Open the Door | The Art of Waiting
In seeking opportunity, moments of self-doubt and frustration may arise. Just don’t get comfortable waiting for someone to open an automatic sliding door. Be proactive in your search. Yes, patience is a virtue. Occasionally, people and opportunities will find you. If you are tired of hearing crickets, then do something about it. There is an art to waiting; it’s called productive patience. Waiting when you don’t have to is an example of self-imposed rejection.
Why Lines Form
How do you know if you are unnecessarily waiting? Exploring the formation of lines may offer a fresh outlook. Lines form for two reasons: a sincere need for the line, or the assumption that you are required to wait for what you want. The best example deals with the women’s restroom. For whatever reason, maybe not enough female architects, there are never enough stalls.
Inside a picturesque five-thousand-seat venue in Los Angeles, there is a ground-floor bathroom with ten individual stalls. When I entered the bathroom, there was a line of at least seven women. After patiently waiting, I noticed, like others had, that the line was not moving. The women murmured about how people were taking forever. A couple of women hinted at wanting to glance under the stalls to see if there were feet. No one did—except me. I walked to the front of the line and scanned underneath. Guess what? Every single one of those ten stalls was empty.
Believe it or not, educated and beautiful women were waiting in line for absolutely no reason. I immediately started directing the women who were ahead of me to the stalls. Some of them, even though they had seen me look under, were hesitant to push the door open. Eventually, it was my turn. As I exited the restroom, the line had reformed, but it was moving like it should have been in the first place.
I’m not sure if that moment was as significant to each woman. It was a bathroom epiphany! I wondered how often this happens and if it were applicable to waiting around in life. Due to that experience, I pay closer attention when I am in public restrooms. Believe it or not, it has happened at least three other times at different venues. One time, there were only three stalls, and all were empty, yet women waited their turn.
I wondered if this would ever happen in the men’s bathroom if they had stalls. Are women politer, more patient, or more accepting? Then once at the mall, there was a single bathroom with a full door where you could not see underneath. A guy was waiting to use the restroom, so I waited behind him. Since I am a line expert, I wasted no time with waiting and immediately asked him if someone was inside. He said yes, sharing that he had tried to push the door open, but it wouldn’t budge. I then asked if he physically saw a person go inside the restroom. He said no. I asked if he minded if I tried opening the door. He motioned in agreement. I pushed and leaned my body into the door, and it opened with no one inside.
Is that happening to your business? To your career? Was there an open door that you missed? A product you should have created? A company you should have started? But due to fear or perhaps a lack of resources, a more resourceful person walked right in to your door of opportunity.
When I was in college, I used to drink my slushies through Twizzlers. Years later, licorice straws for slushies are available at movie theaters and 7-Eleven. The idea originated in my head, but I lacked the drive to execute my vision. After all, it wasn’t even a product that I thought of as a business, just something I enjoyed. Although life is about enjoying precious moments, stop just talking about promising ideas and implement them.
I guarantee there are opportunities behind closed doors that appear locked. After you lean in, push your creative boundaries and forge ahead. Waiting on a yes is counterproductive when your yes is waiting for you to create it.
Daytime Moon
If you ask ten people if they saw the moon in the sky today, they will say no. Now, if you tell people to look for the moon the next morning and ask those same ten people, they will admit to seeing the moon.
One day, driving to school in the hustle and bustle of my life, my toddler son insisted that he saw the moon. I disagreed with him. As we passionately discussed the topic, I stayed focused on weaving between the rush-hour traffic. Finally, he demanded with a cry, “Mommy, I promise I see the moon. Just look.”
I gave the sky a pointless glance, and to my surprise, there was the moon. I couldn’t believe it. I thought well, maybe this is rare. Then after a discussion with my son, he acknowledged seeing it every morning along the drive to school. In researching science, he was right.
The moon is visible on a clear morning nearly every day, yet most people are surprised to see it or learn that this is a normal occurrence. It was normal to my toddler son, who had not a care in the world except enjoying his ride to school. As each of us hustles through life, we undoubtedly miss open doors. Did you happen to capture the moon today?