Member-only story
If You Wanted It Yesterday You Should’ve Asked Two Days Ago
Patience is both an art and a virtue
A thing can be right or right now, though very rarely both.
Those 12 words have followed me from job to job for nearly a dozen years. They are printed on a sheet of paper (see below) and taped visibly in every office I’ve occupied since 2010.
If one motto could explain my thoughts about life, it would be that, and it works well in our jobs and everywhere else. I share it aloud with people who are trying to hasten through something haphazardly — and say it quietly in my mind if I find myself rushing.
Time is money, right?
This philosophy of hustle is deeply woven into the fabric of everything we do, especially with work. But the older I get, the more impressed I am with people who find the sweet spot of settling into a task or problem before jumping into action.
“I need an answer, and I needed it yesterday!”
We’ve all had people throw a line like that in our direction. My usual response is something like, “Well, in that case, you should’ve asked two days ago.”
Most of us have actually become pretty adept at keeping up with high-speed demand, but what is that really doing for us? Is it making us…
