Useful tips
Self-discipline is a word that causes tension or even rejection in most people. The imagination pictures the army order of life, grueling austerities and “taboo” on creative self-expression.
Is this always the case, or are these just imposed stereotypes?
The dictionary defines self-discipline as the ability to force oneself to take action regardless of one's emotional state. The key is the ability to not be swayed by the constant “winds of change” of our emotions.
It's no secret that the most successful people are those who know how to set goals and unwaveringly pursue their dreams.
Let's look at 10 effective ways to help develop self-control and self-discipline.
Know your weaknesses in person
Each of us has our own weaknesses and shortcomings.
Most people are afraid to admit even to themselves their existence or, on the contrary, loudly defend their right to exist.
Psychologists recommend learning to develop
an honest position towards yourself first. Admit to yourself the existence of certain shortcomings and weaknesses, honestly without embellishment. At this stage you can interact with them. Very slowly and gradually, step by step, small victory after victory.
The psychologist claims that an inferiority complex appears when a person expects constant evaluation of his actions from the people around him and is afraid of their disapproval.
“A person with an inferiority complex is afraid of his shortcomings, afraid to admit them (even to himself), because he feels that it would be right for him to be judged, ridiculed, not counted, not included in the lists, omitted - in general, ostracized in any form. An inferiority complex is negative self-acceptance."
So the first step to being more self-organized is learning to be honest about your own weaknesses.
How to develop self-discipline and willpower in everyday life
In fact, most people are more disciplined than they think they are. They just didn't bother to analyze how they got to where they are today.
But even if there are problems with discipline, it can be developed. To do this, you need to give a person some difficult task, help him complete it (preferably unnoticed), and then indicate to him that he completed it himself!
If you have children, use this method regularly. If you are a leader or manager, make this process part of your management system.
Discipline is developed by learning to be satisfied with one's efforts, fully involved in the process, and to enjoy it. Discipline is the key to success in any business in the modern world.
“Unfortunately, there are people who sincerely do not want to improve anything. They do not want to work. This is the walking dead; contented, lazy asses and leeches who are perfectly happy to be consumers without contributing anything to the world. These vampires are a waste of food and the sight of them makes me want to puke.
This is quite harsh; Sorry, but that’s what I think.” Mike Tyson
Does this mean that there is no hope of success for someone who is lazy or complacent? Does this mean that if you lack discipline, you are doomed to fail?
Yes, it is, unless you decide to change your life, do something to achieve your goals over and over, over and over again. If you are not ready to take this step, I'm sorry, but no one will help you.
Discipline is not for mediocrity, it is a school of excellence. If you are not ready, then find something that does not require effort, there is nothing wrong with that. But if it doesn't bring you satisfaction, you have no one to blame but yourself.
Learning to overcome temptations
The next step towards our goals is to develop the ability to overcome temptations.
As the proverb says: “Out of sight, out of mind.” No matter how simple it may seem, everyone can appreciate the effect; psychologists recommend simply removing the objects of your affections from sight, this will greatly help in the development of self-discipline.
If you want to eat healthy, just don’t buy unhealthy foods; if you want to increase your productivity, turn off your mobile phone, get off social networks.
The fewer distractions, the more focused you are on achieving your goals. You need to learn to be focused on what you are doing right now. This is a large part of the success of any endeavor.
What hinders the development of self-discipline?
The thing is, even the best laid plans are prone to failure. Frustration and pain await you around every corner. Add to this the circumstances that are beyond your control and you can see how important discipline, courage and perseverance are to achieving success.
Being disciplined is not easy, but a real man doesn't give a damn about it , and at the same time, he has no reason to make it too difficult. He just steps forward and does what he has to do.
One of the reasons this process is so often complicated is that people seek extrinsic rewards. Some people need a pat on the back every time they do something.
But external rewards do not develop discipline, they are incentives. If your only motivation is incentive, you are not a free person, you are an ass. A donkey can be tricked into pulling a cart by dangling a carrot in front of its nose.
Don't be an ass. You yourself know that the carrot will not get any closer. Learn to enjoy what you do; don't expect praise. Remember that the ultimate goal is to do something at 108%, to the best of your ability. Such perfection inevitably breeds success.
Make time for quality and timely meals
Most people suffer from various diseases
caused by irregular, low-quality nutrition. Achieving any goal requires, first of all, good physical shape. To do this, you need to regulate your food intake, consider the healthfulness of the foods you most often consume.
If you suffer from overeating, psychologists recommend
be very mindful while eating. Try to monitor your desire to constantly eat - whether this is “eating” problems.
Ekaterina Burlyaeva, nutritionist
, head of the consultative and diagnostic department, claims that people who are accustomed to constantly overeating cannot limit themselves to the normal amount of food; they constantly feel like they are hungry.”
Thus, timely intake of healthy food is an integral factor in a healthy lifestyle.
Attitudes towards discipline vary
Some, consciously or not, view discipline with fear and negativity, believing that this quality fetters freedom, makes people unhappy and forces them to strictly adhere to order.
An undisciplined person is distracted, unorganized, unpredictable, vulnerable, and cannot be relied upon. Moreover, the individual is captive of his own fears, laziness, and is a hostage to desires. He does not control mood changes and is unable to influence doubts.
And such people often do not achieve success in life, arguing this by imaginary freedom, by the fact that they are free in their actions and are not obliged to carry out assigned tasks or follow prevailing conditions and foundations.
Set clear goals and write a plan to achieve them
Stephen Covey, in his best-selling book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, states:
that every person will feel truly significant if he realizes that his activities bring good to the world. He recommends clearly articulating your goals and mission. Goals are dreams with specific dates; a mission is what a person generally lives and acts for.
Stephen Covey argues that to truly be a highly productive person, you need to take full responsibility for your life and overcome the fear of looking “bad” in the eyes of other people. A purposeful person is a holistic person, he clearly understands the value of his time and the people around him.
So, first of all, write down your plans.
and goals on paper and then figure it out for yourself - why you need to implement them, what is the point of achieving them. It is also important to realize whether their implementation in life will benefit others, or is it just personal ambitions.
About willpower
It is inextricably linked with discipline. It must be developed to become successful. This is a conscious submission of oneself to the rules and norms established in society, as well as the creation of certain conditions for overcoming difficulties at the time of need to manage one’s internal and external actions.
A person possessing this quality acquires many new useful characteristics, such as high self-esteem, self-control, stress resistance, and organization. Moreover, a person reaches heights, develops positive thinking, acquires communication skills, gets rid of bad habits without finding meaning in them, and so on. And yet, how to develop discipline and willpower?
Create your own discipline
Self-discipline is not an innate quality.
Each of us acquires it with experience and conscious effort. Like any other skill, it requires daily practice. Developing willpower takes a lot of effort.
Psychologists recommend taking small steps towards achieving your goals, but every day.
There is a so-called “20 minute rule”.
We devote only 20 minutes a day to activities that bring us closer to achieving our goals. After a short time, the result will be obvious.
Self-discipline is inextricably linked with self-restraint
and making constant efforts. Psychologists recommend analyzing your progress, thus developing awareness and responsibility.
Reviews and comments
Every opinion is valuable, share your thoughts about this article in the comments.
We also recommend reading:
- Storytelling
- The psychology of a winner
- Self-discipline: instructions for development
- Seven Methods for Training Self-Discipline
- What determines the strength of our intentions?
- Steve Pavlina's Questions for Making Tough Decisions
- Overcoming Negative Behavior
- Personal goal setting
- How to make changes permanent
- How to Develop Long-Term Focus
- Gemba Kaizen
Key words:1Psychoregulation
Create new habits, but keep them simple
Forming a new habit may seem difficult
overcoming an already established way of life. However, in achieving the goal, this is one of the important success factors.
Psychologists recommend breaking your goal into a number of stages.
Instead of “burning out” at the very beginning, it is better to do simple, but doable tasks for you.
Are you dreaming of losing weight?
Start with exercise that lasts 10-15 minutes.
If you want to improve your daily routine, go to bed 15 minutes earlier.
If you want to eat healthy food, make a grocery list in advance. Take small steps, overcome your own fears and always continue to move forward.
Incentives
On the path to discipline, use carrots as well as sticks. Love yourself and reward for every victory, even the smallest. Did you spend a productive day at the dacha helping your relatives plant tomatoes? When you arrive home, allow yourself to eat a delicious delicacy. Were you able to run two kilometers more than usual today? Go to the cinema in the evening. If you can’t take on a difficult task, promise yourself a reward in advance: “This is how I’ll draw up this stack of contracts, at home after work I’ll order my favorite pizza and finally watch a movie that I’ve been bookmarking for a long time.” The anticipation of pleasant leisure time will motivate you to start work and do it as quickly as possible.
And one last thing. Forget the phrases “I’m a weak-willed person,” “this is difficult for me,” “I’m too lazy and will be lazy all my life.” All these are excuses for those who do not want to change anything in life. And if you repeat such phrases to yourself, then you should not expect any internal motivation and will - they will not appear. Tell yourself that everything planned will work out. Then you will see how inner willpower will begin to fill you, and maintaining self-discipline will not be difficult.
Create your morning routine
Morning routine
– an extremely important element of self-discipline. The time you wake up will determine how productive your entire day will be.
In Eastern psychology
and Ayurveda says that the earlier a person wakes up, the more ability he has to overcome difficulties in life. Getting up early gives a person health, invulnerability, willpower, calmness and determination.
The most optimal time for waking up in the morning is from 4 to 6 am.
In the morning hours it is very favorable to engage in meditative practices, do exercises, jogging, and eat light and healthy food.
Definition of the concept
Self-discipline is an acquired personality quality, manifested in the ability of self-organization and self-control, as well as the willingness to follow a self-established plan to achieve a particular goal. In this matter, the main thing is the concept of discipline as a whole.
The level of discipline is determined by a person’s ability to strictly adhere to specific life principles and norms. This is not determined by internal beliefs and desires, but by external motivating factors. A person, setting a goal, must follow a certain routine accepted in society. Awareness and the ability to concentrate when performing the necessary actions play a big role in this matter.
Most often, difficulties with discipline and self-discipline arise when a person literally steps over himself and forces himself to do something that does not arouse his interest or contradicts his beliefs and principles. Therefore, it is very important to set goals that will not conflict with consciousness. True, not every person can afford to do only those actions that they want.
Although, frankly speaking, problems with achieving a goal most often consist of the inability to set the right goal, guided precisely by one’s needs and wants.
For example, a person can spend a lot of time and effort to become a certified lawyer, but never achieve success. Or get a diploma with honors, but never build a career in the field of law. If you dig deeper, you will most likely find out that this person dreamed of becoming a doctor or a teacher, and became a lawyer at the direction of his parents, who prophesied for him rapid advancement up the career ladder and a stable income.
You can force yourself to move on every day, but what good is that? Without receiving satisfaction in the fulfillment of his needs, a person will not come to success, but to disappointment in himself and his abilities.
Important!
To cultivate self-discipline, you must be guided only by your own desires, since living for the benefit of other people’s interests will not motivate you to actively achieve your goals.
Forgive yourself for your mistakes and keep moving forward
Even if we have the best intentions
and follow a clearly defined plan, we can expect many failures and mistakes. Any success is associated with difficulties and overcoming the fear of failing again.
Psychologists teach us to perceive difficulties as an integral part of the path.
Everyone will have their own ups and downs, which will provide their own invaluable experience. The main thing is not to stop, it may be very slowly, but still move forward. Do not allow yourself to plunge into a depressed state for a long time, to feel guilt, anger, disappointment.
Learn from your mistakes
, know how to forgive yourself and others, because success is determined not only by what you achieve, but also by how, what experience you gained in the process of achievement, what life lessons you learned.
Daily schedule
Get yourself a notebook or diary where you write down all the important things. Write them down in the following format: task – estimated time to complete – priority. If you can accurately determine how long it will take you to complete tasks, this will help you calculate the number of tasks that you can realistically complete in a day. The priority needs to be determined in order to understand which task can be transferred to the next day in case of lack of time. For example, you can nail a shelf tomorrow, but today it’s better to go visit your grandmother.
If we are talking about work responsibilities, then consider not only the urgency of the task, but also the likelihood that you may have to redo it or modify it.
