What’s the point of self-discipline? It seems to inflict pain on us, but what for?
It’s the long game. It’s the preparation for what comes next week, next month, next year. You’re building the muscles in your mind and your will to be ready to do the difficult and painful thing. If you train yourself to take the easy way out and enjoy immediate gratification, you will be a subject to every vice that walks by.
If you train yourself to delay gratification, you prepare yourself to avoid the pitfalls of life while having the toughness to get up after being knocked down.
Start with small things. Force yourself to wait to open that package, just because. Force yourself to get up 15 minutes earlier, just because. Force yourself to go to sleep 30 minutes earlier, just because. Eat no sugar tomorrow, just because. Take a cold shower, run a mile, embrace the uncomfortable task, shut off social media, ignore emails, texts, and notifications. Any of these things is a start.
In the moment, when it’s difficult and you want to quit, remember that you’re playing the long game. If it hurts at the moment, it’s working. Keep going.