when discipline meets purpose
We all operate a little differently.
What works for you may not work for me, and what works for me may not work for you.
Or, maybe a little of what you do will work for me, and maybe a little of what works for me will work for you.
This is why it is good to share notes with others; we can learn from the successes (and failures) of our peers to piece together how we should approach different aspects of our lives. There is a saying I’ve always appreciated, “Steal like an artist”, which I always have interpreted as taking the inspiration you receive from others and using that to fuel your own creations, habits, or practices.
I share all of that because I am about to share something that I have recognized in my life that may or may not help you; even if you don’t fully identify with this new connection I’ve made, there may be something in it that will help you connect new dots.
I shared earlier this month that my word for the year is “discipline” (I’ve enjoyed the emails and texts from some of you sharing your word for the year with me–keep them coming), and while I’ve maintained a high level of disciple throughout my life, I’ve always recognized when I allowed my discipline to slip a little.
There are periods of time when I don’t get the daily exercise I need, or I allow my Self to indulge too much when it comes to my diet. In these moments, I’m well aware of what I’m doing, and I usually tell my Self some type of story to make my Self feel better.
As of late, I’m having fewer of these periods of relaxed discipline, and I’ve realized it’s because the discipline I am trying to practice is connected to a purpose that means something to me–that is so important that I don’t want to let my discipline slide.
For example, I’ve tried time-blocking my calendar for years. I’ve even gone so far as having dedicated blocks of time on my calendar for various activities, only to schedule something over them and not adhere to the calendar I created. Instead of telling a client that I couldn’t meet on Monday at 4:00, a time dedicated to administrative work, and scheduling an appointment for another day, I would meet them at 4:00 and find other time to do the administrative work. I’d justify not maintaining discipline with my calendar by telling my Self I was providing a high level of service to my clients, which wasn’t fully a lie. But, I could have maintained a high level of service by meeting the client on Tuesday instead of Monday, assuming it wasn’t an emergency.
But, I lacked discipline because there was no greater purpose attached to the time-blocking I assigned to my calendar–I was just doing it because I read it was a good practice, and it made sense to me. But I was never emotionally attached to the practice—the discipline had little purpose for me.
Today, I am much more disciplined with my calendar.
I know the majority of the time on my calendar is dedicated to my clients and that, with the exception of an emergency or unusual circumstances, I can provide a high level of service, be there for them, and exceed the expectations set and still maintain the calendar I have created for my Self that allows me to spend time on my Self, my family, and exploring the “authentic life” and sharing what I’m learning through my content.
Taking care of my Self, being present with my family, and exploring the “authentic life” is my purpose at this point in my Pursuit, and the discipline needed to achieve everything that I want to achieve is much easier to maintain than when I was trying to be disciplined without purpose.
If you find your Self struggling to maintain your discipline, you might find the problem to be the purpose behind the desired discipline is not there, or it may not even be your purpose–you might be attempting it because you read or heard about it from someone else.
Find your purpose, and you might find discipline easier to maintain.
A New Episode Of LifeDesign+: Why I Rarely Talk About Money In Spirit, Mind, Body, And Money
It's Thursday, which means a new episode of LifeDesign+ dropped. The title on this one is pretty self-explanatory...I hope you enjoy it!
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