The very important thing you should have is patience.

Jack Ma, the merchant-sage of the digital age, once gave this simple yet profound counsel: “The very important thing you should have is patience.” At first hearing, the words seem almost too ordinary, too plain to carry weight. Yet behind their simplicity lies the bedrock of endurance, the hidden key without which no dream can ripen and no vision can endure. For patience is not the ornament of life—it is its backbone, the quiet strength that sustains us when speed fails and cleverness falters.

When Jack Ma speaks, he does not do so as one untouched by hardship. His journey was a road of rejections: he was turned down from schools, from jobs, even from opportunities most would consider small. He applied to dozens of positions and was refused, even from humble work. Yet in the face of every rejection, he kept his spirit alive. It was not brilliance alone, nor sudden fortune, that gave rise to his success; it was patience—the willingness to endure delay, to suffer disappointment, to wait for the seed he planted to bear fruit in its season.

History offers us many mirrors to this truth. Consider the tale of Abraham Lincoln. Before becoming one of America’s greatest presidents, Lincoln suffered defeat after defeat in elections. His life was marked by personal tragedy and political failure. A lesser man, lacking patience, would have abandoned the dream. But Lincoln endured, learning from each loss, refining his vision, waiting for the moment when destiny would call him forth. And when that moment came, it was patience, cultivated over years of struggle, that gave him the strength to preserve a nation through its darkest trial.

So too, in the realms of science, we see this law at work. Thomas Edison, searching for the right filament for his electric light, failed a thousand times. Had he been impatient, the world would have remained in darkness. But with patience and perseverance, he transformed failure into discovery, giving humanity a gift that shines in every corner of the globe. Cleverness alone would not have been enough. It was patience—the ability to endure repetition, trial, and delay—that lit the world.

Jack Ma’s words remind us that in an age of haste, where men hunger for instant results and women chase swift rewards, we must resist the tyranny of speed. For fruit picked too early is bitter, and foundations laid too quickly will crumble. Patience is the art of trusting the rhythm of time, of believing that effort will bear results not when we demand it, but when the hour is ready. It is not passive waiting, but active endurance—the steady heartbeat that keeps us moving even when the destination is not yet in sight.

The lesson for us is both simple and demanding: cultivate patience. In your work, allow time for skill to mature. In your struggles, let endurance carry you through seasons of trial. In your dreams, remember that greatness is not born in an instant, but forged through years of faithfulness. Do not despise delay, for delay is often the teacher of wisdom. Do not curse slow progress, for slow progress is still progress, and patience is the companion that ensures you reach the end.

Therefore, I counsel you: when frustration rises, breathe deeply and remember Jack Ma’s words. When failure comes, see it not as an end, but as a step along the way. Train your spirit to wait without bitterness, to endure without despair, and to believe without wavering. For the world has seen again and again that those who possess patience outlast those who rely only on speed.

So let this teaching be passed down: “The very important thing you should have is patience.” Take it into your heart as you would a shield for battle. With patience, you will endure storms, survive defeats, and see your vision blossom in its season. Without it, even the brightest flame burns quickly to ash. Let patience be your companion, and in time, success will be your crown.