Six Steps to Developing Your Self-Discipline

Six Steps to Developing Your Self-Discipline

Now that you have some clarity about what self-discipline is all about let’s break down a six-step process to help you practice self-discipline.

You can, of course, use this process anytime and anywhere. However, please do keep in mind that, as with any process, it can take time to get into the habit of applying it consistently to your life. Therefore, be patient with yourself and play the long-game when it comes to developing your self-discipline.

Step 1: Define What You Want

The first step of this process involves getting very clear about what it is you want to achieve.

Self-discipline can only endure if it’s channeled toward something specific. In this instance, let’s direct it toward the desired outcome you have in mind.

This outcome might be a goal you want to achieve, a habit you might like to develop or any other type of change you might like to make.

To gain clarity about what it is you want, ask yourself:

What is it that I want to do, be, have or achieve?

What new habit would I like to develop?

What behavior would I like to change?

What is the one thing that I want to focus on in this moment?

Step 2: Describe the Changes Required

Now that you have some clarity about what it is you want, it’s time to describe what kind of habits and behaviors will help you attain this desired outcome. In other words, what kind of person might you need to become to achieve your goal?

Every goal we set brings with it a precise set of behaviors and habits that are intrinsically intertwined with the goal we want to achieve.

Gaining some clarity in this area will help you figure out what it will take to achieve your desired outcome.

With that in mind, have a think about your goal and ask yourself:

What specific behaviors will I need to cultivate to achieve this goal?

What specific habits will I need to adopt to achieve this goal?

While answering these questions, it’s important to also keep in mind your core values.

The behaviors you cultivate and the habits you adopt must reflect your core values. That’s, essentially, the only way to ensure that you’ll stick to your goal over the long-run.

Secondly, the journey toward goal achievement almost always changes people in unexpected ways.

As we pursue a goal, we learn and grow along this journey. This, subsequently, helps transform how we see ourselves, how we see others, and how we interact with the world around us.

What this essentially means is that you will need to change and adapt in some respects to have this goal in your life. In other words, you need to become the person that deserves to have this goal in his/her life.

Ask yourself:

With this goal in mind, what person will I need to become to achieve it?

What qualities will I need to adopt?

How will I need to think about myself, my life, and my goal?

Answering these questions is crucial as self-discipline grows from the level of certainty you have about something.

When you have more certainty about something, it’s just easier to muster up self-discipline. However, when certainty is lacking, then it’s easy to become sidetracked and distracted along the way.

Step 3: Find Adequate Role Models

It’s time now to look outward for answers to help strengthen your self-discipline. Specifically, let’s identify role models (friends, family, colleagues) who have already achieved the goal you are working towards. Ask yourself:

Who is doing this right now?

Who has successfully achieved this goal?

Who has successfully mastered this habit?

Who has successfully made this change?

Who has the necessary self-discipline in this area?

What can I learn from this person that can help me along my journey?

Take time to ask these people how they disciplined themselves. Ask them how they followed through with specific actions that got them their desired outcome. Then use their experience to help you discipline yourself along your own personal journey.

Step 4: Identify Reasons and Obstacles

You should by now have an obvious idea of what it will take to achieve your desired outcome.

With clarity, of course, comes more certainly. And with more certainty, it becomes easier to muster up the self-discipline needed to get the job done.

However, as with all journeys, you will inevitably confront numerous challenges, adversity, and obstaclesthat will test your discipline and resolve. Ask yourself:

Given my goal, what obstacles could stand in my way?

What specific things could sidetrack me along my journey?

The fewer compelling reasons we have for achieving something, the more likely we are to get sidetracked along the way.

To avoid getting sidetracked, you must take the time to write down why you want to achieve your desired outcome. For instance, you could ask yourself:

Why specifically do I want to achieve this goal?

Why specifically do I want to develop this habit?

Why is this of primary importance for me right now?

Why do I really want this in my life?

What are the potential rewards I will gain from doing this?

As you’re answering these questions, it’s essential that you don’t just settle for the first answer that comes to mind. Instead, keep building the WHYS!

The more compelling reasons you have for accomplishing your desired outcome, the easier it will be for you to discipline yourself along the way.

Step 5: Develop Your Plan of Action

It’s time now to build a practical plan of action to help you accomplish your goal.

An effective plan of action is comprised of a deadline for accomplishing your goal. It must also be built on the foundation of mini-milestones that break your goal down into manageable chunks.

Mini-milestones will ensure that you’re working toward your desired outcome in small pieces and time blocks. This tactic puts you in the driver’s seat. It gives you a sense of control over the tasks and projects you’re working on.

What you’re ultimately trying to avoid is succumbing to overwhelm. Overwhelm can quickly digress to procrastination, and procrastination can, subsequently, lead to stagnation. And, of course, where there is stagnation, self-discipline cannot exist.

Given this, it’s, therefore, paramount that you take progressive steps towards your goal to maintain control at all times.

Having a clear deadline in place is also essential. A clear deadline will help you discipline yourself as it focuses your mind on a specific end date for the accomplishment of your goal.

With an end-date in mind, all your resources and energy are channeled appropriately to help you maintain the necessary momentum you need to follow through with your actions.

Moreover, a deadline provides you with a sense of urgency, which will help keep you focused and disciplined on the tasks at hand.

Step 6: Make Yourself Accountable

The final step of this process comes down to accountability.

You must not only hold yourself accountable for your daily choices and decisions, but you must also have someone else hold you responsible for your actions and results.

You could, for instance, build a support team that helps you stay focused and on track. Heading this support team could be your personal accountability partner (a close friend or family member) who regularly checks in on you to see how things are going.

Having another voice encouraging and motivating you will help you to persist and persevere for longer.

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