When it feels like the clock is ticking and you haven’t got to where you want to yet, the feelings of impatience can be a bitch! Perhaps the relationship that you’re craving hasn’t appeared yet, or the personal goals you have still feel like lofty pie-in-the-sky dreams. Or maybe your goals feel like they’re on hold because the day-to-day reality of life means that other things are requiring your attention right now (such as putting a meal on the table). Whatever it is, feeling impatient can dominate your emotions and start driving you mad.

So while you’re waiting to get from here to there, how can you manage the feelings of frustration? Here are the 4 keys things I do to make sure my goals don’t stop me from being happy where I currently am.

•  Practice Gratitude

Impatience comes from wanting something that isn’t here yet. Wanting something more, or having a desire to be further along the path isn’t in itself a bad thing. But if you get out of balance the danger is that by focusing on what you want, you begin to forget all that you already have. I recommend keeping a gratitude journal and at the end of each day taking a moment to jot down 5 things from the preceding day that you are truly grateful for. This will bring you back to a focus on what you have, not what you have not yet got.

• Let Go of the Attachment to the Goal

Goals are important, but fixating on them is not useful. You have to have the courage to let go of the desire to control the outcome. This is easier said than done, but it is possible. Once you set a goal you need to, at some level, let-it-go. Like a cake that needs to be baked requires undisturbed time in the oven to cook, your goal also needs time to come to fruition. You need to have faith that if you do what you can, the rest will be taken care of. A belief in something bigger than yourself definitely helps with this one (call it God, the Universe).

When I set my goals I tell myself “If it is not this, it will be something better” and I trust that things will work in my favor. Relinquishing some level of control in the process has allowed me to make peace with my impatience. I recognize I can only do what I can do.

•  Take the Next Step

When you have big goals, they can start to feel overwhelming. And if you focus too much on the end outcome (it may be to get married, write a book, start a business) the frustration levels can feel really high when you haven’t got there yet.  So what can you do instead? That is the question you need to ask yourself.

I like to view goals as a journey, and when you are on the path the ONLY thing you need to be concerned with are the next few steps. You are where you are, you can’t change that, so what are the next couple of steps you can take that will move you a little bit closer to your big goal. If it is getting married, what is a step you can take today to increase the likelihood of that happening? For example you could create an internet-dating profile or join a group in order to increase your chances of finding the right guy. If you want to start a business, what is one small step you can take today to get you one step closer to that goal? It may be starting an online blog, investigating a course or speaking to a business owner in the industry you’re interested in about how to get started.

Don’t get so caught up on the big goal that you neglect to see all the little steps you could be taking to get you one step closer.

•  Stay Centered

I believe staying connected with our center should be a priority for everyone, but it is even more important when you are struggling with feeling impatient. Being centered allows you to feel connected with the current moment and stops your mind from trying to live in the future. It will help stop your future goals from dominating your thoughts, and bring you back to now. It literally brings you back down to earth.

We will all have different things that will work best for us. Personally, I stay centered through meditating. I encourage you to think about what “being centered” means to you and find ways to embrace this in your life. It might be connecting with nature, practicing your faith, focusing on deep-breathing for a couple of minutes a day, prayer, taking a daily walk or focusing on bringing yourself back to the moment through mindfulness. Whatever works for you, practice it daily.

If you have goals for your future, you will inevitably feel inpatient at times. But it isn’t having goals that causes the problem. Having goals is an important part of knowing where we are going, and giving us something to strive towards. The problem lies in desiring our goals so much that we get stuck in our frustration of not being at some future point. It’s important to find a balance between desire and staying grounded and these 4 points should help you do just that.

Hi. I’m Kate Snowise, and Thrive.How is my business-baby. I’m a kickass Life & Well-Being Coach who helps people who want the good stuff out of life, get it. I have an MSc in Psychology (the happy kind of psychology that concentrates on what is right with you). I offer individual coaching and personality assessment to help people clarify their thinking, grow into their potential, reconnect with themselves and regain balance.  Click here to learn more.