Did you just cringe? Patience can be difficult, especially if you’re a business owner trying to get your company off the ground. There are so many moving parts and processes that sometimes it seems like everything is working against you at once. You want to grow and expand your business, but things seem to take forever and feel like they never end. You’re eager for new clients, but getting them takes time. You have ideas for new products or services that you want to launch, but it takes months or even years of planning before they come to fruition. All of these things require patience in business. But it’s not always easy to have. If this sounds familiar, don’t worry! You’re not the only one who struggles with patience in business. And while it isn’t an easy skill to develop, there are ways that you can do so over time and make positive strides with practice and consistency. Here are 5 ways to develop patience in your business.

Breathe and take a moment

One way to develop patience in your business is to breathe when you need to. One of the biggest causes of impatience in business is stress. When we’re stressed, we tend to want everything to be done yesterday. We want things to go our way, and we want to see results fast. But business can’t always work that way. It isn’t a win-or-lose scenario. The best thing you can do when you start to feel stressed or impatient is to breathe. Take a moment and focus on your breathing. Slow it down and focus on each inhale and exhale. This can help relax you and keep you grounded in the present moment. It can help you get out of your head and put things into perspective. It can help you gain a more realistic view of the situation and come at it with a more patient and relaxed outlook.

Set deadlines and be intentional about them

Another way to develop patience in your business is to set realistic deadlines for key projects and milestones. This may seem like an oxymoron and contrary to what you’ve just read about the benefits of patience, but the key is to be intentional about them. Don’t just set deadlines for everything. Set deadlines for the things that really matter and that, if they don’t happen, will move your business backwards. Set deadlines for the things that, if they happened sooner, could really propel your business forward.

If you set deadlines for everything, you are likely setting yourself up for failure, and you’ll only be creating more stress and impatience. But if you set deadlines for the things that matter, it can help you stay focused and motivated. It can help you work towards your goals instead of feeling like you’re spinning your wheels and going nowhere. It can help you gain momentum and feel like things are happening. And deadlines are a great way to push yourself to be more patient. They can help you plan things out and take the pressure off of yourself to have everything happen as quickly as you want it to.

Give things time to develop

There are a few things in business that just take time to develop. Yes, you can do things to speed up the process, and you should do those things, but don’t expect things to happen overnight or even in six months. Give everything the time that it needs to develop. This could be relationships, building your brand, or launching new products or services. There are things, like building a great team or brand, that take time and consistent effort over a long period of time before you see any significant results. This can be very difficult for someone who is impatient, but it is important to understand that this is normal and expected.

There are no shortcuts to things like building relationships, growing your brand, or discovering your unique selling proposition. These things take time and consistent work over a long period of time before they can be fully realized and utilized. So, don’t get frustrated and impatient when you see things taking time. Be patient and understand that it takes time for things to develop and grow.

Use your breaks as a moment to reset

Every so often, whether it’s monthly or quarterly, take a few hours or a full day off. Put everything on pause. Take a break from social media, emails, phone calls, and everything else that has the potential to stress you out or make you feel impatient. Go for a walk, spend time with friends or family, or do something that helps you unplug and reset. This break will help you reset your mind and refresh so that you come back to your business feeling refreshed and with a new outlook on everything. It will help you step back and look at your business with a different perspective. It can also help you come up with new ideas or ways to tackle problems in your business that have been frustrating you or making things difficult. It can be a positive experience that helps you develop patience in your business.

Turn frustration into determination

Finally, when things get frustrating and you feel like you’re running out of patience, try to turn that frustration into determination. Be honest with yourself about why you feel frustrated and where that frustration is coming from. Then, use that frustration as fuel to push yourself forward. Use it to push yourself to be better and to improve your business. Use it to push yourself to be the best version of yourself that you can be. You can’t change the past, but you can change the present and future. So, don’t let frustration hold you back. Use it to drive you forward and motivate you to do better.