Self discipline is also one of those things that people seek to avoid by searching for that “magic pill,” to change things around them without changing themselves. If you want things in your life to change, that starts with you, and your self-discipline can help you make that shift in a sustainable way.

However, for the most part, the thought of self-discipline isn’t met with enthusiasm. It is often undertaken begrudgingly, because self-discipline requires us to pass on the short-term rewards in favor of a longer term goal. So is it worth it?

If you like to have freedom, joy, and feel empowered in your life, self-discipline is something to celebrate and embrace. Wikiquote defines it as ”the ability to manage ourselves and our emotions to determine a best course of action on any situation.” This is often where we self-sabotage ourselves and “give in” to short term desires that cost us the long term result.

 From a metaphysical perspective, self-discipline is a key to greater freedom. With greater understanding we can pursue self-discipline with inner joy and peace, rather than the inner tug-of-war that often sabotages our efforts to reach our goals.

Physical Health

We have all heard the key to physical health comes down to a simple process of exercise and eating well, and yet we seek out quick and easy solutions to try to get results faster while minimizing the need to change anything about our comfortable routines and diet. 

Personally, I have tried and failed at this many times.  Part of the answer for me was to look at and understand why I was having trouble. Initially, my motivation was to try and become what society says I should look like, the super-fit models that we are shown as an example. But this motivation was coming from outside of myself, and eventually I would cheat the process and give up.

After doing some emotional work, I realized that in order to live the live I wanted, and to be able to do the things I wanted to do, I needed to take care of my body better.  The measure for success isn’t if I match someone else’s idea of what I should look like or be able to do.  It comes down to how I feel in my body and function in life. This motivation shifted things for me and I was much more successful. When I’m measuring up to my own personal goals of fitness, I’m able to gauge how I’m doing with realistic expectations.

When our motivation for physical health comes from a place of honoring our physical body as the vehicle for us to travel through life, the process becomes much more sustainable. We can choose what supports us as an individual to thrive. Once we use our will to shift the pattern (which foods we eat, how we exercise, building routines etc), we see the results and are motivated to keep going on this new track. Small changes like a regular exercise routine can help bring more energy and confidence that inspire us to keep going. It is very rewarding to know that YOU are the one in control of your progress, and how you feel. You are empowered to make a change that can transform your physical health. 

When it comes to diet, letting go of things that don’t support your health can be a great place to start. Especially looking at habits, where you consume food that doesn’t support you without thinking much about it. Sweets and sodas are a great place to examine, and if you do decide to indulge, to do so mindfully. To fully enjoy it. 

 If you decide to give up certain foods, educate yourself on new recipes and new foods that you may not be as familiar with. Explore to find dishes that work for you which you really enjoy. This exploration will help you to build new routines to support you and satisfy your body’s desire for delicious food. If it is all about letting go without putting a new practice in place, it will be harder to maintain.

Mental

Mental self-discipline is about keeping a close watch on your mind. There are many things that are trying to influence how you think, what you think about, and the choices you make. 

What we consume as entertainment, advertising, culture – these all affect us and we’re not always aware of the impact it has on our mind. One way to monitor this is to be aware of the opinions you have. Examine them continuously. Where did they come from? What is it based on? Explore other perspectives and hold it alongside.

Meditation is a powerful tool to assist in cleansing the mind, and strengthening your ability to focus so that you can apply the power of your mind to achieve your goals. This is a practice that can be cultivated, and is a great way to apply self-discipline to cultivate a strong and resilient mind. 

Subconscious Thought

Our subconscious mind is working beneath the surface, and has a big impact on our conscious thoughts, patterns and behaviors. This area may be one that people resist addressing even more than going to the gym. What this involves is looking at yourself.  Understanding why you act the way you do, why some things set you off and some don’t.

The part of this that is hard for people is that they have to take ownership of the way they react.  It’s not that Mary or Bob made you mad.  It’s not about Mary or Bob.  It’s about you.  Something in you, something in your past made you react that way. 

The self-discipline of this is being aware that you are being triggered and the willingness to look inside yourself and figure out why.  I’m not saying this is easy, it isn’t.  However, looking at this, learning what really makes you tick is key to becoming the person that you want to be, the best you.

At the Modern Mystery School Minneapolis – St. Paul, we have healing and classes that can help, some of those may be right for you. This ancient lineage of empowerment has been maintaining tools to assist people in bringing light to the subconscious for thousands of years, and once you are aware of the subconscious you can do something about it. If this is something that calls to you, the path of initiation may be right for you.

Emotional Self-Discipline

I don’t think people associate self-discipline with emotions very much.  However, it seems to me there are several aspects where self-discipline has a big part to play.

Boundaries

Yes, emotional boundaries.  People spend a lot of time sorting these out, learning about themselves, what their responsibilities are to themselves and others.  Often this is a difficult process, but very empowering when you get a good idea of these.

If you haven’t sorted these out yet and would like some help, again the Modern Mystery School of Minneapolis – St. Paul has people that can help. The self-discipline part comes in when those boundaries are tested.  You need to have the strength to stick to your boundaries and explain them, if that’s appropriate in the situation.  I call this self-discipline because you are putting yourself and your long-term goals ahead of the short-term gain of not upsetting someone or causing an issue.  Sometimes practicing, just like doing pushups, may help.  Look at yourself in the mirror and walk through the situation.  May seem silly, but the practice can prepare you to move outside your comfort zone step by step.

Self-talk

The stories we tell ourselves,  the way we describe ourselves and our actions have a great impact on how we see ourselves and the value we place on ourselves.  If we tell ourselves we can’t do something, that we aren’t smart enough, or strong enough,  we may just talk ourselves out of even trying.  In all honesty, writing this post was tough for me.  I looked at the other posts on the Modern Mystery School page and I kept telling myself that I couldn’t write anything to compete with those. I almost gave up.  Then I realized that it isn’t a competition.  It’s about reaching out and speaking from your heart.  Which I’m doing. The self-discipline part of this is to keep an eye on what you are telling yourself.  It is easy to criticize yourself, those voices sneak in.

Spiritual 

What is spiritual discipline?

Separating yourself from the world?

Avoiding any fun?

Being perfect?

It’s actually none of those things.  What it means, IMHO, is simply dedicating yourself to understanding yourself and helping others understand themselves as well.  That doesn’t mean there isn’t work involved, there is, but it really is a journey.

Self-awareness 

In this context, it means being aware that you are in fact a divine being.  A divine being having a physical experience, not the other way around.  There are some significant implications of accepting that.  Since you are divine, you are enough.  Once you understand this and internalize it, it becomes much harder to think of yourself as unworthy.  This idea goes hand in hand with working though your own emotional and mental history.  It’s important to understand the patterns and faulty beliefs you have.  

Methods for Succeeding with Self Discipline

At the beginning of this post I promised some tips on how to succeed at self-discipline.  I saved them until the end because for the most part they work for all areas. 

• Physical: getting regular exercise is critical for physical heath as well as eating correctly. Both of those are a personal journey, and the details of your practice will likely vary from person to person. There is no “one way” solution, but the journey is worth exploring to have a healthy, strong body that can carry you through life.
  
  
• Mental: Be aware of what is going into your mind, what you read, what you watch.  Who you listen to. Start a meditation practice to assist in cleansing your mind and letting go of the noise that is going on all around you. Tune into your inner self.
  
  
• Emotional: Self-care is the big factor here.  Just taking some time out for yourself, whatever works for you.
  
  
• Spiritual:  Meditation is key here as well. This gives you an opportunity to quiet your mind and tune in to the divine being you truly are. To gain greater awareness and discernment of yourself and your reality. 

Routine

The hard part isn’t knowing what to do, it’s actually doing it.  Most of us have a busy schedule, so it won’t work to just add something on top of what you are ready doing.  If it’s ‘extra’ you will stop doing it.  

The key is to build the time for the practice into your schedule.  I know that’s tough, especially if you have kids.  Start small.  For example, if you meditated for 10 minutes before bed every week night, that would be great and you would see benefits. 

For self-care, maybe a massage once a month.  You get the idea, just start with a small incremental change.  Once you get used to it and feel the benefits, it will get easier to make more time for it.

Reasonable goals

It’s not reasonable to expect that you will start to do 30 minutes of cardio tomorrow if you haven’t exercised in years.  Start with something you can do. Take a walk, or use the stairs at work on Mondays.  Don’t set yourself up to fail right out of the box by setting the bar too high. 

Also, make it something you can measure.  Number of steps, minutes of meditation.  Not having a cookie on Fridays.  Goals like ‘I am going to start meditating’ or ‘I am going to get more exercise’ are too vague.  It’s very easy to let those slide. 

Accountability

 Find some way to make yourself accountable.  Again, you don’t need to go overboard with this.  I have a spreadsheet that I use to keep track of my daily rituals.  That works for me.  Many people have an agreement with a friend.  My daughter-in-law walks every day with her friend.  Having someone to do it with makes it easier.  Do a 30 day meditation challenge, I know several people in the community do those from time to time.

Motivation

This is really the key to the whole thing.  The motivation needs to come from within yourself, not because you are trying to live up to other people’s standards or what they think your life should be.  That never works.  The desire to have a better life, to be a happier, better version of yourself, that motivation works.  From that, you can tap into the strength, wisdom and courage to change your life.