For those of you who have been following me on Instagram for over two months, you know that in March I went to Disney for five days.
For those of you who have followed me for many years, you know that I go to at least one of the parks almost every year. I think this is a huge privilege, because I love all my visits and they often have different focuses.
Another part of this privilege is that I have the patience to go to Disney, and that's where the title of this blog came from: "Do you have the patience to go to Disney?".
The desire to write about it came from my trip to Disney and also from seeing a major influencer say that he didn't enjoy his visit. And you know what, I agree with him: it's not for everyone. It's ironic, because the parks are always full, even though prices have risen in recent years.
But when I see all the big lines, I always wonder if people are there like me, nurturing dreams and having fun in the chaos that it can be, or if, internally, they are like the influencer I mentioned, hating the experience and wanting to go home.
Honestly, I think it's half and half.
And here's an example of why I think so. During this last visit, on the day I went to the Magic Kingdom, at around 12 noon, I was in the line for the Seven Dwarfs' ride. I looked at the wait time display and the wait was 65 minutes. It was hot and there were small, and some large families in the line who, like me, were waiting to have an exciting experience.
Picture this scenario and give different categories to the patience needed to deal with it: waiting, high temperatures, different people and, in the case of families, dealing with each other's behavior, which can be different from what is expected in such scenarios.
It was at times like this, standing in that line at midday, under the midday sun, that I thought: wow, going to Disney requires a lot of patience.
Then comes the question you may have in mind: if Disney requires all that patience, why do you go?
And the answer is simple: because I love it.
I love the energy of the parks. I love waiting in line knowing that I'm going to have a thrilling experience on some exceptional rides. I love the mix of so many different people. And I try to go at strategic times to deal with the heat.
Now that you've read about Disney's patience, I want to tell you that to improve your relationship with finances, you'll also need the virtue of patience and a good dosage of resilience.
Don't worry, you don't have to want to go to Disney to develop this - and it's fine not to want to go to a crowded park. But it's not okay to treat your finances as if they weren't essential for a better quality of life.
When I started out on my journey, I had certain anxieties, and over time I've nurtured my patience
Patience to deal with some mistakes made along the way.
Patience for a delay in changing behavior.
Patience to look at credit card bills (and sometimes get scared).
Patience to understand myself in the midst of this process and remember why I was doing it at several times.
And when I finally started investing, I needed (and still need) patience to see compound interest multiplying my money. Patience, too, to deal with times when the market isn't working towards my goals.
In short, it's not a behavior that changes overnight. Not at all.
But with patience and resilience, things happen. If I, who have had bad credit several times, have changed, I believe you can too.
Here we are, patiently waiting in line — this time for FIRE. And without a doubt, it's going to be worth every minute.
That's it for today. Thank you for reading.
A warm hug from me,
- Débora