Play The Long Game

Gentlemen,

My mom used to tell me “patience is a virtue”…

She’s probably right, but I’m a young man and I want everything yesterday.

I want ambitious goals to be achieved this week. I want to be married with kids tomorrow. I want to reach my potential by the end of the month. I want my business to do x and my podcast to do y by the time my 26th birthday comes around.

There’s a sense of urgency that I operate with - perhaps you can relate.

This pervasive urgency is more of a good thing than not, but last week I learned about 3 billionaires who changed my persepctive on patience and urgency: Sam Walton(founder of Walmart), Dietrich Mateschitz(founder of RedBull), and James Dyson(founder of Dyson).

Take a guess:

How old do you think Sam Walton was when he founded Walmart - the company that did more than $600 Billion in revenue last year alone?

How old do you think Dietrich Mateschitz was when he founded RedBull - the comapny that created an entire industry and changed sports forever?

How old do you think James Dyson was when he founded Dyson - the company that’s provided him with a $14 Billion net worth?

21? 28? 33? 37?…

No.

All 3 were in their 40s when they created and built world changing businesses.

Sam Walton pitched the idea of Walmart to another retailer and they laughed him out of the room, thinking it was an awful idea.

Dietrich Mateschitz worked for a shampoo and toothpaste company until he was 41 and decided to risk it all on his own vision.

James Dyson created 5,127 prototype vacuums before he created the world’s first bagless vacuum. Read that again… Talk about patience.

This inspires me greatly. It expands my time horizon which does 2 things:

1. Allows me to dream and ACT even bigger

2. Expands my field of view(my perspective) which increase my patience which increases my commitment.

There is a balance between urgency and patience. It’s a paradoxical middle ground where diamonds are struck.

Urgent to act on your vision; patient for fruition.

WIth no urgency, no action will be taken. With no patience every dream will die.

Sam Walton’s family is worth more than $250 Billion because he exercised patience.

Dietrich Mateschitz built impenetrable wealth and literally changed the sporting world forever because he exercised patience.

James Dyson invented a product that changed the world and provided his family with an uncrossable financial moat because he exercised patience.

To win you must first survive and to survive you must be patient.

Take a deep breath, young man.

Take some pressure off your back and realize that it WILL take time to realize your vision.

Act intently and with conviction, set goals with timelines, but understand that God’s delay is not God’s denial. Keep going, stay in the game, and EXPAND YOUR TIME HORIZON. God willing, we have a long time left of this wonderful life and in due time, the vision will come to pass.

How would your actions and demeanor change if you knew your vision wouldn’t be realized until 20 years from now? Would you still go for it? What would you do today and how would you do it?

How would your actions and demeanor change if you knew your vision could be realized next year? What would you do today and with how much intensity & urgency would you do it?

Patience is a virtue.

Onward & Upward,

Nolan