You Can Usually Tell A Person Is Incredibly Disciplined By 8 Things They Do Consistently
Manish Jain | PexelsWhen it comes to setting (and keeping) goals, it's harder than it looks. (Ask anyone whose made a New Year's resolution.) Now and then, we may have a life epiphany, telling ourselves that if we consistently do what we are supposed to do for a long enough time, we're bound to achieve most of our goals. But then, we don't do a darn thing about it and end up getting sucked back into the black hole of inconsistency. What's the definition of insanity? Doing the same thing over and over, and expecting different results.
Without consistency and discipline, we won't see results, and we'll often end up feeling sad and unaccomplished. It's the same story over and over. But people with incredible self-discipline have a certain stick-with-it-ness that allows them to forget the excuses and get things done.
People with incredible discipline do these things consistently:
1. They start small
Whenever we’re trying to work on something new, we always overestimate how much we can do. This can be attributed to three factors: First is the initial excitement of the idea of improving our lives, which can cause us to be a bit over-ambitious. Next, our ego plays a factor too. (For example, we think, "Five minutes of reading a day? That’s ludicrous. I can easily read for two hours a day.") Finally, there's short-term thinking, or wanting results quickly.
But that initial intensity always fades out. It becomes harder to keep it up. And then we end up giving up the habit altogether. But to be consistent, think long-term and start small. It’s a smart move.
2. They avoid the black hole of 'zero'
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A black hole is a mass in the universe whose gravity is so strong that even light cannot escape it. Hence, we call them black holes. Zero is a black hole, too.
You might think that zero is just one less than one, but that’s not true. Zero is much less than one, because zero has destructive powers of its own. A zero-day has the power to convert the next day into a zero-day as well, and on and on.
On the other hand, one has an amazing power of one's own. One leads to two, and then to five and 10. This means that if you normally do 10 minutes of meditation, but today you feel like 10 is too much, you can opt for one minute. And after that one minute is over, you’ll probably feel like doing more, and you’ll end up doing 5 minutes, or even 10.
3. Disciplined people use accountability apps
The desire not to break a streak yields amazing consistency. Once you reach a significant number, say, 30, you'll be motivated not to break the streak. Try to build streaks for whatever good habits you want to start. Maybe you use the Coach application to build streaks on writing, studying, exercising, or eating healthy. No matter what that habit is, there's probably a productivity app that can help you stick to it.
4. They note the sacrifices they must make
It’s quite obvious that to achieve anything, you have to sacrifice something. But there’s a lack of clarity about what we’re willing to sacrifice and what we’re not willing to sacrifice.
Unless and until you know what you’re supposed to sacrifice, it's not easy to maintain consistency. So, on a piece of paper, write down the sacrifices needed to achieve consistency — this will help guide your subconscious and prepare you for what you’re aiming for.
5. They make exceptions for what they're not willing to sacrifice
The problem with streaks is that people make them way too strict to be functional in the real world. For instance, if you're trying to build a streak of "eating healthier," but you love food and don’t want to go 100 days straight without eating any junk food, does that mean you cannot use the psychological benefit of a streak in such a case?
You can, but you'll need to make your streaks a little more flexible by adding a list of exceptions. For example, your exceptions may be that you can eat a cheat meal on Sundays or you're allowed to have a piece of cake on birthdays. The key point is that you will still check in for your streak of eating healthy, but you can add in some realistic caveats, too.
You might think that adding caveats or 'cheat days' defeats the purpose of the streak, but flexibility actually helps you factor in reality. This way, you can live life and have the psychological benefits of the streak. But you have to stay cautious and not become so regimented that your goals become impossible to keep.
6. Disciplined people adapt to changing circumstances
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Maybe you have a streak of exercising, where you must go to the gym five days a week, and on the other two days, you train your core at home. This is the ideal you're aiming for. But even this streak has exceptions, like it’s okay to skip gym during exams, because that’s an exception you can foresee and add the flexibility for it.
But sometimes, you’ll face new situations, like maybe you're jetlagged or you're staying at a hotel without a gym, at which time you won't know the right answer. But in those moments, you make the decision that is best for your health, safety, and well-being.
Simply put, when you’re not able to complete your normal threshold, make a mindful decision and do the bare minimum, or whatever you're capable of. If you're on an outdoor running streak but it's showing thunderstorms all day, maybe you pivot to a treadmill. Check in with yourself about what you're actually capable of doing — and sometimes that's nothing — because the important thing is that you showed up, and it doesn’t matter for how long.
7. They avoid making the same mistake twice
If you end up breaking your streak, remember that the day after you break a streak is a crucial day. That day also has destructive powers. It will want to form a streak of its own called "no-show." So, you must restart your streak.
Avoiding the second mistake is an idea shared by author James Clear: The premise is that errors are okay and are part of the process, but they shouldn’t become a part of the pattern.
Don’t let your one error grow, mutate, and overwhelm you. Put a stop to it. When you break a streak, restart another immediately. Make it your highest priority.
8. People who are disciplined use the 'plus one' rule
Let’s say on your first streak, you stay consistent for 35 days, and then you miss a day, but you immediately restart your streak. Then what? The plus-one rule says that you should aim for at least 35 days, plus an additional day, for a total of 36 days.
Why is this important? First, this way, you’ll do more than you did the last time. Second, it will be more fun because you’re challenging yourself.
If you make these two rules — "avoid making the same mistake twice" and "the plus-one rule" — the pillars of your streak-building, think about how disciplined you'll become and how easily you’ll move towards achieving your goals.
Dr. Akshad Singi, M.D., is a writer whose work has been published in Better Humans, Mind Cafe, Medium, and more.
