What is Self-Discipline?
We have all heard about how important conventional discipline is. But is self-discipline something different or an extraordinary part of one’s life? The answer is yes. It is the kind of discipline that calls forth a unique sense of purpose and vitality to your life.
The traditional method of self-discipline says to push yourself through difficult situations, no matter how you feel. However, this method doesn’t go along so well with everyone.
To understand this, you must be completely attentive and aware of what you are going through. It has to come forth naturally from your own observation and analysis, making you responsible for your actions. Then, the things you do without outer help mean self-reliability and independence.
It is not just about staying motivated but being humble and sensitive. Staying in this state doesn’t require effort. It is rather a movement in itself where you flow naturally and efficiently.
Importance of Self-Discipline
Self-discipline indeed is important to achieve your dreams or lead a stable life. However, it goes beyond that. It is a constant movement in daily life with awareness, which is also a part of meditation. Many self-help books consider self-discipline as one of the most crucial qualities for physical and psychological balance.
It provides an ability to let go of instant pleasure for something far more joyful with its own action and, therefore, greater than personal happiness. Moreover, it also has the power to guide you through your decisions without changing your mind.
The common traditional belief of self-discipline is to follow a mere repetitive and restricted lifecycle, but this has very little to do with living life as a whole. You must be able to observe the facts and their consequences without any distortion. That way, you can learn every moment of your life without any preconceived beliefs or ideas.
Self-discipline is not a skill either. A skill can be developed over time. However, self-discipline is an instant process that is always new and not calculated. It expresses itself through an inward revolution and always keeps you in the present moment.
Most people find it difficult to be self-disciplined because of the already established notion that it is something unpleasant that requires lots of effort and struggle. Surprisingly, it is a fun activity that keeps your brain active and energetic without effort, and the benefits are a bonus.
Benefits:
1) Decisive:
Self-discipline involves awareness and attention, and they help eliminate procrastination and laziness instantly. This will help you to be clearly decisive to let the right action take place without struggle.
2) Knowing Limits:
It helps you to know your limits in what you can or cannot do. In doing so, you can step back and reflect on your actions, making you more patient, considerate, and understanding.
3) Organization
Self-discipline helps you to organize daily tasks in a systematic manner. You tend to act through your analytical mind, leaving you fulfilled and satisfied at the end of the day.
4) Choices
It is all about making wise choices. Your waking hours, the food you eat, and the amount of physical activity you perform indicate your intentions and priorities. Most commonly, your diet and exercise routine shows how self-disciplined you are.
5) Stable Mental Health
A healthy mind depends on everyday actions. Creating a set of activities for each day will direct you towards your goals with a stable mindset and hence increase creativity and productivity. (1)
6) Healthy Relationships
Yes, self-discipline not only allows you to take care of yourself but also provides an empathetic perspective toward others, helping you to override your defensive mechanism actions and implement a more understanding and open-minded behavior.
This mindset is generally linked to profound and deep relationships where one can learn about another through empathy and compassion.
7) High Resilience
Have you seen people rebound quickly from unpleasant or challenging situations? Yes, that indicates that they are highly self-disciplined. Research says a resilient person is highly likely to manage life’s obstacles more efficiently.
How To Be Self-Disciplined?
As mentioned earlier, self-discipline is all about understanding oneself without resistance so that the discipline can be in its natural order. It awakens when you are constantly watching and learning about yourself.
Conforming to pre-established actions and calling that “discipline” is pretty straightforward, but it can be quite conflictual. On the contrary, self-discipline comes through self-knowledge – by being aware and mindful of each moment.
Learning how you think, feel and act are essential for self-discipline. This act allows you to cease all bad, mediocre habits and helps you accomplish realistic goals and transform your life significantly.
1) Understand Your Strengths and Weaknesses
Everyone is unique and blessed with different talents and abilities. Understanding this is a tremendous realization, making you embrace what you and others are capable of in your own ways. (2)
Paying attention to your strengths and weaknesses is a form of self-awareness. This is one of the powerful tools to help you expand your comfort zone.
2) Start With Small Steps
People often tend to overwhelm themselves by setting the bar far from their reach. Self-discipline doesn’t create a duality between big and small goals. Every step has its significance and therefore builds confidence as you complete them.
Along with confidence, you will also have patience and mental clarity. Keeping up with small daily goals can motivate you to improve your focus and attention span.
3) Be a Light to Yourself
Being a light to oneself means you are not dependent on anyone – inwardly and psychologically. Remind yourself that outer motivation can only help you temporarily. When you observe this as a fact, you will not depend on anybody and become in charge of your life.
People, your close ones or strangers, can guide you to a certain extent. However, it can never bring about a quality of self-reliance and freedom. These qualities are highly essential to being self-disciplined.
4) Observe Your Daily Routine
Observe your routine nature – how you think, feel, act, behave, and talk to people or yourself. These qualities build your personality. Always remember to reflect on your daily activities before going to bed so that you can organize them better the next day.
It is essential to give yourself mental and physical breaks and, at the same time, recognize at what time of the day you are most productive. For instance, if your most productive time is in the mornings, and you occupy with non-related-works during that time – that’s not good.
5) Live in The Moment
Ambitions and goals may be supreme to someone and not so important to the other. So, no matter what your goals are, never burden yourself with them. Overwhelming yourself with goals is not going to help you achieve them effectively.
Try not to overanalyze your failures or success. The moment you do either, you cease to live in the present and imagine situations that are nothing but illusions. So, embrace your journey and pay attention to them without judging. Doing this promotes a sense of mindfulness, helping you see things more clearly.