Patience vs urgency in business.
Then events over the last few days got me thinking about the patience required to become a great leader, rise to the top and be consistent with your message.
How can someone impact our lives so profoundly without even noticing?
We all seem to be running around with a sense of urgency; I want it now, mentality!
Now we probably think that patience and urgency are two opposite approaches to business and leadership……..but I’d like to suggest they’re potentially a business dream team when applied together.
The key is knowing when to be patient or take immediate action!
“When life seems hard, the courageous do not lie down and accept defeat; instead, they are all the more determined to struggle for a better future.”
—- Her Royal Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
Patience – “the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, problems, or suffering without becoming annoyed or anxious.”
Urgency – “importance requiring swift action.”
How could these two states of mind possibly complement each other?
Well, it’s about how and when we apply them in our business.
As business leaders, we need to have an element of both patience and urgency in our toolbox.
The art of being patient can only be perfected when we know where we’re headed and when we have a plan to get there……….that comes from our purpose, vision, why and goal setting, which are crucial parts of any successful business.
Yes, top business leaders have a long-term vision of where they are going. But they also recognise that, while they might be able to move some elements of their business as quickly as they would like, aspects of their business which involve external partners or arrangements often move at their own pace. And we have to be ok with that sometimes.
Vision is one of the critical cornerstones of outstanding leadership, and consistently communicating this is key to consistent and planned growth.
“Trees that are slow to grow, bear the best fruit.”
— Molière
The reality is that great things take time to build.
Nothing which brings impact, longevity and success is ever constructed overnight.
Our businesses are the same. Only those consistent steps taken over time will help us reach our destination.
That’s why it’s so important to know why we’re on the journey and where we’re headed – our patience comes from seeing the bigger vision ahead of us and knowing we are always heading towards it.
So, long term, patience is essential to our success. When we make decisions based on the long-term future of our business – which requires an element of patience – rather than our short-term future or quick wins, we will undoubtedly see better results over time.
“To lose patience is to lose the battle.”
– said, Mahatma Gandhi.
So, if patience is essential to the success of our business, where does urgency come in?
Well, for me, it’s like a seesaw. Urgency balances our sense of patience.
You see, while patience means having the ability to wait, it doesn’t mean we sit and wait without acting.
And that’s where urgency is critical.
For me, planned and unplanned urgency creates action. And action is needed to drive our business forward daily and get results.
We need patience when it comes to our long-term plans and our ultimate destination. But we need a sense of urgency in our day-to-day actions to make the progress we desire.
“I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do.”
―- Leonardo da Vinci
Equally, patience does not mean we waste time. That’s why we need urgency to help maximise our time.
Urgency helps us avoid procrastination, putting things off, and focusing on low-value tasks, which are massively detrimental to our business success.
A sense of urgency helps us be proactive, take opportunities, make changes fast and move forward at a pace- all of which are essential to our business success.
I passionately believe in the long-term future of our business – we’re five years into our journey, and I know we’ll achieve everything we want to; whether that takes the next 10, 15 or 20 years, I will be there patiently building the vision.
I show up every day with a sense of urgency. Tasks get done. Decisions get made. And results are delivered.
We cannot grow without them both playing a hand in the complete game of leadership, management and business success.
After all, in today’s world, if we are not continually moving our business forward, then we will be left behind at some point.
“If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.”
— Martin Luther King Jr
At our Business Growth Academy or Leading With Motivational Intelligence programme, we help business owners plan for their future while also learning to maximise and multiply their time daily. Identify, and take opportunities, manage change, develop top teams and focus on the tasks that will bring them the business success they desire.
If your business isn’t moving forward how you’d like, inject that sense of urgency by booking a chat with us to help you think bigger, be better and achieve more, starting immediately.
https://www.thepowerwithintraining.com/solutions
James Fleming
The Power Within Training,
The Motivational Intelligence Company
james@tpwtd.com
#motivationintelligence, #mentoring #business #growth, #thepowerwithintraining, #traininganddevelopment, #energytransition, #construction, #leadershipdevelopment, #thecompletegame
