Discipline is a Long-term Investment that Pays Dividends
Discipline is that feeling of resolve when you lay down in bed and don't feel the need to promise yourself that you'll behave differently tomorrow. When your daily actions align with your long-term desires, you are practicing discipline. Even control over your emotions, actions, and words are all part of discipline. For example, deciding not to get angry over something someone said to you. Choosing not to text that person you shouldn't, is something you'll thank yourself for later on. In practice, discipline allows you to live at peace knowing you are mostly in control of your inner world and that you could alter, albeit slightly, your outer world.
Humans generally have a difficult time aligning their short term desires with their long term goals. You'd like to be healthy, but currently there is a whole pizza in front of your face. You quickly bypass your hesitancy by coming up with an excuse, that if stated out-loud, even you might laugh at its irrationality. The prefrontal cortex is partially responsible for behavior control; But, it has to somehow tame the primordial engine of desire deep within your noggin.
Since I was young, I remember my lack of discipline as a source of frustration. I could never get my immediate self to do what I knew would benefit me in the long term. For example, during cross country practice i'd try to avoid running extra. Why would I even sign up for the team anyway? I was lazy to study, to exercise, to do my chores, but then would feel shame for feeling so unaccomplished. It wasn't so much about finding fulfillment and value in achievement, but rather having a feeling of control over the part of me that felt separate. Maybe the brain of child hasn't had the time to see how discipline today rewards the future self. A positive feedback loop, that sets the foundation for a healthy adult.
Maybe it was my first job when I was 17 or 18 that gave me the first clue on how discipline could make me feel. I rode my bike to work in that Florida heat because my parents were busy working. I earned my first paycheck earned after diligently working for two weeks. I used that money to buy my girlfriend at the time an Ipod. A feat only achieved by balancing my desires with my goals. I think I was hooked. Thankfully my parents set the stage by not robbing me of the experience of tying discipline to things like earning money.
But I guess we all go to work and earn money. So what? It wasn't until later that I learned discipline extended into social life as well. At work and with my friends, regulating my behavior and reactions was of high value. No one liked people who acted erratically or just were impossible to predict which mood they'd be in that day. Friendships grew tighter and people more willing to trust me by providing more opportunities.
While talking to my brother the other day, I compared the rewards of discipline as dividends. It pays out value years later in small amounts. E.g. the new job, the happy spouse, the finished marathon, the PR bench press, or strong relationships. These small, yet consistent payouts stave off the feelings of despair while boosting self-confidence. So when someone doesn't invest into their discipline fund today, the consequences of that sometimes won't manifest until years down the line. Which in turn will demotivate them to invest in the first place.
Ultimately, when you receive a dividend, and you lay down in bed that night, you'll be proud of who you are. Knowing that today, you acted in ways that will honor your future self.
Humans generally have a difficult time aligning their short term desires with their long term goals. You'd like to be healthy, but currently there is a whole pizza in front of your face. You quickly bypass your hesitancy by coming up with an excuse, that if stated out-loud, even you might laugh at its irrationality. The prefrontal cortex is partially responsible for behavior control; But, it has to somehow tame the primordial engine of desire deep within your noggin.
Since I was young, I remember my lack of discipline as a source of frustration. I could never get my immediate self to do what I knew would benefit me in the long term. For example, during cross country practice i'd try to avoid running extra. Why would I even sign up for the team anyway? I was lazy to study, to exercise, to do my chores, but then would feel shame for feeling so unaccomplished. It wasn't so much about finding fulfillment and value in achievement, but rather having a feeling of control over the part of me that felt separate. Maybe the brain of child hasn't had the time to see how discipline today rewards the future self. A positive feedback loop, that sets the foundation for a healthy adult.
Maybe it was my first job when I was 17 or 18 that gave me the first clue on how discipline could make me feel. I rode my bike to work in that Florida heat because my parents were busy working. I earned my first paycheck earned after diligently working for two weeks. I used that money to buy my girlfriend at the time an Ipod. A feat only achieved by balancing my desires with my goals. I think I was hooked. Thankfully my parents set the stage by not robbing me of the experience of tying discipline to things like earning money.
But I guess we all go to work and earn money. So what? It wasn't until later that I learned discipline extended into social life as well. At work and with my friends, regulating my behavior and reactions was of high value. No one liked people who acted erratically or just were impossible to predict which mood they'd be in that day. Friendships grew tighter and people more willing to trust me by providing more opportunities.
While talking to my brother the other day, I compared the rewards of discipline as dividends. It pays out value years later in small amounts. E.g. the new job, the happy spouse, the finished marathon, the PR bench press, or strong relationships. These small, yet consistent payouts stave off the feelings of despair while boosting self-confidence. So when someone doesn't invest into their discipline fund today, the consequences of that sometimes won't manifest until years down the line. Which in turn will demotivate them to invest in the first place.
Ultimately, when you receive a dividend, and you lay down in bed that night, you'll be proud of who you are. Knowing that today, you acted in ways that will honor your future self.
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