Are you impatient? So was I... Until I started doing one single thing

You probably never thought about it.

Author

stephanie laurent
February 15, 2026

Hi everyone! I hope you are all having a great weekend!

And a warm welcome to the 21 new expat leaders who joined us last week, from all around the world🌍 !

In my years in Singapore, as you can imagine, everything was so dynamic, vibrant, fast. The networking, the working environment, the technologies: everything was moving so fast. And I just did one thing: I matched that pace. (eek!)

Which meant:

  • I was always looking for "what's next?" my next role, the new promotion, pay rise opportunity.

  • I signed my next contract, then became impatient to start.

  • I couldn't wait when we got news about relocating to Australia

  • BAsically I needed everything to happen now.

When our relocation to Australia was confirmed, I couldn't mentally stand still until departure day, and I found it hard to deal with the uncertainty

Months later, my coach asked me something super simple , and it’s when my perspective (which I thought was the right one) started to shift:

💡 "What if, instead of focusing on outcomes, you focused on what you are building right now?"

I realized I was getting impatient because I wanted to control the future.

Worst? When a decision, a deadline, or something I was deeply expecting got delayed. - I am sure many of us feel the same, right?? When your emotional stability depends on delayed outcomes, you live in constant tension.

The one thing I changed

So instead of focusing on "What's next?"
I started focusing on "What progress am I making?"

Instead of obsessing over results, I focused on:

→ the skills I was developing
→ the connections I was making
→ the exposure I was gaining
→ the resilience I was building

I wasn't waiting anymore: I was progressing.

You know where' I’m going with this, because eventueally :the relocation still happened. The next role eventually came.

But the anxiety dropped, because I stopped outsourcing my sense of progress to external timing.

My life wasn't anymore about hitting the next milestone, but making the journey interesting, and fun, and motivating. And in fact, if you only enjoy the key milestones in your life, that's about 10% of the whole thing.

The other 90% are usually made of ups and downs, learning, waiting.

💡 If you can't find meaning in the 90%, you'll spend most of your life frustrated.

Your turn! Ask yourself today: what am I building right now, while I wait for what's next?

and I leave you with this quote that I love: "We must be willing to let go of the life we planned so as to have the life that is waiting for us." - Joseph Campbell

Are you ready to talk, and clarify what’s next for you? DM me now. we can have a catch-up to discuss your current situation, and see if career coaching is for you. It’s free, and of course, no commitment. Here> Send a Message.

Have a wonderful week

Stephanie.