Monday, August 28, 2006

Will Power and Self-Discipline for Success

Will power and self-discipline are two very important inner powers for anybody to achieve success. If we look at the lives of the people who have gained a lot of success, we’ll see these two things working behind the scenes. These both are the skills like any other skill a person can have, rather let me say, these are the habits that can be learned if not possessed naturally. Some people might be having these skills and using them in their lives while some other people might be having these skills but not using them to achieve success, and there could be some other people who might not be having these skills at all. Let me tell you a good news right here. These skills, not only, can be put to work for your success, but can also be learned from the scratch. That’s not a big deal! First of all I would like to let you know what these two skills are, and then I’ll give you the tips to achieve both skills.

Will power is, actually, an inner strength to make decisions on what you have planned, to take actions according to your plan to execute the task on hand to achieve the goal, and to do all this regardless of inner and outer resistance and discomfort. It is the ability to overcome laziness, bad habits, negative thoughts and other things like these; Even if it require a lots of effort and hard work in contrast to one’s habit.

Self-discipline is the instant gratification in favor of something better. It is the giving up of instant pleasure and satisfaction for a higher and better goal. It manifests as the ability to stick to actions, thoughts and behavior which leads to success. Self-discipline means self control and this self control encompasses mental, spiritual and physical control over oneself. Purpose of self-discipline doesn’t mean to live a limiting lifestyle and it doesn’t mean being narrow minded. It just makes you capable of focusing all of your energy on achieving your goals and to preserve it until it is accomplished.

How do these two work for achieving success? Good question! Isn’t it?
Well, you always have some kind of plans to be executed, but don’t you think you don’t find enough time to execute those plans? Sometimes, you think or even see that things are not going in your favor so it’s not the right time to work on your plan. Some other times you just throw your plans away because nothing is going to work for you! Let me tell you, no matter how much worse the situation could be for you it’s never too bad!

Now, if you have the abilities like will power you’ll always try to make right decisions for your plan and then you’ll find enough confidence and courage to execute those plans. This is how the successful people always work. When things start going wrong, and working against them they just start working harder and at the end they achieve the goal. They put off laziness and fasten their belts! Similar is the case with the self-discipline. When you think that you need more and more rest – even after doing nothing! – You just decide the other way. You say to yourself that still I have not done enough to complete my job. I have to do a lot more to achieve my goals. It doesn’t mean to sacrifice your rest, No…Never! I just want to say take proper rest and good enough rest but don’t over rest! This can be done with a lot of other things that make you feel bad and you put off your plans.

Now, I would like to give a few tips that’ll really work for you to learn or sharpen these skills. The tips are really simple and you don’t have to do a lot more extra work.

- If you are going somewhere, not far away, then don’t take any conveyance. You can walk for some time. At first you’ll find it a little difficult but with some effort and with the passage of time you’ll feel good and if you continue with it you’ll be having more control over yourself.
- Deprive yourself off, sometimes, the things you like most. For example you like ice cream and you can have ice cream but just resist your desire for one or two days. It’ll build up your self-discipline which eventually is control over your self.
- Most of the times you take lift while going upstairs. Well, some times just walk up and down the stairs to put you in trouble for a while.
- Try to wake up early if you already don’t do that and would be better if you go to bed early sometimes than the usual time.
- Take responsibilities, a little bit extra, in office or at home. Try to help other people in their task or do some of their work if you don’t have much of yours. You don’t need to make them too lazy; just to make yourself a little bit more active!
- Anything which looks like the above list you can add into this list and can act upon that.

After sometime you’ll start feeling that things have started working in favor of you and that you have enough time to do your extra tasks. You’ll find enough confidence to work on plans and this will eventually lead you to success.

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