Discipline, Our Self Image and Objective Setting

It's ok to read this without wearing leather - it's not that kind of discipline.  I refer to the kind were we push ourselves hard when the going is getting tough.  Where we persevere and keep moving, and keep our desire to quit whatever it is we're doing in check. It's the stuff character is made of - at least that's what Vince Lombardi would have said.

Discipline is required as we diet, or embark on an exercise program.  It's required if we elect to go to medical school, or take on another physical or intellectual stretch activity for ourselves. It's required when building a business, or changing course in one.  Discipline's required to put in Malcolm Gladwell's 10,000 hours as in his hypothesis in Outliers suggests - the time at violin practice,  the gymnastics mat or the midnight hours spent at the university library.  Discipline is what keeps us going back, especially when we don't want to.

Discipline works and is reinforced when we make recognizable gains towards our goal.  Long periods of time with no perceptible movement towards our goal taxes our discipline and make us question the effort involved.  And it is important to recall that progress is measured a few ways.

Let's say we're in school, taking a course that's difficult for us.  The attendance in class, completion of homework and measure of our results in assignments and tests are what happens, but the discipline involved is to keep attending, keep doing the needed work.  The passing of each day being us a little closer to completion.  Now, compare this to a goal to lose 10 pounds/kilos.  That goal isn't time bound, it will be achieved when it's achieved.  The fastest though not the smartest path to success is to chop off an arm.  That gives you instant weight loss, though is admittedly quite counter-productive.  The goal more precisely should be - to lose 10 pounds/kilos of fat, and reduce your BMI to X% and become healthier overall.   Spending five weeks on a diet as the only goal statement is no more realistic than electing to go to class only until you feel smart enough in the topic being covered.

So why does this matter ?  Why the remedial overview of discipline..

Because discipline and realistic goal setting should go hand in hand, with an awareness of what's involved, and I'll suggest that too often it doesn't.  

We forget to make goals time-bound, or acknowledge the unimportance of time.  We overlook the commitment required to achieve a goal, or too often under-acknowledge it.  The problem arises when we try to push ourselves to maintain that sense of disincline, when the goal isn't achievable or realistic.  And then when we fail, when we fall short of the goal, our self image about our ability to maintain discipline in our lives is rocked and very disturbed.

I'd put forth that one's ability to maintain discipline in our lives is core feature of how we view ourselves.  We integrate that into our perspective on others as well.  Homeless people are 'too lazy to work' and obese people and 'too lazy to do something about it' is often heard. Not you ?  Think about that next time you pass the person with cup in hand on the sidewalk, or have a smug salad for lunch. Our self-image of discipline is integral to our view of ourselves in the world, and when we fail our own discipline yard-stick, we affect our own view of the world dramatically.  If we fail at something, we lump ourselves into that 'lazy' camp - and that's not a very nice place to be.

So what can we do about this.  The first thing I'd suggest is to be careful about how you set goals, and define your objectives.  Rather than being a proverbial Don Quixote tilting at your windmills, be very careful and invest as much thought into the goal setting phase, as in the thought about what it will take to achieve that goal.  Aim to push yourself by all means, but do so realistically.  Take into account not simply the achievement of the goal - to learn to speak Spanish for example, but how you might maintain that skill going forward.  Where will you be able to practice, and apply what you've invested time into.

Discipline is a wonderful thing, and leads to great feelings of accomplishment and pride - but remember it has a mirror image too, and if you set yourself up for failure you have only yourself to hold accountable for that.