FORTUNE FOLLOWS PATIENCE

Patience is a lost art, but that doesn't mean it is any less important.

I was listening to Keaton Turner's podcast recently where he discussed how he believes impatience is the biggest impediment to success early in one’s career.

And after taking some time to reflect on that, I have come to a conclusion:
 
He is absolutely right.

That is not easy for me to say. When it comes to goals, I am a hungry person (a nice way of saying I’m impatient). There is a lot I want to get done, and time is of the essence!

But the ability to delay gratification is a virtue that I have come to appreciate.

Patience is not something that is easy in a society that promotes instant gratification, but trusting the process and allowing the compound interest of time to accumulate can yield extraordinary things. The people who keep their heads down for months and years, work hard no matter the situation and always push to get just a little bit better will be the ones enjoying sustained success in the future.

The most successful among us are masters of patience.

I want to help grow HFW Industries, Inc. and take our great company to new heights. And my impatience wants to do this at breakneck speed.

But I am learning that good things take time, which is especially true in business and in a career. And while I share this with our other young guys at HFW, I sometimes think that the person who needs to hear this most is me.

To be frank, there is still part of me that believes that a little impatience is healthy. In a world where procrastination runs rampant, and where there is always a reason not to do something, a sense of urgency and doing something just to do it aren’t always bad.

However, I also understand the value of long-term thinking, and when it comes to the future, maniacal patience will win most every time.

I know this to be true, but it is a lesson I am still learning nonetheless.