THE modern world has left nearly half of Brits with a ‘want it now’
attitude – and almost two in five (38%) are ‘impatient’ in
life.

A study of 2,000 adults revealed the things most likely to ignite our
impatience, including slow walkers, public transport delays and having
to wait for the internet to load.

While the average adult is only willing to wait a maximum of 15
minutes on hold on the phone before hanging up.

Nearly six in 10 (57%) blame their lack of patience on the
rise of technologies like smartphones.

And four in 10 are even willing to spend more money to get the things
they want sooner.

It also emerged that this 'want it now' attitude is putting people off
investing their money, due to the time it takes to see returns (19%).

Despite saving an average of £1,279 over the last year, 38% of
young adults aged 18-34 have never considered investing their money.

James Hewitston, head of wealth management at HSBC UK, which
commissioned the research, said: “While most of us have goals for the
future, it can seem a long way off so it’s easy to focus on what we
want now and worry about the future later.

“The need for instant gratification is hampering people’s ability to
plan for their financial future – whether that’s short term goals such
as saving for a holiday or emergency repairs, medium term such as a
house purchase or wedding, or long term including building a pot for a
child’s education or planning for a comfortable retirement.

“While investments are recommended for a minimum of five years,
customers can access their money at any point if they need funds
unexpectedly and they don’t need to clear out their savings account to
invest."

The study also found 32% of adults aged 18-24 have made an
unusual investment in a bid to make a quick financial gain.

Top 30 things Brits have no patience for

THESE are the top 30 things Brits have no patience for, according to the survey…

• Being put on hold
• People who stand too close to you in the queue
• People who cannot keep time/are always late
• Sitting in traffic
• Slow walkers
• Delays on public transport
• Shrill noises (e.g. forks scratching on a plate)
• Calling to book a doctor’s appointment
• Waiting for the internet to load
• Waiting for a refund
• Loud noises
• Waiting for luggage to arrive at the airport
• Waiting for a bus
• Building flat pack furniture
• Calling your internet provider
• Waiting for a train
• Waiting in the queue for a cash point
• Selling/buying a house
• Waiting for a text message/email to arrive
• Waiting for an online delivery
• Eating at a busy restaurant
• Waiting for a cheque to be processed
• Waiting for your friends/family to arrive
• A film to start at the cinema
• Waiting for furniture to be delivered
• Waiting for a film to load
• Thinking of a gift for someone
• Ordering food at a restaurant
• Waiting for dinner to cook in the oven
• Going on multiple dates to find the right partner

These include putting their money into classic cars (23%),
sports memorabilia (21%), instruments (20%) and even
vintage stamps (14%).

But 57% admitted they have missed out on a lot of things
because of their impatience and reluctance to play the long game.

And 15% of 18–24-year-olds even admitted they were more likely
to play the long game when it came to their relationships than their
investments, according to research via OnePoll.

Behavioural psychologist, Jo Hemmings, who has partnered with HSBC UK
to help set people up for longer-term success, said: "Our brains are
naturally wired up to enjoy the dopamine hit that comes with achieving
instant gratification and this can come from anything in life,
including our finances."

"With the amount of technology we have at our fingertips nowadays, it
can often feel easy to chase instant fixes in the hope of a quick
reward.

"But there are a few easy things we can all do in these situations
that can help us retrain our brains to focus on self control and
prolong our anticipation so we can achieve a longer term, potentially
safer, gain.”

Tips to be less impatient

BEHAVOURIAL psychologist Jo Hemmings, who has partnered with HSBC UK, revealed her tips for long-term success…

• Resist temptation: The ability to resist temptation and stick to our
  long-term goals is often referred to as willpower or self-control and
  delaying gratification is a central part of this behaviour. Practicing
  self-control enables us, like any skill, to get better at it and
  studies have shown that people who do manage to control their
  behaviour are happier both in the short and the long-term.
• Write down goals and break them down into smaller goals: This way
  you’re protecting yourself from instant gratification by making some
  decisions for yourself beforehand. This is very useful when trying to
  hit financial goals, such as saving to buy a house, or a wedding.
• Actions have consequences: Remind yourself of these. Just like
  self-control can help you achieve your goals and improve your physical
  and mental health, a lack of self-control can have adverse effects on
  your self-esteem, education, career, finances, relationships, and
  overall health and well-being.
• Set realistic deadlines: Work out what you can definitely afford,
  without unrealistic sacrifices that you may not be able to keep to.
  Perhaps look at a few extras that you can do without, and you are much
  more likely to succeed.
• Celebrate small gains: While you don’t want to be extravagant with
  your hard saved cash, when you hit some of those smaller goals – like
  saving to a figure that ends in a couple of 00’s for example – treat
  yourself to an evening out or a ‘gift’ to yourself like a takeaway, or
  the clothes you’ve wanted for a while.

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