Your intuition says, “Don’t do it!” but your conscious mind sees the “shiny dime” investment and yells out, “Go for it!” You do and your bank account dwindles over time.
You’re tired of shopping in the big girl store. A fitness plan is now in place. You’ve worked out three days in a row. “Come on…one donut won’t hurt you,” your subconscious cajoles as you reach for a Krispy Kreme. “This may be harder than I think,” you ponder as you lick your fingers.
Your promotion is eminent. Soon you’ll be leading your peers to a new level of corporate success. “Spread the gossip and rumor! Juicy stuff like this needs to be shared,” your inner voice exhorts as you participate in water cooler gossip unbefitting a leader. Mysteriously no promotion arrives.
“You’re tired. Start your workout tomorrow,” is the internal dialogue that will prevent you from waking an hour earlier than normal so you can get in a brisk workout to start your day. Hitting the snooze button you fall back to sleep.
If your inner voice tries to take you from your plan, don’t listen.
Your inner voice is true to one thing…the repetitive images you have allowed to impregnate your mind. It will do anything to facilitate and manifest the success or failure blueprint you wittingly or unwittingly created and embedded.
What’s needed to get back on the success track? Self-discipline.
Self-discipline is the willingness and commitment to staying with daily routines or tasks that help achieve well-defined, measurable goals that lead to your overall vision of being your genuine, authentic best self. Weak or moderate self-discipline will cause most to stumble and fall while chasing their dreams.
Self-control. Restraint. Persistence. Willingness. Commitment. Self-regulation. Self-mastery. These are words that fall under the jurisdiction of Self-discipline, the first marker in the S.C.O.R.E.® Success System that is represented by the first letter in the acronym S.C.O.R.E.®. High levels of this performance marker will help you overcome your weaknesses such as laziness, impatience, procrastination, indecisiveness, sloppiness, carelessness, disorder and overall chaotic and unbalanced thinking.
The first step in becoming a Self-disciplined performer is to set your course with a clear vision of where you want to go and add corresponding, well-defined goals that become stepping-stones as a pathway to your success.
Next…the great performer is in control of his or her emotions. Controlling desires, habits and actions that do not align with your goals or vision require self-awareness and Self-discipline.
Here are 12 tips to bolster Self-discipline in and out of the workplace.
1. Commit to well defined, visions and goals in every life arena. Create yearly, quarterly, monthly and weekly goals that are synchronized into your master vision of being your genuine, authentic best self. Create daily action plans by mentally dress rehearsing the night before each day. This exercise takes less than 90-seconds.
2. Restrain from passing on gossip, hearsay and rumor to co-workers, friends and family.
3. For getting in top physical shape, never have a day you haven’t already had. Visualize your food intake and exercise routines. This will help prevent procrastination and succumbing to negative food urges and desires.
4. Picture finishing what you start. Champions are comfortable crossing the finish line because of their disciplined “I am a closer” mentality.
5. Be aware of self-sabotaging statements that can occasionally creep into your internal dialogue and overall conversations with others. These negative thoughts and or statements can be, “If I didn’t have any bad luck, I wouldn’t have any luck at all” or “I am so fat. I need to get in shape.” Self-deprecation will lead to failure. Be aware!
6. Avoid conversations that don’t serve you. It’s okay to “sit out” while a negative conversation is happening.
7. Eliminate the judge in you. More than ever, our society is fixated on judging others. This is NOT the mindset of a champion.
8. Eliminate the victim in you and the corresponding thoughts and actions. Blaming others will not serve you. No excuses as these are words of the loser and non-champion.
9. Avoid, eliminate or help other people that are chaotic and non-disciplined. A chaotic mind can easily influence other minds into chaos.
10. Think before you act. A great thinker is measured and judicious before they speak. Seldom will they need to retract a statement or apologize for misstatements, exaggeration, lies, distortion, inaccuracy, untruths and falsehoods.
11. Stick to your decisions and plans, regardless of any of inconveniences, adversities, complications, obstacles or challenges. Adjust when it’s your best option to succeed.
12. Go to bed positive and wake up positive. These times are crucial as to what you think. Go to bed happy by thinking only about what you want and you’ll wake up the same.
Self-discipline is the ability to control your thoughts and feelings while pursuing what serves you, regardless of the many temptations, desires, old negative habits and other distractions.
Self-discipline gets a bad rap among non-champions. Yes…there is sacrifice. Yes…changing negative habits can be difficult. Yes…you may need to put a little effort in it. However, without self-discipline most will fail.
In 1974 the five mental markers of Self-discipline, Concentration, Optimism, Relaxation and Enjoyment were discovered. Collectively they revealed the only proven system for attracting the peak performance mindset called the Zone. These markers form the acronym S.C.O.R.E.® and once the first letter of “S” or Self-discipline is in place, the other powerful markers fall in line.
Self-discipline rules!
Would you invest 3% or less of your waking hours to be disciplined and become your genuine, authentic, best self? Of course you would. Self-discipline will keep you persistent, tolerant, thoughtful, empathetic and capable of withstanding external stress and selfish influence.
If you want to have 30-40% less thought and more productivity then Self-discipline is the answer. If you would like to be punctual, better prepared and free from chaos, Self-discipline is where you start. And if you would like to be your best in every facet of your life, Self-discipline will organize your thoughts and actions into a blueprint for a simplicity, balance and abundance.
Pay now with Self-discipline or pay later with chaos, disappointment, despair, anguish, heartache, anxiety and failure.
Time to get in the Zone and ride the success train.
