If you were to measure your self-discipline, where would you place yourself on a scale of 1 to 10?
Think about this question, and be honest with yourself.
How can you measure it honestly and without bias? Ask yourself the following questions:
- When you make a promise, trivial or important, do you keep it?
- How often do you change your mind when you decide about something?
- Do you get up in the morning intending to do something, only to postpone it for later, and when the day is over, it is still not done?
- When a certain action, task or chore is difficult, and takes time to accomplish, do you go through with it, or quit after a while?
- Are you able to repeat the same activity, day after day, until you accomplish what you set out to do?
Why Discipline Is Important?
Self-discipline is one of the cornerstones of achievement, not just the achievement of big goals, but also the achievement, and carrying out of simple daily tasks and chores.
Without a certain degree of self-discipline you act like a jelly fish. You get carried away by external forces, the environment, the media, family or colleagues.
Possessing self-discipline means to hold the steering wheel of your life and becoming a doer, instead of a drifter.
You should have this skill if you wish to have more control over your life.
- You need it if you wish have better grades.
- You need it if you wish to get a promotion.
- It’s important for weight loss, body building and sports.
- It’s a skill everyone needs.
Don’t feel too bad if you stand at zero, 1 or 2, on the scale of self-discipline. This can be changed.
Obstacle on the Way to Self Discipline
Do you make a lot of promises to yourself and to others, but never follow through with them? This will ultimately, lead people to stop believing and trusting you.
If you want people to respect you and to trust you, you need to show that you are a person, who does what he says.
If you want to get promoted at your job, if you want to make progress in your life, or if you wish to be regarded as a person who keeps his or her word, you need to develop a certain degree of self-discipline.
It’s so easy to be distracted and being pulled here and there.
People might tell you things, persuade you to do what they want, and you soon change directions.
You might let laziness and procrastination rule your life.
You might also not make the right priorities in your life.
These are a few of the obstacles that destroy the ability to follow what you promise to do, but these obstacles can be surmounted.
I suggest you begin by reading this article, and practicing the exercises it offers. This would be a good start. The article offers a few simple exercises for developing inner strength, which equals discipline.
Self discipline is a skill which you can develop and improve, like any other skill, and is worth your time and effort.
