Some things are too painful and too hard to overcome without patient encouragement and love. I hope everyone who needs it can find it.

It’s typically the impatient moments that rise to the surface and grab notoriety. The angry customer. The ranting neighbor. The crazy employee. People having trouble being rational because something has gotten under their skin. But what if we practice being more patient when frustrations begin to rise? Is it even possible? Do good things really come to those who wait?

Here are a list of things I try to remember as I practice being more patient.

– Be mindful of triggers. Am I getting defensive? Jumping to conclusions? If you have any kind of turbulent past then you deal with this. I’ve been trying to be more objective. See the present not the history. I try to act less impulsively. I wait a few moments before I react. I still haven’t mastered this. I might never but I’m trying.

– Is it something I can fix? Many times I have done all I can and it’s out of my hands. I’ve learned waiting is better than spinning my wheels with anxiety and hopes and wishes. The faster I realize I’ve done everything I can the sooner I can spend that energy elsewhere.

– Self-control. Seems like an easy solution but it’s the hardest of all especially when triggered. To regain my self-control I breathe and think about something I’m grateful for. Often it’s something I want to be grateful for because it will be a result of me gaining self-control.

Our experiences have made us weaker and stronger. It’s destroyed many good things in life. But it’s not too late to do better. We can be stronger. We can be happier.