“Discipline is choosing between what you want now, and what you want the most.” – Abraham Lincoln
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” – Aristotle
Discipline is doing what needs to be done even when you don’t feel like doing it. Self-discipline comes into play when evaluating what matters to you. Say a couple priorities in your life are to relax after work watching TV, and to Workout. It’s easy to do the things you feel like doing like watching TV, that usually doesn’t require self-discipline. But things like working out tend to get thrown into the category of supposed to do, but don’t feel like it…. This requires self-discipline. It’s tough to do things we know we should do sometimes, like flossing, or waking up early, or eating more veggies, or working out more frequently. We all have the capability of self-discipline, it’s just harnessing it so you can use it to create better habits for yourself.
A tool to help you create more discipline in your life is asking yourself why do you want to do it? Why do you want to wake up earlier? Why do you want to eat healthier? Why do you want to make more time for family? Etc etc. What value do you find in this habit?
Your why of things is all that matters. Maybe you want to eat healthier so you can live longer to be able to play with grandkids one day. Maybe you want to eat healthier so you can lose weight to run a marathon. Maybe you want to eat healthier to help your skin clear up. Whatever the reasoning is, don’t just stop at “I want to eat healthier,” that isn’t enough to fuel self-discipline. You need to ask yourself why until you get to the root of value you find in the task.
It may take some sacrifice to prioritize what you really want, but its only sacrificing the things you find less value in. So it’s not really a sacrifice, but a reprioritizing of what matters.
Sometimes we lose discipline when we spend time doing the things we find less value in because they are easier, instead of the things that hold greater meaning but can be harder.
You may need to do some work on creating an environment where you can attain the things you really want. If you want to stop eating junk food and soda, then stop filling your house with it, so the discipline of attaining this goal is easier. The hardest part is in the beginning. Get past those first steps of creating the new habit, and the discipline will form easily with time. Commit to the things you really want in this life. Stop making excuses and think about what you want long-term instead of the easier short-term choice.
Motivation Gets you started; Discipline keeps you going. So, what is it you want out of life? Write it down and LETS GOOOO!!
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