patience | The Caleb Barney Collection

Discipline, forward-thinking, and your success

Do what you need to do now, even if you don’t want to, so you can set yourself up for success and reap the rewards later. — “I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.’” – Muhammad Ali

Do what you need to do now, even if you don’t feel like it, so you can set yourself up for success and reap the rewards later.

Does a farmer plant seeds only when he feels like it? No, because then when he needs to harvest his crop, it won’t be there!

Success takes time, it takes hard work, and it takes consistent action. If you work out once, you’re not going to have six pack abs. If you save money to invest one month, you’re not going to be able to retire off of it. But if you do those things consistently over time, you’ll eventually achieve things that most people aren’t disciplined enough to do.

“Suffer” now. “Sacrifice” now. Live below your means, take care of your mind, body, and spirit now. Do these things consistently and continued take massive actions daily, weekly, and monthly towards your goals, and you will achieve success. Think about your future self, not just about what you feel like doing right now.

Practicing patience

The day you plant the seed is not the day you eat the fruit.

Most things in life that are worthwhile are either difficult to obtain, take effort, or take time to develop/grow. Some of the best things in life require all three. For example, having a strong relationship (whether between your spouse, best friend, or co-worker) takes time. You don’t have a deep relationship with them the first time you meet them. It takes effort on your part to listen, to show you care for them, etc. The longer you do this, the stronger your relationship grows.

The same can be said for physical success (building/shaping your body how you want it to look), mental (learning a new subject or language), financial (accumulating wealth), or at work (you have to start somewhere, and that place usually isn’t at the top). Most great things take time. We don’t plant the seed and eat the fruit the same day, just as we don’t do one workout and get a six pack the same day. The overnight success is the outlier.

Practice patience. Be patient with others, but be patient with yourself and your goals too. Don’t give up just because you’re not seeing results as quickly as you want. Eventually, if you are consistently working towards your goals, you can achieve great things. Just make sure you’re setting S.M.A.R.T. goals towards things that are actually meaningful to you. If you really want to achieve them, you’ll find a way. If not, you’ll find an excuse.

Facing fear

Everyone is wired to be fearful. It is how you respond to that fear that determines your likelihood of success. Sometimes it’s best to act/be the aggressor, while other times it’s best to sit back and let the storm pass. But regardless of what is the best course of action, the number one thing to remember is to not panic. Control your emotions, logically decide what should be done, then go do it.

On waiting…

We all should practice the art of waiting more. We have become so used to this “microwave world,” where we can have nearly anything we want instantaneously.

Don’t want to sit through commercials? Hit skip ads on YouTube.

Can’t find anything good on tv? Go to your favorite streaming service.

Bored? Scroll mindlessly on social media.

The list goes on and on. It’s even that easy to buy something we want. Don’t get me wrong, I love Amazon because it’s so convenient, but that’s their business model (and they’re very good at it). They make it so convenient that you don’t think twice about buying an item you literally just discovered.

But we would be better served in the long run if we waited to get that “thing.” Try waiting for 48 hours before you buy it. Would you still want it? If you think you still want it, go to the store to buy it. Is it worth the inconvenience of you getting your shoes on, driving into town, waiting in line, and then paying for it? And what if you only allowed yourself to pay in cash? That way, if you don’t have the money right then and there (both in your bank account and physically, in your hand), you can’t buy it on credit. It feels different when you hand over some money and get less in return (as opposed to handing plastic over and getting the same piece of plastic returned to you). Psychologically, it feels more painful, even though you’re paying the same amount for the same item. While I like to optimize every aspect of my life (working on efficiency and convenience), it is important to remember we should focus on effectiveness over efficiency. Just because something is easy doesn’t make it better…

And if you can teach yourself to not always get what you want, when you want it, you will be better off in the long run. Better off financially (not spending money), mentally (building up a resiliency so when things don’t go your way, you’ll be able to cope better), and possibly better off spiritually (giving you more time/money to focus on loved ones and the environment around you, instead of focusing on material objects to eventually go in the trash).

So, how long can you wait before you get that next “must have” item? Don’t let lifestyle creep take over. Don’t let your inner child take over (“I need this toy now!”)…Practice patience. Practice waiting. Practice being fiscally responsible. You will be better off for it.

Be yourself

It will always be easier to blend in with the crowd or to disappear by not speaking an original thought. When you’re different, it makes people uneasy. They want you to believe the same things they do.

In years past, it seemed like people were more understanding of differing opinions and realized that while others may not believe the same things they do, they’re still not “bad” people…

But in today’s world, where cancel culture reigns supreme, if you disagree with someone, instead of having a debate on the topic, they try to get you fired or silence you in some way. They try to pressure you into speaking or acting like everyone else.

Your challenge is to stand up for what you believe in. Don’t take the easy way out and fall in line with the crowd. Be able to think things through on your own and articulate your reasoning. And if others disagree with you? Don’t try to silence them. Try to understand them. Once you understand their viewpoint, it will be easier to try to persuade them to your way of thinking (or for you to change your thinking with the new information you have). Sometimes others just need to be heard – and nobody can hear what the other person is saying in a shouting match.