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The Problem with Being Too Patient

Scott H. Young
Mind Cafe
Published in
5 min readJun 16, 2023

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Mastery is often associated with patience. After all, getting good at things takes a long time, and only those who are in it for the long haul can expect to reach the pinnacle of their craft.

Given that common association, I found it interesting to hear the opposite perspective from Butch Harmon, Tiger Wood’s coach during the best years of his golfing career:

Those golfers who insist on being patient and letting the game come to them rarely play up to their potential. They play well, maybe win a time or two, but they never reach the great heights their talents dictate. The players who want to learn, get better, and win right now — this second, no waiting — are the ones who exceed their natural abilities and become the game’s great overachievers.

Harmon later goes on to explain why Tiger was one of the least-patient people he had ever met:

When Tiger wants to do something with his golf swing, he wants it done now. No phasing it in and no long-term planning. Once he decides to make a change, he makes it fully and immediately. Then he works himself ragged until he perfects it, exhibiting little or no patience along the way.

In Harmon’s view, patience was often wishful thinking: the hope of future proficiency preventing you from really working today at what you want to improve.

The Five-Minutes-Per-Day Problem and Learning Hard Things

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Mind Cafe
Mind Cafe

Published in Mind Cafe

Relaxed, inspiring essays about happiness.

Scott H. Young
Scott H. Young

Written by Scott H. Young

Author of WSJ best selling book: Ultralearning www.scotthyoung.com | Twitter: @scotthyoung

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