Handling Delays & Inconveniences Easily

At first I grumbled at the construction. A major thoroughfare I frequently used was being closed due to a bridge restructure. The detour would take extra time, making me get up early to accommodate the delay.

The route that took the shortest time led me along a horse farm and family amusement center. Lined with trees and a walking path, the narrow road took you into the rural parts of suburbia. On my third trip along this road, something happened. I started noticing the Clydesdale horses running in the sun sprinkled fields. One day I saw a raccoon skirt across the lane, and a red-tailed hawk alight upon a utility pole. Suddenly, I stopped grumbling and began relishing the peace found on this road less traveled.

A similar event happened when, while shopping in a department store, the power went out. I was in the check-out lane behind several people. Everyone began grumbling, including me. The checkers had no idea what to do and my blood started boiling. Since I really needed the items in my cart, I tried to calculate how much time I was going to lose due to this inconvenience.

As I tapped my foot on the floor, a man beside me started chatting. We had several things in common and found a few things to laugh about. We talked until the lights returned and the twenty minutes seemed like five.

Finding joy in inconvenience can sometimes be difficult. We are always in a hurry and the smallest problems can seem huge when they interfere with our time. Some ways to redirect our thinking lie in simply observing and experiencing new things.

Sometimes what we see is dwarfed by sameness. We go to work at the same time, travel the same route, associate with the same people. On those days when we are forced to try something new, or go in a new direction, start observing the environment around you. Look up high, look beside you, look ahead. Search for that morsel of uniqueness.

If the restaurant you normally go to for lunch is out of your favorite entrée, study the order board and see what you’ve been missing.

Delayed by a phone cue? Find a window to look out of. See what’s happening right before your eyes as you wait for a live person to answer your questions.

The traffic is horrific. You are at a standstill and you realize you may be there for a long time. Instead of tapping your fingers loudly against the steering wheel, change the radio station to one you normally ignore, maybe talk or classical. Hear new ideas or new tunes.

Listen to your thoughts. What insight is nagging you about a problem at work or one at home? Do you hear the answer once the volume of the world has been turned down? Take these moments when you are forced to be still. Being still is something we do little of in these times, but it is a valuable way to reconnect with you.

Perhaps one of the hardest things to find these days is patience. The guy ahead of you at the fast food restaurant acts like he’s never ordered before. He stands there muttering, trying to decide what he will eat today. Sure you want to scream, you’re on a time limit, but instead start thinking about what fun thing you will do once you are home and have finished with all your chores. Write in your head that next great letter or paper. Count the change in your pocket. Glance through the photos in your wallet.

Your computer is slow. You need to get your work finished. It’s kicking and threatening to explode. Walk away. Count to 50. Make a cup of tea. Do another task. Wait for the crisis to figure itself out, and in the mean time, give yourself a little comfort by being patient.

Finding joy in inconvenience isn’t always easy, but once you learn to redirect your thinking, it can open up a world you didn’t know existed.