Leo Tolstoy said, "The two most powerful warriors are patience and time."
If I had read that quote 25 years ago, it would have meant little to me, but today I have a few "business battle scars" that could have easily been avoided had I listened to what Tolstoy said.
A few years ago, I had a speaking engagement in Hawaii. I arrived about midnight and a driver met me at the airport to take me to my hotel. He was young man with a real passion for life. On the way to the hotel, he shared his love for surfing. I asked him if it was dangerous and he said, "Very dangerous, if you don’t know what you’re doing."
He said that many people drown when a large wave takes them under and instincts tell them to fight to get back to the surface. The key, he said is to do just the opposite; let your body go limp and the currents will bring you to the surface.
As a leader there are times to act, and there are times to wait for the right answers to surface. Remember the quote from a very wise man…Benjamin Franklin,
"He that can have patience can have what he will."
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
I agree with what was said above about when someone is a leader, there are times to act, and there are times to wair for right anwsers to surface. In order to have patience, you have to have a love for time. Time is everything when it comes down to it. WIhtout time, patience wouldn’t exsist, and we wouldn’t be able wait for the right anwsers to come to the surface.
I agree with Joe’s statement. Once you have endured the many obstacles throughout life, you will realize that the best things in life come with both time and patience. The most successful people in America had to be patient and continue to work hard at something over and over again until they were able to achieve their goal.
A wise man once told me to ” roll with the punches.” That is similar to what the surfer said, just let the current take you, dont try to fight it. Life throws many obstacles at you, some you can fight and overcome, but others you just got take the situation at hand and roll with it. Patients is a trait that many dont possess, but wish they could. You cant go out and force things to happen, good things will happen when you are patient.
The comparison of surfing to leadership is surprisingly accurate; if a leader is always fighting to get to or stay at the top, then he will never succeed. A leader should always lead with passion, however patience is an extremely important characteristic of a leader. If a leader can be patient, but stay passionate, then that leader will be the most successful.
I could never teach any of my children patience! this has been the topic of many a decussion as they have grown. I love the way it is decribed and put here.