From time to time, we all have to wait, whether we like it or not and if that means a seven-hour wait at the accident and emergency hospital, then you have my sympathy. Taking your turn is part of our culture and most of us don’t like the person who suddenly joins the trolley queue from the side and they usually get called out. Also on the naughty list are those motorway drivers who weave in and out on the inside. This isn’t an end-of-year moan, more a plea for tolerance and being ready to slow down. Drivers who normally pretend they haven’t seen you are more inclined to let you out of a side-turning at this time of year.
When you’re young you are so excited about presents you want them right now. Some kids even searched the top of the wardrobe and found their presents as yet unwrapped. But then the joy of discovery was gone and they had to fake their reaction when it came time to Christmas Day.
You’ve probably heard of the Stanford marshmallow experiment on delayed gratification which was conducted in the 1960s. It’s the one where a child is offered a choice between one small treat now or two small treats if they wait for the researcher to return. Children who waited for the larger reward tended to have better life outcomes, including higher SAT scores, better educational attainment, and lower body mass index (BMI). It showed that self-control is important to success in life.
It’s hard for young people today and parents – and it’s very tempting to get what you want immediately. I do it. If there’s a book that I want I generally go on Amazon and it’s often there the next day. But when I was young, I had to save my pocket money for what seemed forever. However, it did mean something to me when the day came to get what I wanted.
I think it’s good for kids to wait for what they want. In a small way being in a show teaches them to prepare, take their time and learn to do a proper job. Occasionally we meet children who expect it all to happen without making an effort but most do and they have the real pleasure of having earned the performance. They worked for it in the same way as I did with my pocket money. It’s more than willpower, it’s an attitude to what you do and what you will do to get what you want.
