Throughout history, the one common factor that all successful people, be it in the financial industry, the self improvement world or the entertainment/sport industry could attest to is the skill or self discipline. I say skill because it is something that all the biggest moguls in these industries continuously work on. Let’s get this right, there is no switch you can turn on in order to instantly, spontaneously become self disciplined. I would liken this more to the process that a sculptor goes through, when sculpting a stone. The end product completely justifies the constant, painstaking hours of chipping and scraping. At the end, you will be art. You will be so far down the path of success, that the process that you’ve just gone through will seem insignificant, in fact, the process is what gives you the humility and character to handle all the success that you will have.
Before we get into the how, here are some reasons that you should become more self disciplined. Self-discipline is characterized by the capacity to turn down immediate gratification and satisfaction in favour of a greater benefit or more rewarding performance, even though this takes effort and time. Self-discipline is among the most important criteria for attaining greatness because it enables you to stick to your decisions and follow them through without changing your mind. Self-discipline allows you to choose, and then stick with, actions, feelings, and behaviors that lead to improvement and success. It also gives you the power and inner strength to overcome addictions, procrastination, and laziness, and to complete whatever tasks you set out to complete.
Self-discipline is not, despite popular belief, a severe and restricted activity or a restrictive lifestyle. It is a critical element to success, irrespective of the nature of success. It translates as perseverance, the ability to keep working amid setbacks and defeats, self-control, and the ability to avoid temptations and distractions that appear to get in the process of attaining ones personal mission and targets.
Here are my tips:
1. Why?.
Ask yourself why you would want to start this process. You should have a strong reason for doing so. Whenever the going gets rough, it is just too easy to make excuses if you don’t have a definite destination in mind. You simply just wouldn’t care enough to stay strong. Do you want to be more productive at work so that you really can enjoy more time with friends and family? Would you like to develop healthy exercise and eating routines so that you really can feel more motivated and comfortable inside your own skin? Do you want to start a professional career that allows you to work from anywhere? Motivation must come from inside, and you must really care about the outcome; if you’re only trying to do anything you “can,” it won’t stick.
- Create a schedule or a timetable. List all your current commitments or daily functions. Factor in how much time you have per day for self- improvement and relaxation, then add in the activity or tasks that you want to complete. Depending on the task, you may have to dedicate more time and effort. Remember: If your task is long or big, make sure to break it into smaller, more manageable tasks.
- Get rid of temptations. We’ve all been there. When you just planned out your work session, organised your desk and started your project. And as you’re working a little buzz catches your ear. Soon you check your phone, then you decide to take a a quick little look at Instagram. Before you know it, you’re deep into 5 minute crafts videos and illuminati exposed conspiracy videos.Why not eradicate the temptations in the first place, rather than holding them around and attempting to avoid them (which we are bad at)? This makes self-control simple because the decision is made automatically. Block social media apps with Facebook Feed Eradicator and other resources if you want to be more efficient. Keep fast food out of the house if you want to eat good.
- Focus on health and nutrition as well. You’re fighting an uphill battle if you’re trying to boost your self-discipline and aren’t having enough sleep, nutritious food, or exercise. You’ll find it much easier to achieve your goals if you eat healthy foods, engage in some sort of physical activity every day, and get enough sleep. You’ll have more resources, a more optimistic outlook, and be less likely to give up when things get tough.
- We are building a muscle not a result. We are focussing on a building a habit, not getting a certain outcome. Do this through defining your goal and breaking down the steps towards it.Say “I want to take at least 10,000 steps a day” instead of “I want to lose weight.” “Weight loss” is a vague concept that is difficult to determine. When are you going to make that happen? How will you know when you’ve achieved your purpose? Walking 10,000 steps a day is a realistic task that can be tracked.
- Record your progress and give yourself a pat on the back. Evaluating your success is really a good way to keep yourself driven to change. Tracking the important things will help you better appreciate your success and how you can change it. Anything you want to change can be measured, from the amount of minutes you spend exercising each week to the number of books you read in a year.You can chart your progress in a notebook or spreadsheet, or you can use an app or a watch (such as a Fitbit). It makes no difference how you measure; it’s the act of measuring that counts.
- Take the first step. Stephen Guise describes how he conquered his aversion to exercise by convincing himself that he only needed to do ONE push up. All the pressure and anxiety disappeared after only one push-up. Of course, once he was on the floor and had completed the push-up, he went on to do a few more. Then, since he was already warmed up, he did a few more exercises. One basic push-up turned into a full-body workout lasting 30 minutes. The initial drive to get started is often one of the most difficult aspects of doing something. We often avoid challenging tasks because we are overwhelmed by the whole mission, but breaking it down into smaller chunks will help you get started. Tell yourself that you only need to do one little thing at a time; once you start, you’ll want to do more. This can be used to improve self-discipline in any situation. You should promise yourself that every day you will work on your blog for 10 minutes or read one page of a novel.
- Change your circle. I can tell you where you will be in the next 1, 5, 10 years just by who you surround yourself with. When you’re trying to improve your self-discipline and achieve a daunting task, having a support circle of people who believe in you can be extremely beneficial.Assemble a team of people who want you to succeed. This is more difficult than it seems, because envy or feelings of inadequacy can cause friends and family to say hurtful and discouraging things. Hunt out people who will truly celebrate with you as you meet your objectives and who will inspire you to keep going until you cross the finish line.
- Energy vs time. I am unmistakably a morning guy. I know that if I don’t finish my most important tasks by the afternoon, my ability to focus would deteriorate. Working in the evening is typically futile for me because I take twice as long as I would in the morning to complete a mission. Consider what time of day you naturally have the most energy and schedule your activities around that. Of course, if you work a fixed-hours job, you may not be able to choose when you work, but this information may also be useful in making other choices, such as whether to go to the gym before or after work.
- Anticipate setbacks. Expecting yourself to perform flawlessly every time is unrealistic. You’ll only succeed in making yourself feel inferior if you keep yourself to an unattainable level of excellence.When you make a mistake, forgive yourself, get back up, and keep moving forward. “Never Miss Twice” should be your slogan. That means it’s not the end of the world if you miss one workout, but you won’t miss two in a row. If you don’t write 500 words this morning, you’ll almost certainly do so tomorrow.Slipping up on your habits isn’t a sign of failure; it just means you’re human. It is not important to never make a mistake in order to strengthen self-discipline. It all comes down to having the courage and dedication to keep going and progressing over time.
In conclusion, You don’t have to perfect your discipline right now. All you have to do now is start implementing one of the techniques mentioned above and take small steps toward building your self-discipline “muscle.” With that being said, put down your device and get started! I believe in you!