The Formula

p h p  

 

Changing careers, Battling an illness, Giving up a vice, Starting a new business, Embarking on parenthood, Laid off, Leaving home, Losing something or someone you love, Learning a new language, instrument, or skill, Attending a new school or going back to school, Relocating to a new city, state, or country, Rediscovering who you are, Balancing parenthood, family, and work, Starting a new job, Supporting a loved one who is experiencing a life changing event…  

 

…whatever challenges may lie ahead, the “php formula” may be helpful.

 

I am so thankful to have wise, loving, caring people in my life.  I appreciate one particularly wise woman for sharing her php formula with me.  It is easy to remember and visualize. 

 

When I think of the php formula, I am easily reminded, I can do this.  Whatever the “this” is this week, season, year, decade, or lifetime…not only can I do this….I choose to do this!

 

As a reference, I captured the www.dictionary.com definitions of the words that make up the simple yet meaningful formula.

 

 

pa⋅tience

  [pey-shuh ns]  

–noun

1.	the quality of being patient, as the bearing of provocation, annoyance, misfortune, or pain, without complaint, loss of temper, irritation, or the like.

 

2.	an ability or willingness to suppress restlessness or annoyance when confronted with delay: to have patience with a slow learner.

 

3.

quiet, steady perseverance; even-tempered care; diligence: to work with patience.   Synonyms: 1. composure, stability, self-possession; submissiveness, sufferance. Patience, endurance, fortitude, stoicism imply qualities of calmness, stability, and persistent courage in trying circumstances. Patience may denote calm, self-possessed, and unrepining bearing of pain, misfortune, annoyance, or delay; or painstaking and untiring industry or (less often) application in the doing of something: to bear afflictions with patience. Endurance denotes the ability to bear exertion, hardship, or suffering (without implication of moral qualities required or shown): Running in a marathon requires great endurance. Fortitude implies not only patience but courage and strength of character in the midst of pain, affliction, or hardship: to show fortitude in adversity. Stoicism is calm fortitude, with such repression of emotion as to seem almost like indifference to pleasure or pain: The American Indians were noted for stoicism under torture. 3. indefatigability, persistence, assiduity.     hu⋅mil⋅i⋅ty   [hyoo-mil-i-tee or, often, yoo-]   –noun the quality or condition of being humble; modest opinion or estimate of one's own importance, rank, etc. Synonyms: lowliness, meekness, submissiveness. Antonyms: pride.    per⋅se⋅ver⋅ance   [pur-suh-veer-uh ns]   –noun 1. steady persistence in a course of action, a purpose, a state, etc., esp. in spite of difficulties, obstacles, or discouragement. 2. Theology. continuance in a state of grace to the end, leading to eternal salvation. elated forms: per⋅se⋅ver⋅ant, adjective  Synonyms: 1. doggedness, steadfastness. Perseverance, persistence,tenacity, pertinacity imply resolute and unyielding holding on in following a course of action. Perseverance commonly suggests activity maintained in spite of difficulties or steadfast and long-continued application: Endurance and perseverance combined to win in the end. It is regularly used in a favorable sense.Persistence, which may be used in either a favorable or an unfavorable sense, implies unremitting (and sometimes annoying) perseverance: persistence in a belief; persistence in talking when others wish to study. Tenacity, with the original meaning of adhesiveness, as of glue, is a dogged and determined holding on. Whether used literally or figuratively it has favorable implications: a bulldog quality of tenacity; the tenacity of one's memory. Pertinacity, unlike its related word, is used chiefly in an unfavorable sense, that of over insistent tenacity: the pertinacity of the social climber.    Whatever opportunities life brings you on your individual journey, feel free to add the php formula to your repertoire and tool kit.  Sometimes, you never know which tool, formula, or resource will help you get the job done.  So, consider adding one more elementary, powerful option to your arsenal.