Does self-discipline elude you? Try these 14 tricks
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Does self-discipline elude you? Try these 14 handy tricks

23 Mar 2018

Achieving peak levels of self-discipline is the holy grail for most. If you want to be more focused and productive, check out these top tips.

There isn’t really a person out there who thinks: ‘Self-discipline? No thank you, I will pass on that personality trait.’

Maybe people don’t necessarily meditate on it directly, but everyone definitely wants the benefits you can reap from achieving high levels of self-discipline.

Wouldn’t it be great to never cede to bad habits by always eating right and never whiling away hours watching Netflix? Equally, wouldn’t it be wonderful to be able to set a goal, stick to it, and emerge out the other side with a new skill and a swelling sense of pride in yourself?

Things we all desire in our professional lives – the recognition, the promotion, the raise – are all things that are generally preceded by self-discipline.

But it’s not like anything that beneficial ever comes easily. Self-discipline eludes most of us and, in a way, it kind of has to.

What would life be if a person never allowed themselves to cut loose and make a decision that had short-term benefits without any real long-term gain? A productive life, but not an especially fun one.

We always try to strike the balance between helping you avoid procrastination while also discouraging perfectionism or an otherwise joyless existence. This infographic, put together by the good people at CashNetUSA, details some really great methods of honing your productivity without working yourself to the bone.

You can try coupling important, boring-but-necessary activities with something more fun. If there’s an element of your working day that you particularly dread, for example, you could stick on some music you especially enjoy to help reduce the monotony.

As insignificant as it may sound, even leaving an encouraging or motivational Post-it note on your computer screen to glance at when you feel your resolve waning can also go a long way to boosting your self-discipline.

It’s also worth investigating whether your health may be hindering your self-discipline. You will be less able to focus, for example, if your glucose levels are low or otherwise fluctuating in an unstable way.

Equally, if you aren’t getting enough sleep at night, you’re setting yourself up for failure.

For some more great advice, check out the infographic below.

Infographic: CashNetUSA

Eva Short
By Eva Short

Eva Short was a journalist at Silicon Republic, specialising in the areas of tech, data privacy, business, cybersecurity, AI, automation and future of work, among others.

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