When we speak about "discipline" some people would probably think about Samurai, Buddhists or even football players. There are also people who think that it is only reserved for those dedicated and extremely tough persons. But the truth is it isn't. Although a lot have been written about how to improve self-discipline, most of us still fail to do so.
Self discipline is something that most people lack because it often means sacrificing the pleasures and thrills of the greatest things in life. It is taking action based on what you think is right and not of how you feel at the moment. It is the one thing you need to achieve your goals. Of course, there's the influence of other people, money and your natural abilities. But keep in mind that self-discipline is one of the most important elements of success. Here are a few tips on how to improve self-discipline.
1. Know why you need to discipline yourself. To develop self-discipline, you first need to understand why you need to do so. Most of the times, people don't work on improving their ability to discipline themselves until they feel the need to do so because they are already in some kind of trouble. For example, a person that is a workaholic keeps on working on a busy schedule until he suffers from a heart attack. That is the time when he sees the importance of discipline and leading a healthier lifestyle. Thus, he needs to take action to make it happen.
2. Set doable goals. Unrealistic goals make a person lose his determination to keep on moving forward. Most people often forget that the first rule of goal setting is to set realistic goals. If you set a goal too high, it is more likely that you will fail. And when you do, you will probably blame yourself for being weak. If you have big goals, break them into smaller pieces. This will make you move forward one step at a time towards reaching larger dreams.
3. Change unpleasant habits. More often than not, it is your bad habits that stop you from doing what you are supposed to do to achieve your goals. For example, a person who plans of losing weight is likely to fail if he can't do away from his habit of ransacking the fridge every night. Determine which of your habits that you are better off without and stop yourself from doing them. If you are able to dot this, you are actually a few steps away from being a more self disciplined person.
4. Do the things that you know you should but don't. In other words, don't procrastinate. The thing about self-discipline is that you are actually pushing yourself to do the things that you hate doing but need to. Remember that the things that improve your quality of life are worth the effort. Plan your day ahead and include the things that you should accomplish for the day no matter how unpleasant they are.
5. Reward yourself. In order to feel motivated you need to reward yourself even for the smallest of achievements. This reinforces your good and productive actions. Furthermore, it is much less difficult to stay disciplined when you give yourself something to look forward to.