Hard Work AND Discipline

Out of all the life lessons I teach my children, there is one thing that I want to engrain in my children’s mindset – You can do and become anything you want with hard work and discipline. There is nothing that can stand in their way if they put in the hard work and have discipline. In fact, the only person who will stand in their way is themselves. Also, it’s not “either, or” it is “both, and”. Success is gained through hard work AND discipline. You can try to earn success with one or the other, but you will find that it takes both to reach the pinnacle of success.

Out of all the qualities one can choose, it only takes hard work and discipline to become the best version of you. The problem is people will either shy away from discipline, and/or they will refuse to put in the hard work that is needed. Both qualities come with some form of sacrifice that will force you out of your comfort zone. Discipline means you have to do something whether you want to or not. Hard work means you put in 100% effort every time. Both sound like a grind, and to be honest, they are, but the outcome of a life dedicated to hard work and discipline outweighs a life of complacency and excuses. 

In the introduction, I stated that I want my children to know that they can do and become anything they want. This holds true for you, the reader. It doesn’t matter what age you are – age is just a number. As Jordan Peterson stated, “You’re not everything you could be, and you know it.” This means there needs to be a shift in thinking. Instead of, “It’s too late for me,” or, “This is just who I am,” your thinking needs to be more, “I am not my best yet. I have work to do.” You also need to understand that changing a lifestyle or ideologies is not an overnight process. It will take time. In fact, it’s going to take hard work and discipline. 

This is not an “either, or” concept. You need both hard work and discipline. You need to show up with 100% effort every time. In order to do that, you need to discipline yourself to do it, so when the time comes when you don’t want to, you do it anyway. Something else that you need to keep in mind is that time is irrelevant. If you started tomorrow with this new drive and attitude, don’t expect major results within a few days, few weeks, or maybe even a few months. This isn’t about seeing a final destination and getting yourself there. This is about one day at a time. It’s about you being purposeful in your commitment to yourself to become better. 

Do you want to be a better boss, employee, father, mother, brother, sister, wife, husband, friend? Then work hard at the qualities that need to change and discipline yourself to give 100% effort every day; especially when you don’t want to. You are essentially breaking bad habits and removing negative patterns and routines from your life. If you are serious about becoming better, then it’s going to take a mindset focused on hard work and discipline.

Do you want to become better at organization, time management, specific skills, etc.? Then work hard at strengthening the areas you want to become better at and discipline yourself to give 100% effort every time. We all have areas that we can become better in. Our problem is that we make excuses for why we haven’t changed or don’t change the things about us that need changing. It means we have to become uncomfortable and do the things that we don’t want to do – work hard and be disciplined. 

The British advertising tycoon, David Oglivy, once said, “Men die of boredom, psychological conflict and disease. They do not die of hard work.” Former Navy Seal and founder of Echelon Front, Jocko Willink, says, “Discipline equals freedom.” It is up to us to become the best version of ourselves. No one is going to do it for us. It is up to us to put in the hard work and discipline to better ourselves. Stop making excuses. Resist complacency and apathy. Push yourself every day. After all, you can do or become anything you want with hard work and discipline. 

As always, stay humble and serve well!