Are You an Instant Gratification Junkie?
My husband and I just moved to San Diego from Berkeley, California. An hour from San Diego—and in a huge moving truck—we received a call from our new property manager.
The cleaning lady found an insect infestation in our new home, and we would not be able to move in until after they treated the place.
What ensued was a week-long delay. Our new home had to be treated and cleaned before we could fully unpack our boxes and move in.
During this time I was overcome with a sense of anxiety, and felt ungrounded not being able to fully settle in. These circumstances were out of our control and that left me feeling helpless, in a waiting game.
I wanted our home done now! I wanted to be settled and able to unpack right away. I found myself spending too many hours online looking for the perfect furniture. I made trips to Home Depot to purchase organization products, but this only contributed to my overwhelm of needing it all to be perfect—and soon.
A good friend warned me of this trap—of moving into a new place and placing internal pressure on myself to finish all the “to dos” as quickly as possible. I was reminded that great things take time. Creating big results is a journey and we can’t expect overnight success.
Instant Gratification in Business
I often see my clients’ desire for instant gratification: they want to make money now and get clients tomorrow! Of course, a business without income is not sustainable.
However, a successful business requires a strong foundation and a solid strategy before getting clients and creating income.
Instead I see people focus on income and wanting to make money right away. They will skip crucial business-building steps trying to find a shortcut to results. In the process, they shortchange themselves and sabotage their outcomes.
The Instant Gratification Trap
Most of us are used to getting what we want fast (hello two-day shipping with Amazon)! In many ways, we’re blessed to have so many resources available to us.
However, then we expect a fast turnaround in all aspects of life and get caught up in the “instant gratification” trap.
What follows an immediate, unrealistic expectation of results is often a disappointment that leads to giving up.
Business is about planting seeds and seeds take time to grow. If we get impatient and dig up the seeds before they’re ready to sprout, we end up killing the seeds. If you want to lose weight, giving in to that donut craving now won’t help you reach your long term goals.
Be Patient
A large part of your work as an entrepreneur is to exercise PATIENCE.
We must learn to keep a desire for instant gratification in check. We must not overlook important details or leave work unfinished in pursuit of speed.
If someone is fixing your house, you want them to take their time to make sure they do it correctly, right? Haven’t we all had an experience where someone did a quick but sloppy job that then required even more investments of resources and time to remedy the problem?
With business, if we do not have a handle on our Instant Gratification (IG) junkie we often find ourselves in a state of ongoing anxiety and stress.
How to Learn Patience as an Entrepreneur
Here are some recommendations to quiet that voice in your head that says “I need it now”:
1) For new entrepreneurs.
It is important to follow this first rule: Do not go into business if paying your bills is dependent on it succeeding.
It is very important to have a grounded, stable income from other sources so that you can truly give your business the long-term attention it deserves.
I get very frustrated by business coaches and gurus who promise instant, overnight success. Individuals investing their last dollar into programs rarely get the income they need in such a short turnaround. You’ll be able to curb your IG junkie if income desperation is not a factor.
2) Be sure your bigger vision and long-term strategy are clear.
We can give in to anxiety and stress if we don’t see the bigger picture. We need to take off the blinders. If we make decisions from a state of anxiety or desperation, they are usually the wrong ones. Plus, others can sense these states, which often pushes away the very results we want.
3) Stay consistent.
You can’t leap across a canyon to the other side, you cross by putting one foot in front of the other. Similarly, taking small actions every single day that are aligned to your bigger strategy gets you to your ultimate goal.
Distracted, “throw it at the wall to see if it sticks” action leads to fear and anxiety. Then we make quick decisions that are not in our best interest.
For the IG junkie, small wins are never good enough. Yet, it is important you acknowledge and validate these small actions as progress. Celebrate small results to give yourself the confidence to continue.
4) Inner-game practice.
It is important that every entrepreneur have a grounding exercise or support system.
When we’re stressed, we need someone to hold us accountable. This can help prevent actions that we may regret later. By now you’ve probably heard about the benefits of meditation, which is a great grounding tool.
But even taking a small pause, counting our breath for a few minutes in silence, going for a walk, or getting on the phone with a friend, can help get us off the ledge so we make good decisions.
Moving In
Two weeks after moving, our yard still looked like a junk garage. But I had organized our bathroom. Then our living room. I carved out small chunks of the house to create some small wins and quiet that IG junkie inside of me.
I found myself enjoying the process and focusing less on the outcome. In the words of one of my favorite bands, Aerosmith: “Life is a journey, not a destination.” Take time to enjoy the journey.
