To become the best you can be you must learn to exercise self-discipline and deny yourself things that would bring you immediate satisfaction so that you can get a better reward at a later date. It is true that sometimes, it may seem appealing to sleep or go out but willing your body and mind to work harder or to persevere even in the face of obstacles and temptations makes you stronger and is ultimately more rewarding. Not only will you be conquering your body and feelings, you will also achieve more in less time and also develop more self-respect.
We must all suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret. -Jim Rohn
Most successful leaders, business people, and entrepreneurs confess that they have learnt to conquer their bodies and their minds and practice self-discipline every single day. The ingredients of success include setting goals, knowledge, showing up, putting in a lot of effort and perseverance.
However, self-discipline is not only important in achieving success financially or in becoming a leader, it is actually the key to becoming successful in every single aspect of life.
Play the Long Game
If you sacrifice your time and use it to become more productive rather than indulging in activities that would give you instant satisfaction, you will be able to get a set of deferred rewards. For example, whether you are an author, an artist or a business person, at one point or another, you may be tempted to postpone returning a call to a problem client or maintaining book-keeping records (for a business person) , skip practice ( for a musician) or skipping a week before writing that extra page (for an author). Either way, you will take longer to complete tasks if you keep postponing them. However, if you strictly adhere to your writing, practice, or business plans, you can be sure that you will be able to achieve more success and rewards later in the long-run.
Be Happier
If you practice self-discipline, you will be able to get things done on time and, as such, you will begin to make your life more stress free. For example, when you discipline yourself to wake up earlier, you have more time to effectively prepare for your day. If you have children, you can spend time with them before they head off to school. You can also prepare yourself for the workday ahead by having a nutritious breakfast and having the time to order the day’s tasks. These seemingly small things can lead to a smoother and more productive day for all involved. That more productive day, in turn, increases your inner happiness because, overall, you are exposed to less stress. As they say, from little acorns tall oaks grow.
Develop Inner Strength
Most people do not realize how much inner strength they have. They are unaware of their ability to overcome issues or hardships that set them back in their personal lives, in business and in daily interactions with other people. Practicing self-discipline enables you to recognize the inner strength that you possess.
Command More Respect
Many people actually lack self-discipline and as a result, they easily lose track of their goals. This means that they are often late to appointments, they miss deadlines and generally let the people around them down. Self-discipline helps to avoid this trap. You will easily earn the respect of your colleagues, partners or clients because you do what you say you will do no matter what. It becomes a point of honor among the self-disciplined to show that they respect others. This, in turn, earns them respect as well.
Be More Efficient
Being self-disciplined means sticking to set goals no matter what. If you do this, you will be able to achieve more in less time and consequently, you will be able to find more time to indulge in other activities.
Self-discipline can help you stay the course you have set, as well as set you apart from your peers.
It can help you achieve great success.
It is what makes the difference.
It is what makes you different.
In what ways do you need to improve your self-discipline?
In what ways do you crush it? I’d love to hear from you!
