with us. He gives us the gift of work. Because of his patient character, we are able to continually grow, build, and partake in the creative process. As leaders, itโs our job to equip those we lead to do the sameโeven if itโs not as efficient or monetarily advantageous at first. Good leaders develop leaders.
[Related: How to Scale Your Business with a Leader-Manager Hybrid]
Patience with Process
โThe end of something is better than its beginning. Patience is better than arrogance.โ Ecclesiastes 7:8 (CEB)
In America, instant gratification is often right at our fingertips. Any question can be answered through a quick online search. Whatever food cravings we have can be satiated in a matter of minutes. Entire series of tv shows can be streamed without having to wait for the next episodes to be released. We can fly anywhere on the planet.
Google, DoorDash, Netflix, and international travel are all wonderful inventions. In its proper context, instant gratification is not a bad thing. It operates in conjunction with the pleasure principle, which is the driving force that compels human beings to meet their needs, wants, and urges. However, itโs hard to isolate our desire for instantaneous activity to a specific section of our brain.
We want immediate answers to the big questions of life, our career direction, and the trajectory of our leadership. The hard truth is that fast fruit is hard to come by. Thereโs no shortcut to patience and faithfulness. A few things can happen when we donโt practice patience in our business or workspace:
1. Shiny Object Syndrome: When thereโs a frustrating problem, itโs natural to evade it and move to something new. This could be a project within the same organization, or it could even be moving to a new job opportunity or business venture. Patience is the ability to stay the course and work through an issue rather than around it. Problems within an organization are rarely isolated, so failure to address something can easily filter into other areas.
2. Stagnation: Itโs the classic tortoise and the hare situation. Just because youโre moving fast doesnโt mean youโre making progress. Use discernment. Is your constant activity actually producing, or is it a coping mechanism for your anxiety? True growth happens when you take the time to reflect, plan, and develop deep roots.
Instant gratification is one of the biggest root issues underneath why people donโt build wealth. Purchasing liabilities rather than assets, racking up consumer debt, or saving money rather than taking a risk all demonstrate a pull towards instant gratification.
Urgency is often symptomatic of a lack of faith. Leaders must see the 30,000-foot view and practice patient development in their spheres of influence. The result will be a culture that is free of anxiety and full of vision.
[Related: Going Deeper with Assets and Liabilities]
Patience with Power (not Passivity)
โAnd let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.โ Galatians 6:9 (NKJV)
We work with God to establish His will in the Earth. As a leader, that is your job. Believe me, I know itโs frustrating at times. You wonโt end every day with confidence in your trajectory or plan. There will be some problems that stump you for months! Nevertheless, struggling is not grounds for giving up. Trials are not a *sign* that something is not Godโs will anymoreโresistance is just part of the program.
Patience is not passive. It requires steadfast work and endurance. We do our part in faith, and God does His. The result of prayerful work and patience is absolutely powerful. I encourage you to press into what God is saying about your realm of leadership. Donโt succumb to the Spirit of anxiety, rather, move with the Prince of Peace.
[Related: How to Renew Your Money Mindset: You are Not in Control]
