Patience is a Virtue, Right? Not too Many of us Have it According to Fifth Third Bank

Are you a patient person, or an impatient person? What do you think? Quick, I need an answer!

Okay, seriously, let's take a little survey.

Do you routinely honk at the car in front of you once the stoplight turns green? Or perhaps you are always bypassing slow walkers on the sidewalk or pressing an already illuminated elevator button in hopes of getting to your destination faster? If so, you’re not alone.

According to a Fifth Third survey1, more than half of Americans admit to honking after the light turns green; a majority will wait 10 seconds or less before passing a slow walker on the sidewalk and 72 percent of Gen Yers admit to pushing an already lit elevator button.

Fifth Third created the survey to underscore America’s need for speed in everyday tasks. This universal impatience is what led Fifth Third to wonder how it can help make daily banking activities even more efficient for its customers, since who doesn't hate waiting in line to do their banking.

“Patience may be a virtue, but it’s no longer a reality,” said Maria Veltre, senior vice president and chief marketing officer, Fifth Third Bank. “In our increasingly fast-paced society, every second counts. This was the driving force behind our faster mobile app, which takes the wait out of banking and makes it easier for our customers to get what they need and get on with their busy day.”

Fifth Third wanted to know how “insanely impatient” our world has really become after having developed new features to give the gift of time back to its mobile banking customers. It commissioned a national survey that revealed a surprising disconnect, with nearly 80 percent of respondents rating themselves as being patient, but in reality:

96 percent of Americans will knowingly consume extremely hot food or drink that burns their mouth; 63 percent do so frequently
More than half hang up the phone after being on hold one minute or less
71 percent frequently exceed the speed limit to get to their destination faster
Americans will binge-watch an average of seven TV episodes in a single sitting
Nearly a third of respondents ages 18-24 wait less than one second before bypassing a slow walker
Gen Yers check their phones an average of eight times when waiting to hear back from someone they’ve dated
When waiting for a table at a restaurant, nearly a quarter of respondents ages 18-24 wait less than one minute before approaching the host again after the wait period has passed.

My, my, let's all chill a bit, huh? And, oh, let me get on my phone and do my banking!