Reminder: Wellness is not available for Next-Day Delivery

The best things in life take time, and your well-being is no different.

Results take time. Intellectually, we know that, but sometimes our expectations don’t line up with what we know. Just because you ate a salad for lunch today, doesn’t mean you’ll wake up with 6-pack abs tomorrow, and just because you launched a new wellness program at work, doesn’t mean your employee wellness woes are gone. Success doesn’t happen overnight, and most of us know that. We also know that success doesn’t come without a whole lot of grit, determination, and hard work– but for some reason there is always one key component that seems to get overlooked, and it’s absolutely critical in ensuring lasting success in any healthy venture. That component is patience.

One of my biggest frustrations working in the wellness field is the lack of patience. If you haven’t lost 5 pounds in a week, then your new diet is a wash, and if you haven’t gotten at least 50% participation in your new wellness program in the first month, then it’s a total failure. Thanks to modern technology, we live in a world of instant gratification, and it’s causing us to set unrealistic expectations for our health and well-being. In a recent interview with Simon Sinek about Millennials in the Workplace, Sinek perfectly summarizes this new reality we live in:

“You want to buy something, you go on Amazon and it arrives the next day. You want to watch a movie, log on and watch a movie. You don’t check movie times. You want to watch a TV show, binge. You don’t even have to wait week-to-week-to-week… Everything you want you can have instantaneously.”

It’s because of these expectations that we have become completely disillusioned by what it means, and what it takes to be successful when pursuing health. We have come to expect results to happen overnight, just like we have come to expect consumer goods and services to be readily available at our fingertips. You didn’t get out of shape in a week, and you’re not going to get into shape in a week. Your employees didn’t become unhealthy overnight, your wellness program isn’t going to solve that overnight.

To ensure lasting success and to get the results you want, individually or collectively, you have to be patient. You have to be able to walk one mile before you can run five, and you have to be realistic about the goals you set for yourself or for your employees. Several meta-studies show that organizations with effective approaches to wellness have programs with a substantial ROI that typically grows over time, and Larry S. Chapman, M.P.H., an expert on wellness programs, has discovered that it generally takes three to five years for wellness programs to realize their full impact.

Now don’t get me wrong: there is certainly a difference between being patient and being obstinate. Remember that old adage that says, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results”? So, if your approach is consistently generating negative results, or literally creating no impact, it’s definitely worth reconsidering your strategy. My point is not that you should never optimize your approach: just realize that reaching the goal you want will likely take time. If you’re getting some positive results, then keep at it, and you will get there.

If you’re getting discouraged, I would urge you to take a look back at where you started. Chances are, amidst the setbacks, frustrations, and upsets, there are successes, advancements, and there are results.

Just because you haven’t crossed the finish line yet, doesn’t mean you’re out of the race. You owe it to yourself (and to your employees) to keep moving forward, to be patient, and to be relentless in the pursuit of your goals.

So stay strong, stay committed, and be patient in whatever goal it is that you are pursuing!

Working on a goal and need some accountability or support? Share what you’re working toward, in the comments!