These days a little patience in our society could go a long way in solving many problems we face. Especially when it comes to our money. I mean think about it. We live in a world that has rush rush, buy now pay later, gotta have it NOW type of thinking. So many people are willing to put money into the next 'sure' investment or other get rich quick schemes. What ever happen to good old fashioned patience in getting what we want? Has this all too important virtue really been foolishly thrown by the wayside? It seems like now days adults walk around acting like a kid in a candy store throwing a tantrum. Only instead of a candy store it's the Mall, Electronics R Them or Big Box store inc. We use rationalizations like, "I work hard so I deserve it" or "I need it" because it's safer, a good investment, or "it makes me look sophisticated or smart." Or my personal favorite- "I can pay the monthly payment so I must have the money to buy it." These excuses are nothing but a bunch of garbage that make it all better when the bills come due. While all of this stuff is nice to have, we delude ourselves into thinking that we must have it, no matter what the cost.
I believe the amount of patience one has is in direct proportion to how much wealth one can acquire. You see, your income is your most powerful tool in building wealth. If it all goes out the door in payments to banks and corporations then you can't build wealth effectively. This is true whether you make $50,000 or $500,000 a year. In the average working lifetime you see at least a million dollars pass through your fingers. How much are you going to hold onto? If you lack patience, then you will always be in debt, going from loan to loan all because you want it now. Most poor financial decisions can be traced back to a lack of patience. Ironic when you consider that newlyweds spend the first 7 years of marriage trying to attain what took their parents 30 years to achieve.
I have said before and I'm sure I'll say it again, the key to getting out of debt is to have focused intensity over the long haul. This focus requires diligence and of course patience. I know these concepts might seem a little abstract so let me give you an example of how patience really pays off. The average car payment in this country is around $478 a month. That's a pretty big chunk of change to be forking out every month for something that is going to go down in value every year. Think about this instead. If you saved up and paid cash for say a $2000 car and then continue to save what you would have spent in a car payment. You could easily upgrade with to a better car in a matter of months. Over a lifetime, these car payments can cost you dearly. If you show patience and invest that car payment you could easily have close to a million dollars by the time you retire. Last time I checked, a $2000 car in good condition will still get you work and back just as well as a $20,000 car. It might not be as pretty or smell as nice but for a the time being, it's worth it's weight in gold- literally.
Patience will pay off every time you apply it, whether it's buying a house, car, big screen TV, furniture or anything really. It's one of those behaviors that again separates the rich from the poor. Like diligence and focus, it gives you perspective of what's really important in the long run. This isn't to say that you can't ever go out and buy nice stuff. But it means that you just shouldn't rush out and buy it all right now. Chances are that you'll value the stuff more if you had to sacrifice more to get it.
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