Have you ever tried convincing someone you love they should follow a certain path? Given them good advice year after year to no avail? And then, one day, they return home from some event, ready to embrace the change—because an almost-stranger casually suggested what you’ve been preaching for years. Argh! “That’s what I’ve been saying this whole time!” It makes you want to pull your hair out.

Of course, none of your attempts have been in vain. It just wasn’t you who sent the final spark. Take pride in your accomplishment!

Personally, when I first started reflecting on my life more deeply and shaping my path more actively, I used to tell people very outright what I think they should do. I always did so in a positive, encouraging tone. I’m a forever-optimist, and I was simply excited about passing on all the new lessons I was learning.

But I also eventually realized that you can’t make anyone do anything, really. More often than not, your good advice will fall on deaf ears—because people are simply not in the right place in life to hear it. Unless there’s some urgency to change, why change? Few would quit their job tomorrow to finally start their startup just because you reaffirm to them you believe it’s a good idea.

But if there’s time to reflect, a crisis, perhaps, maybe some sense of loss or pain that’s grown too hard to bear, then, perhaps, it could be the right moment—and that’s when your consistent encouragement might blossom, even if someone else, someone new who seems like a breath of fresh air, helps your loved one’s brain to click.

A good friend of mine asked me about investing into the stock market several years ago. We sat at Five Guys over some burgers, and I walked him through which app I use, what I buy, how I approach it, and so on. He put in a little bit of money but largely forgot about it. This year, he transitioned out of his busy job, and he finally found the right headspace to really dive into the topic. He learned more, did more, and invested a good chunk of his cash. We had another chat and, this time, we spent hours discussing the subject.

Yesterday, both of us ended up at the same birthday party. His latest update? “I bought this book called The Essays of Warren Buffett. I sat down, started, and, you won’t believe it—I read 100 pages. I ended up reading till 3 AM! You know how many times that has happened before? Never!” We picked up the topic again, and I’m sure it’ll stay with us for many future meetings to come.

In your own life as with others, try not to force it if it won’t go. If it’s meant to be, it’ll be when it wants to. Whatever “it” is, chances are, all we must do is wait for the right moment.