We are often told that discipline is the answer to our problems. With a little more discipline, we can achieve our goals and avoid temptations. Just try a little bit harder, have a little bit more willpower, have a little more self control. But that’s not how it works.
We grossly overestimate the contribution of willpower. Willpower is not a constant; it may be strong at one moment and then wane when we’re tired or stressed. If we leave our actions up to willpower, we will at some point disappoint ourselves.
I often hear the assumption that disciplined people have more willpower and somehow have the superhuman ability to stick to their values or priorities. I don’t think that’s true and, if anything, it only contributes a tiny bit to what discipline actually is.
In reality, disciplined people know themselves and know when their willpower fails. If they are tired, they will spend a long time on social media, unable to look away. If they go to a fast food restaurant, they will end up ordering fast food. They are aware of their tendencies and don’t leave it up to willpower to make the choice they consider “better” or “right.”
Photo by Tyler Lastovich from Pexels
Disciplined people often avoid putting themselves in tempting situations. They know that the only way to resist is to avoid the setting altogether, so they avoid the tempting situation. If they want to spend less time on social media, they use a website blocker. If they want to eat less fast food, they go to restaurants that don’t serve fast food. It’s so much easier to avoid an unwanted action if the immediate environment prevents it.
I’m not saying that you should always avoid tempting situations. It all comes back to the mindful choice: if you consciously and purposefully choose to do something, by all means, go ahead. Just don’t let the situation decide for you.
When you want to avoid an action and you know your willpower may fail, it is so much easier to avoid the tempting situation altogether. This is the secret that disciplined people know.
Not all tempting actions lend themselves to simple solutions. But if you identify such a solution, then make sure you implement it. It will save you lots of frustration over inevitable lapses in willpower.
What kinds of tempting activities do you avoid? What actions would you like to prevent? Let me know by commenting below or on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn.
A Good Life 
I like your take on how can we discipline ourselves by avoiding tempting situations, I would love to read your views on how can we discipline ourselves by actually doing something. for example, I want to exercise every morning but I simply can’t.
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Thank you! That’s a great question. Perhaps a good first step is to identify the problem: why can’t you exercise every morning? Are you too tired? Do you have other things you need to do at that time? Do you get distracted and end up doing something else? Is there a better time of day where you can implement this habit? If morning would really be a good time, what obstacle do you need to overcome to make it happen?
You can check out several of my blog posts on this topic:
And the series of blog posts where I describe my system which makes all these things happen (the first blog post of the series is at the bottom of the page, and then the sequence is ascending):
https://marishamanahova.com/category/organization-productivity/my-organizational-system/
Let me know how it goes and what you think! 🙂
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hey thanks ! I would surely give it a read ❤
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