“The Undisciplined Are Slaves to Moods, Appetites and Passions” ~ Stephen Covey
Self discipline is doing what you have set forth to do instead of doing what you feel in the moment. Self discipline requires sacrifice. It involves saying NO to temptation when you want to break your diet or lay around on the couch when you have things that need to be done. Self discipline means getting up early and staying up late if needed. Anyone who is successful has developed self discipline. Here are 14 principles of how you can too:
1) Assess Your Starting Point.
How strong is your self discipline today? Have you set up routines that you follow? Do you get up at the same time each day? Are you out of shape? Is your home and office clean and organized? Do you have habits you need to break? Do you exercise? How often? Acknowledge your starting point then develop a plan to work in the areas that need improvement.
2) Vow An Oath Of Allegiance.
Make a strong commitment that you will develop the discipline you desire. Vowing an oath taps into a deeper internal level of commitment. It is this vow that will help you rise each time you fall and to rise every morning with enthusiasm.
3) Your Behavior Needs To Reflect Your Values.
If you don’t like the way you feel, you need to evaluate what you truly believe. You need to decide what actions reflect your core beliefs and values. Discipline is doing what you believe is best for you regardless of how you feel. Your behavior needs to be a reflection of who you are.
4) Tell The Voice Of Temptation To Shut Up.
You will have times that you will be tempted to avoid the actions you’ve decided to take. Your mind will come up with all kinds of good reasons and excuses as to why you should procrastinate or stop altogether. This is the old visual of an angel on one shoulder and the devil on the other. You need to tell the devil shoulder to shut up and then listen to the voice of the angel shoulder. Do what is good instead of what feels good.
5) Know Your Why.
When things get tough and you want to quit; it’s important to remember why you’re doing what you’re doing. Knowing why will strengthen your resolve. The more you reinforce this image in your mind, the more likely you will stay on track.
6) Find Inspirational Role Models.
What would Michael Jordan do? What would Rocky do? What would Jesus do? Don’t try to reinvent the wheel. Think of someone who represents the outcome you want to achieve. Find someone who excels in the area you wish to achieve excellence. The person can be real or imagined. Ask yourself, what would they do in my situation? Then follow through with the answer.
7) Develop A Routine and Stick To It.
The secret to developing self discipline is to develop a routine. If you have a routine, there will be no internal questioning as to whether you will work out this morning or not. Your routine is that you are scheduled to workout this morning and you do so.
8) Pace Yourself.
If you do too much too soon you can be setting yourself up to fail. Don’t overdo it. You won’t be able to sustain a fast pace if the expectations aren’t reasonable. Establish a steady pace or you can burn out very quickly.
9) Be Easy On Yourself at First.
Start off with baby steps and then work your way up. You want to establish a routine and a sense of success.
10) Be Harder On Yourself As You Go Along.
Once you have your routine; do more. You want to push yourself so that you actually experience growth and change. You want to feel challenged versus a passive autopilot routine that never advances in its demands of you. Be firm with yourself and face your challenge head on. Try holding on for five minutes longer instead of stopping at a set time. Then push for six minutes and so on. Eventually, five minutes more won’t seem that hard.
11) Focus On The Pleasure; Not The Pain.
Emotions and desires of flesh and bone can be powerful forces to overcome. They can be overcome! Victory over them brings positive feelings. Discipline creates a sense of accomplishment. It promotes confidence and self esteem. Negative aspects of stress diminish while the discomfort of avoidance will only bring you regret.
12) If You Do Nothing; You Will Get Nothing.
If you always do what you’ve always done; you’ll always get what you’ve always got. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again with the expectation that you will get different results. If you live like a pig; your house will be a pigsty. If you eat like a pig; you’ll end up looking like one. Bottom line: Take responsibility for your results; good or bad.
13) Do It Now.
You must train yourself to respond to the side of you that wants action. When the voice in your head says “Do It Now!” you must make yourself respond to this command. When you’re tempted to walk past the sink full of dirty dishes and the voice says “Do It Now!” stop and wash the dishes right then. When you want to lay on the couch and watch television but your goal is to go to the gym; you need to get up and go to the gym. Not in five minutes but rather “Do It Now!”
14) Keep Your Eyes on the Prize.
Learn to visualize the final result. See the results before they actually occur. See a clean house. See yourself at your optimal weight. See yourself without the addiction. Imagine yourself as a person your children will be inspired by. This visualization of the prize can help you stay on track when you are tired and / or discouraged.
Mark Webb is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in private practice at South Georgia Psychiatric and Counseling Center in Valdosta. He is the author of How To Be A Great Partner and How To Argueproof Your Relationship. Read more of his articles www.TheRelationshipSpecialist.com
