Inspiration and Life

A Little Discipline Can Take You Far

Benefit from living a disciplined life

Are you a very disciplined person? Some people can be so disciplined they have little enjoyment or fun in their life. Others can be so undisciplined they make a mess of it. In short, being over-disciplined can be choking, while being undisciplined can lead to chaos.

Discipline has many advantages, but there are limits. To be disciplined is a strength, but as with any strength, it can become a weakness when overused. Is there a way to lead an enjoyable disciplined life? Absolutely — read on to learn how!

Living a disciplined life

It is well known those who lead a disciplined life experience more success than those who do not. There are exceptions to almost everything in life, yet those are just that, exceptions and not the rule. For every person living the exception, you can point to thousands who practice a beneficial disciplined life.

How do you strike a balance between being disciplined and undisciplined? Since it is your choice where you practice it, what areas do you choose? Choose wisely, and you will receive considerable benefits! For some ideas, read on.

Discipline is a primary key to living to your full potential and a crucial part of the foundation of success and significance in life. Be honest with yourself. Very few people want to be super disciplined unless perhaps they are an Olympic athlete.

Most of us do not function well in an environment of hard discipline. You are human and not a machine, after all! It is best that you develop self-discipline in the right areas of life rather than receive discipline because of your lack of self-control!

“Discipline is wisdom and vice versa.” M. Scott Peck (1936–2005)

What is self-discipline?

Are you very self-disciplined? Let’s look at definitions from two sources. First, the Oxford Languages dictionary:

self-discipline (noun) the ability to control one’s feelings and overcome one’s weaknesses; the ability to pursue what one thinks is right despite temptations to abandon it.

Next, let’s look at what I consider a better definition from Merriam-Webster:

self-discipline (noun) correction or regulation of oneself for the sake of improvement

Self-discipline is about more than overcoming weakness; it is about the ability to have self-control or regulate your strengths and weaknesses. It is also the ability to avoid temptations rather than fight them.

“Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.” Jim Rohn (1930–2009)

How can self-discipline help you?

Self-discipline helps you create a fuller, happier life. When used appropriately, self-discipline separates you from the crowd. It puts you on the road to achieving whatever you want. Without self-discipline, your career and personal life will suffer.

Some of the many benefits of self-discipline include:

• Better fitness and health
• Making better life choices while avoiding poor choices
• Greater life satisfaction and enjoyment
• Improved academic and career success
• Self-control, avoiding temptations and excesses
• Persevering and not giving up
• The ability to break bad habits
• Better time-management and punctuality
• Being more organized and structured
• More time to do what you want
• More success at setting and achieving goals
• Following through and following up
• Finishing what you start
• Keeping promises
• Overcoming procrastination and laziness
• Enhanced productivity

“Self-respect is the fruit of discipline; the sense of dignity grows with the ability to say no to oneself.” Abraham Joshua Heschel (1907–1972)

How to build self-discipline

Building self-discipline in the right areas of life is essential for the most significant impact and benefit. Some of the major areas on which you can focus self-discipline include:

• Health and well-being
• Personal development and growth
• Faith and spirituality
• Nourishment and nutrition
• Relationships
• Career
• Productivity
• Rest, relaxation, and fun!

Each of these significant areas contains numerous opportunities to build and practice self-discipline. For example, you can exercise and meditate to improve your health and well-being. For personal development and growth, you can read, write, or attend a class or course, among other things.

The best way to begin building self-discipline is to find an area of interest that improves your overall life. Choose something you can commit to that will not stress you too much, and go to work on it. If it is something you enjoy, so much the better!

“For a man to conquer himself is the first and noblest of all victories.” Plato (c. 428–348 BC)

Let’s now look at some examples of how you can build more self-discipline in your life.

Example 1

If you believe you should exercise, build the self-discipline to conquer it. Block out an hour on your calendar each weekday morning, buy some running shoes or join a gym. Tell others what you are doing to create some accountability, and go to work. In no time, you can make it into a habit that will significantly impact your health.

Example 2

You want to do something fun, such as learning to play a musical instrument. It may seem a bit daunting initially, but it’s a given if you have always wanted to play. Why not build a little self-discipline by committing to learning and practicing?

As with many things in life, practice makes perfect when done routinely. Taking lessons will instill more self-discipline. Don’t overdo it at the beginning, as you do not want to frustrate and sabotage yourself.

If 30 minutes a day works best for you, do it. During a week, you will practice for more than three hours. This will amount to more than 15 hours a month. Over a year, it will add up to more than 180 hours. I’m sure you can learn or improve your playing skills with an accumulation of that much practice! You may even become downright proficient!

Example 3

Let’s say you want to be more productive at work. By blocking out an hour a day to focus on your most important task, your overall productivity will skyrocket. An easy way to do this is to schedule a meeting with yourself. Block off an hour on your calendar, turn off your phone and email, and get to work. I did this throughout my career, and what a difference it made! I could get more done in an uninterrupted hour than an entire day.

“Without self-discipline, success is impossible, period.” Lou Holtz (1937-present)

Final thoughts

The trick to building self-discipline is to take the first step. Then the next, and the next until it becomes more natural. Each time you do this, you prepare yourself to build the next self-discipline. Over time it will get easier to build self-discipline in any area of your life.

The number of self-disciplines you can build are practically limitless. You do not need to create self-discipline in everything, just in those essential things that make a difference.

I challenge you to choose one small area of your life to practice building self-discipline. Share this article with someone close to you and do the work together. Your likelihood of building self-discipline increases dramatically when another person is involved. You will do each other a favor, which could forever change your lives!

Why not apply this final piece of wisdom to your life?

“The smallest of disciplines, practiced every day, start an incredible process that can change our lives forever.” Jim Rohn (1930–2009)

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Bill Abbate Leadership Writer and Editor in ILLUMINATION

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