What is discipline? How can we apply discipline? Why is discipline necessary? These are some of the questions I will answer through these paragraphs. Think about each book on a bookshelf or the great Olympic champions. No author or athlete got to where they are by living without an aim. They were focused. They had a goal and a vision of where they wanted to reach. The author had to sit down time after time, putting in many hours to put their thoughts on paper. The athletes had to practice on a routine basis to make sure they were prepared for the championship. Nothing happens overnight; it must be done routinely to reach the desired outcome.
Every victory comes with its sacrifice. Every war is won through the habit of never giving up, and I am one specific author and champion who knows the reward of not giving up. We need to be champions of our lives.
Discipline helps us cultivate the desires that we want. Discipline helps us change behaviors or habits that might not be helpful for us now; it might be getting up late daily or not having breakfast on time. It could also be that we want to train ourselves to stop overthinking. We could wish to take 15 minutes to walk daily or four days weekly. It could be a multitude of things. Choosing to eat healthy takes discipline. Learning a new skill or even educating ourselves on something requires discipline. Having discipline will make you a winner in the most brutal battle. Stopping being an overthinker requires discipline. Learning to be more positive involves discipline.
Personal growth is about discipline. Discipline requires work and requires us to focus on the desired task. We must develop a structured plan to create a new set of routines.
Discipline also requires us to plan. To make an excellent and thought-out plan, we need to be intentional about making that plan. Obstacles, trials, and difficulties will confront us, a normal part of the process. It would help prepare yourself to face and confront the barriers that keep you from doing what you want. Discipline comes with its challenges; that is a significant thing to remember. Change requires confrontation of whatever might work against the change. We must face ourselves and the limitations that might keep us back and encourage ourselves to keep working towards change. We must start by taking baby steps and not being hard on ourselves when we seem stuck or stop moving forward.
One of the things that works against discipline is fear—fear of stepping into the unknown, fear of stepping into new things, fear of leaving the past behind, fear of facing challenges, fear of changing a part of our character that is not so easy, fear of facing what might seem impossible.
We must understand that struggling, getting tired, and feeling like we are not moving is okay. It is also acceptable to slip up occasionally and feel frustrated. You are not alone. Many individuals go through the same thing. I went through the same process. I got through that phrase by constantly reminding myself that change brings pain along with it. No change is ever easy.