Waiting well is an active state that looks like nothing from outside. The long still part is not empty, it is spent holding attention so that when the brief moment arrives you are in position rather than scrambling. People who miss out were often not slower, they were simply somewhere else when the opening appeared.

For whatever you are waiting on, define what being ready looks like in practice and keep that in place. Tolerate the dull stretch without wandering away from it. The short window will not announce itself in advance.