Ok so maybe that’s a little too dramatic a headline.  How patient are you? Do you get frustrated when your phone or computer takes several seconds to respond? When was the last time you called someone who didn’t have voicemail?  How willing are you to do the work that needs to be done to achieve your goals?

I am fortunate to have a range of clients at various stages in their businesses or careers and there seems to be a common thread of speed of success. I worked with a career client last year who was gung-ho about the process until he reached the research stage; people weren’t calling back and decisions took “forever”!  He has a new career in sales and loves it. I was flattered when he thanked me for keeping him centered and realistic and not expecting things to happen overnight.

Many in business are similar. I often hear I went to a networking and I even followed up why haven’t they hired me?  I sent in the proposal yesterday when will they call me?  Let’s get real!!!!  Malcolm Gladwell in his book “Outliers” talks about taking 10,000 hours to be an expert and sites the Beatles, Bill Gates and Steve Jobs among many others.  Seriously, how long has it taken for you to achieve where you are? Ask any overnight success how long that “night” was.

Success takes time and it takes planning!  If you are running all over the place I wonder how many opportunities you have missed. When you are networking and having conversations do you have a time limit or are you really listening and thinking about opportunities?  There is someone at my chamber who proudly says people have 90 seconds to let him know their value before he walks away.  Yikes!

Set realistic goals and be rational about how long it will take to achieve them.  If it takes less time, great, enjoy the fruits of the labor, but be prepared for longer than expected and see what else you can do in the meantime to grow the business change careers or just seek new opportunities.