28/03/2020
What’s the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of ‘Self-discipline’?
Routine. Possessing a consistent lifestyle, with the same day-to-day activities, without feeling the need to do more. These day-to-day activities gradually remould one’s comfort zone, this comfort zone calls for satisfaction when undertaking the same activities every day.
Control. In possessing a consistent lifestyle there is some form of control in the individuals hands to act on the same activities. Control does not exist in the sense of the word, exceptions being positions of power in one way or another. This control does not necessarily mean ‘physical control’, but rather a distinct form of ‘mental control’, which enables an individual to keep within the bounds of his self-designed comfort zone.
Belief. The foregoing reference to ‘mental control’ may be best defined as ‘belief’. In its simplest sense, ‘belief’ just means a steadfast thought. The steadfast nature of the thought may not exempt an individual acting upon it, possessing a thought is not the same as acting on the thought. To enable an individual to act on a ‘belief’ another element plays a vital role, namely ‘drive’.
Drive. This sub-element may be best expressed as ‘motivation’, or the feeling pushing one forward to pursue what he aims to pursue. This feeling of needing to do something, goes a step further than just possessing a thought, ‘belief’. Acting on one’s ‘belief’ demonstrates ‘drive’, but the extent to which it is compatible with the ‘belief’ purely depends on circumstance-to-circumstance.
Infinite process. This sense of uncertainty regarding the compatibility of the ‘drive’ with the ‘belief’, circumstance-to-circumstance, renders perfecting this compatibility an ‘infinite process’ in evolving times. For an individual to exact the ‘drive’ required for a ‘belief’ comes down to practicality and experience, which in and of itself keep evolving with the passage of time, lending credence to the fact that this is an ‘infinite process’.
Sense of purpose. For one to quantify the ‘infinite process’ in terms of time, it requires a ‘sense of purpose’. Assuming the ‘sense of purpose’ is the individuals final,highest and utmost goal; One may attribute a reasonable time to go through with his goals, in line with practicality. Breaking down one goal into multiple, smaller goals makes it simpler to conquer this ‘sense of purpose’ using the ‘divide and conquer’ principle, with an essential personality trait.
Honesty. This characteristic may be deemed of the highest importance in a bid to redeem oneself. ‘Honesty’ in this context simply means being brutally truthful with oneself, which goes to the core of anyone and everyone’s ego. To be able to objectively vision what one may be doing matches up with his sincere ‘belief’, requires honest brutality and over-criticism about one’s own self.
Self-sufficient. In defining this element it may be empirical to mention the thin line of difference between illusion and reality. Everyone prefers to think they are in their own way ‘self-sufficient’, but in reality ‘self-sufficient’ are only those without a family. This does not mean anyone with a family may be deemed not so ‘self-sufficient’, however, to be truly ‘self-sufficient’ one should not feel the need for any social help, social contact or social company. A ‘self-sufficient’ individual views anything he is required to do, or needs to do, enough for himself to undertake alone without the help of any other person.
Independence. All the preceding themes trickle down to this idea of ‘independence’. ‘Independence’ may be interchangeable with the idea of ‘self-sufficiency’, however it may be distinguished in the current context. This idea dictates for the individual to reflect and realise whatever his actions are, are only attributable to him and no one else, even in circumstances of undue influence, such is the principle of ‘liberty’. ‘Independence’ requires one to perfect the art of ‘Self-Discipline’, by doing what is reasonably required to possess a routine, taking account of some (if not all) of the preceding themes.
Overall, ‘Self-Discipline’ has several subjective underlying themes and ideas, depending on the way one perceives the idea. A ‘routine’ breathes life into ‘Self-Discipline’, as the only tangible theme in such an abstract concept. Every other underlying theme always links back to ‘routine’; the ‘control’ over a consistent lifestyle, the ‘belief’ in following the consistency, the ‘drive’ in achieving one’s goal through the use of a consistent lifestyle, a reflection on the infinite nature of the consistent lifestyle process, the ‘sense of purpose’ to undertake one’s consistent lifestyle for an ulterior motive, ‘honesty’ with oneself while evaluating the infinite process, and finally, ‘Self-sufficiency’ and ‘independence’ for an individual to push himself, rely on himself, and believe in himself while doing anything and everything. All these elements construct the idea of ‘Self-discipline’, without following any chronological pattern.
These sub-elements prove vital in significance, when each and every one of them carry the same level of significance, of course depending on the subjective view one perceives them with.
