What To Do When Waiting

So let me offer a preface to this post. I wrote this about a month ago, when I was in a season of waiting; however, things have changed, and I have started an internship, and I am busy again. Nevertheless, here are some of my thoughts on what to do when waiting…

Have you ever been stuck in a season of life where all you can do is wait? Like literally, all you do is wake up, and wait. Every moment of your existence shouts for things to hurry up, for things to resolve, for things to begin, to end, for something to happen. But all you can do is wait… patiently… Wait for the alarm clock to go off, so you can get out of bed. Wait for your eyes to become heavy, so you can go to sleep. Wait until your stomach becomes hungry, so you can grab something to eat. Wait for the shift to end, so you can go home. Wait for Starbucks frappuccino happy hour, so you can get your frappuccino. Wait for the end of the week, so you can wait for the end of the weekend, and so on, and so on, ad nauseum.

Life comes to us in seasons. Sometimes those seasons are busy, and crazy, and stressful, and good. Take for example, any semester at college. If you take an appropriate amount of hours and are involved in an appropriate amount of things, life is busy and good. However, that season of business comes with its own unique set of temptations and trials, just as a season of waiting has its own temptations and trials.

In my own experience, I handle seasons of busyness much better than I do seasons of waiting. Take further for example, the breaks immediately following a semester at college. Whether its summer or winter break, both are seasons of intermediate waiting, and I suck when it comes to handling these seasons of waiting. I don’t really know why that is, but I cannot internally motivate myself without having just a dash of external motivation. I sleep in. I mope. I pick my nose. I twiddle my thumbs and so on.

So maybe you’re like me, and you handle the schedule of a busy life much better than the schedule of a waiting life. Here’s some tips I’m going to work at applying and hopefully they will help me overcome the monotony of this waiting season.

1. Use this season as a time of introspection.

One of the cons of the busy life is that there is little time for introspection, and consequently, little time to check-in on your goals in life. It becomes all too easy during a busy season to forget your goals in life, to forget why you are doing the things you are doing. So use the time in between seasons of busyness to reorient yourself towards your goals. It’s also a good time to change your goals. If you realize you’re heading in a direction you’d rather not go, well, good news, use this time to change. Let me also say that introspection is not for the faint of heart. Taking a long, hard, critical look at who you are can be painful and extremely revealing. However, in an age of social media where artificiality seems to be the norm, introspection is highly rewarding, because it promotes genuineness.

2. Don’t waste this season on yourself.

As important as it is to introspect during a time of waiting, don’t use it all on yourself. Find someone or something that you can pour your time and effort into. That someone could be the neighbor across the street, or the barista at your local starbucks, or the local church, or a local service organization. I don’t know who or what that looks like for you, but find someone and invest your time in them. Go out of your way to spend time with them, because in the end, investing in a relationship is one of the only investments that will last for eternity.

3. Explore your passions.

I love to write. I really do, and I honestly never thought I would hear myself say that. I believe writing is a passion of mine, and disseminating information via conceptual ideas on a digital piece of paper just so happens to be something I really enjoy. It’s 12:35 AM as I write this. I don’t typically do things at 12:35 AM, unless they’re things I really enjoy. As we all know, sleep is the next option at 12:35 AM and sleep is very high on my priority list. In this season of waiting, I have written/typed something every day, and I have enjoyed every moment of doing so. On a serious note, do something you wouldn’t normally do. If you are desperate beyond all measure, find that friend I mentioned in #2 and go visit an art museum, or a park, or whatever. Do something you normally wouldn’t do during a season of busyness. I think you’d be surprised at what you might find hiding in the city and behind the faces you see everyday.

Fortunately, as I mentioned earlier, my season of waiting is now over. It took me a while to finally put this blog out there, but I’m now busy with the aforementioned internship, learning how to function in a workplace environment. This season of waiting taught me a lot, and I know I’ll be more prepared for the next time I find myself wondering what to do with all the free time I have. Hope you enjoyed the post!

Some questions….

What are some of the things you do when you find yourself in a season of waiting?

Are you a person who handles seasons of busyness or seasons of waiting better?

How can you be effective and accomplished in either season?

Would love to hear your thoughts! Comment below or email me!

seth.brown@eagles.oc.edu