With the end of the year coming up and 2022 upon us, the struggle to keep focused is very real. After a year like 2021, we are stressed and burnt out more than ever before. Losing sight of our goals and the lack of discipline to push through can be a challenging barrier to overcome.
As you probably know by now, I was born in Zambia and went to school in Paarl at the age of four. I spent my whole High School in a boarding school which played a massive role at shaping my own self-discipline. I think while every person is wired differently, we are not all born with discipline. I think discipline is like a muscle that you can train and make it bigger and stronger.
Training your motivation muscles can start at any time of your life and just like any exercise or sport, requires practise and positive rituals. Here are five things that have helped me be more disciplined.
- Getting up early: I used to hate getting up early. In fact when I played rugby I was paid to rest up after a big game. When I stopped playing I decided to train early in the morning when my family was still sleeping and I wasn’t stealing any of their time.
- Regular exercise: My background as a sportsman obviously helped me be an active person but I really can’t do life without exercise. It helps me release stress and it gets me out in nature where I am my happiest.
- Being on time: Boarding school hammered this principle into me. Corporal punishment was still alive and kicking and if you were late for anything you knew what was coming your way. I am hectic about being on time. I think it is a show of respect when you arrive on time for a meeting.
- Making up your own bed: It sounds like a mundane chore but there is no doubt that making up your own bed helps you to be disciplined and to respect yourself and those around you. I don’t know the theory, but I know it works!
- Be humble: If you are humble then no act, chore or job is “above” your level and you will be self-disciplined enough to do it whether you feel like it or not. In the end that is what self-discipline is about. “Doing something when you need to do it whether you feel like doing it or not”
For more tips and tricks on staying disciplined and focused, follow me on LinkedIn and Facebook. For more information about Debunking Motivation visit www.cornekrige.com