This is a really interesting topic... Thanks for sharing your journey, @Kohloo
I would like to think I have a great deal of patience for certain things in life. For example, grooming is one of them. I have a far greater amount of patience for animals than most people. Grooming can be a highly stressful job. While most people consider it, "playing with puppies all day," this is actually what my day is like:
Dealing with aggressive dogs. My favorite thing in the world [/sarcasm] is when a pet parent doesn't believe when their dog tried to nearly take my fingers off. I get the typical "My dog would NEVER bite!" lines. The actual fact of the matter is, grooming can be like alien abduction to dogs, ESPECIALLY if they're unsocialized. Dogs act on isntinct. When you're doing something they don't like (which, face it, most dogs don't enjoy being poked and prodded for hours) they are more likely to act on fight or flight. Alternatively, there are many other forms of aggression in dogs. You have kennel aggression (where they become aggressive when kenneled), parent aggression (when they're aggressive in parents presence as an act of protection), fear aggression (relay back to fight or flight), dog aggression (when they become aggressive around other dogs). We have seen the sweetest of dogs bite in grooming. And it's not fun to be bit. But as a groomer, it's not a matter of IF but WHEN.
Dealing with gross. My job entails dealing with an array of disgusting things. Expressing anal glands, dealing with being pooped on, peed on, thrown up on. Worms. Fleas. Ticks.
Perfecting breed standard cuts. When you get the picky customer who expects nothing short of perfection.
Meeting sales. Selling your work as a groomer and trying to make money when you work mainly off commission. Little clients, little money.
And yet, despite having an incredible amount of patience for my profession, I have little patience for being in public, people (mainly multiple people). I grew up with extreme social anxiety (rashes, panic attacks, you name it.) This could be why I have more patience for dealing with dogs than I do with the pet parents, or people in general. Over the years I have become a tad more comfortable, but mainly because I HAD to. With meeting certain societal standards, education, jobs, etc, I've had to adapt and learn to become more patient with people. But it does not mean I don't have the occasional anxiety attack in the back or when I come home I don't lose my s***. People make me uncomfortable. And I suppose this is why I have little patience for them. Every day is a challenge to become more patient in that aspect.
I try to even be more patient with friends and family, as often times I find myself annoyed or irritated by them. This is why I tend to seclude myself a lot. It's not that I'm heartless, or that I hate people. It's mainly that I feel trapped in certain situations by obligation when I'm around them. Or sometimes it's because I display too much of myself and feel vulnerable around them. Or maybe I don't understand it at all. But, I feel that with age, I have gotten a bit better with it.