Self Discipline – How to Improve on It

There’s a slogan on the website of a Life Insurance company that reads “Take care of yourself – you are your best resource”.

I think this is so befitting.  How can you accomplish anything and everything that you want if you don’t take care of/invest in yourself first?

I stumbled upon a quote from Nikola Tesla, a famous American Inventor and Engineer that really resonated with me.  It said, “I could only achieve success in my life through self-discipline and I applied it until my wish and my will became one”.  Self-discipline by definition is the ability to control your feelings and overcome your weaknesses.  The ability to pursue what you think is right despite temptations to abandon it.

Admittedly, this is a work in progress for me.  I find it hard to commit to a routine, I think it’s because I already have a set routine with my current job as an online Sales Specialist.  I have to log in at a certain time, take a 15-minute break at a certain time, have lunch logged at a certain time, and even end my shift at a certain time.  It sometimes feels so militant and robotic. 

I refuse mentally to commit to anything which involves a routine.  But this is part of being disciplined.  Do you have this experience as well?  I’ve researched this theory and would like to explore it together and see how we can improve ourselves and benefit from it.

Self-discipline allows us to:

• Stick to a healthy routine – Like taking a daily 15-minute yoga/exercise session before showering or walking 5000 steps per day.
  
  
• Develop positive habits – Habits are essentially who you are. They eventually become part of you by committing often to it.  Therefore, if you choose to maintain positive habits in your life, it sets the tone for being happy and healthy.
  
  
• Have clearly defined goals – Once you’ve developed this momentum, it becomes easier to carry out.  Defining your goals allows you to see what needs to happen in order to achieve them.
  
  
• Remove temptations – Once you’ve removed what is hindering you from gaining control, like eating too many peanut-flavored MnMs and red velvet cupcakes – my ultimate temptation!  I know it’s not good for me if I want to cut down on my sugar intake, so I just don’t pick it up at the grocery store and bring it home.  It’s all about control.  In turn, maintaining self-discipline.
  
  
• Master Time Management – You make the most of every waking opportunity to pursue your purpose by scheduling a time to accomplish what’s important.
  
  
• Build self-confidence – The struggle we have with trusting our abilities and how far we can push ourselves becomes nonexistent.  Believing in yourself erases self-doubt and is a confidence booster.
  
  
• Track our progress – The best way is to make it VISUAL.  Take our goals or aspirations and write them all down It’s so much easier to stick to them and to see how well we’re progressing.  I have a calendar on my wall.  I made a simple goal to power walk for 15 minutes, 3 days per week.  I enter one tick per day when I’ve completed this task.  It’s so satisfying to me to be able to see the progress made every day and when I get on the scale.
  
  
• Develop Patience – Any routine or goal realistically takes time.  You don’t just wake up one morning deciding to lose 10 pounds and by midnight you want to get on the scale to see the weight magically disappear!

You don’t plant a seed today and the next morning you’re checking the pot to see it sprout into a flower or tree.  Self-discipline takes effort, hard work, and determination.  All of which require you to be patient.

So my beautiful friends, when you master self-discipline, you are rewarded with a pretty good balanced and lifelong commitment to yourself.  Let’s practice it every day for the best results.  Let’s not strive to be perfect at it but strive to be consistent.  Don’t you agree?

XOXO