How important is discipline?
Achieving dreams is never easy. To be fair, achieving anything is a challenge, yet some things seem easier than others. Maybe it’s simply because we want those things more, or maybe it’s the peer pressure that keeps us from quitting. Understanding why some things are easier to achieve than others will always remain a mystery.
Have you ever looked at someone and thought, “Wow, they really have it all together.” Or maybe you thought, “Someone must have given them a break, a hand up, something, there is no way they have achieved what they have achieved on their own.” The sad truth is that some are given breaks, some have doors opened for them for no reason, but the majority of the time that is not the truth. Most successful people have worked hard to achieve their goals, have made sacrifices we would only dream of, have worked while others played.
In order to be successful as a business owner, as a professional, we must learn to have discipline. To work long hours, to get up early, to pass on a night out. We must learn to have the discipline needed to achieve our dreams. Dreams are built on hard work and sweat equity, on saying no when you want to say yes. Our success is directly proportional to our willingness to roll up our sleeves and do what no one else will do. The days we get dirty, work harder than we ever thought possible, and leave work completely spent, are the very investments our dreams require.
All of this is achievable with discipline. Creating routines and habits designed to make us successful is the very definition of discipline. Choosing to wake up early, choosing to work out because we know a strong body will keep our minds strong, choosing to not go out, but rather to stay home and work, those are all elements of discipline and the very things which are required of business owners.
Perhaps the easiest way to define discipline for a business owner is to say that owning a business is a way of life. There will be no more days off or true vacations. Holidays will become a balance between enjoyment and obligation, learning to overcome exhaustion while keeping burnout at bay are skills that when combined together, comprise the discipline. Another perspective can simply be discipline is the foundation of dreams. Those who seem to have it all, those who are slaying it, raking in win after win, have chosen a disciplined mindset, a disciplined life.
Look at your life, what areas could use more discipline? What habits and routines could you tighten up, create, or walk away from? What is distracting you from your dreams? Ask yourself what you are willing to sacrifice to achieve your dreams, what are you willing to invest? Can you give up an hour of sleep and start your day with meditation, reflection, and growth? Can you pass on a night out to work on an idea and grab a few extra minutes of sleep? How can you develop more disciplined habits? Remember the journey to our dreams begins within.
Sincerely-
Sara
