It is well known that discipline is a fundamental factor in achieving any goal we set for ourselves. It is the key element of any process, whether professional or personal, since it responds to rules that govern our behavior and way of acting. Currently, discipline is confused with the act of disciplining, understanding “discipline” as punishment or imposition, which has a generally negative perception.
If we consider the true nature of discipline, beyond the act of disciplining, we have a selfless and altruistic act, a display of true love. It is essential not to confuse methodology, work and perseverance with physical or ideological imposition. We have to understand the discipline as a regulated framework where well-defined limits are established that help chart a path. Limits, rules with clear consequences that help navigate with clear values and a significantly more stable course.
Discipline is learned as a fundamental value based on effort and the strategic vision of a life endowed with constructivist plenitude. Any of its forms, but above all, self-discipline, helps build a solid ethical framework of the personal process of acceptance and compassion.. These being the bases of self-esteem, they consequently build the foundations of respect for oneself and for others, thus elevating self-love.
There are a series of characteristics that both discipline and the concept of love itself share. Love is defined as a feeling of intense affection and inclination towards someone, and carries a series of inherent properties that determine its real authenticity. Logically, this has its core with oneself and begins with passion. Passion is the creative flame that with its infinite forms is the ignition engine that pushes us and moves us through roads, trails and mountains. A vigorous energy that gives us inertia, the vibration that keeps us in tune, that remains constant thanks to commitment..
Commitment is the contractual link that unites reality with a projection, a desire, a promise that requires unbreakable perseverance. A persistent effort to maintain limits while making concessions, an act of responsibility and faith. A trust placed blindly in the face of the danger of immediate gratification that stalks us mercilessly.
The trap of pleasure, of the hedonistic wheel that causes vital stagnation, trapping us in immobility without the possibility of moving forward. A saboteur, an absolute paralyzer of growth. The enemy of love, the antithesis of discipline, the poison of happiness. Beyond the fleeting nature of pleasure, the superficiality of hedonism, love navigates within the framework of the deepest intimacy.. An internal relationship where the confession of the truth governs the creation of something unrepeatable, inimitable due to the unique combination of elements: “you and I” “me with myself.”
The connection ignited by passion that links two beings to become one, the creation of an ecosystem where love is born, grows and eternally lives with the strength of commitment. Without passion, commitment or intimacy, without any of the three main characteristics that make up love, or if there is a feeling of dependence, without release, respect or work, it is not love, it is attachment. Understanding the limits that differentiate one from another can be the difference between fullness and emptiness, between happiness and misery.
Motivation is to discipline what attachment is to love
Discipline is the essential means to develop our greatest potential through work, dedication and perseverance. It is the creative element, the catalyst for change that makes aspirations and objectives come true, it is the lighthouse that illuminates the path to the best version of ourselves. Motivation is a specific state, a fleeting inspiration that fluctuates erratically and uncontrollably. Outside of our control, it acts as a “simplifier” of processes; it could be considered a shortcut or push, something that appears suddenly and that generates a dependency without a strong and disciplined mentality..
Contextualizing within the concept of love-discipline, we could say that discipline defines limits that help us navigate by defining values, as previously mentioned, of responsibility, commitment, effort and perseverance, as well as the ability to detect both opportunities and threats. .
It is the cardinal point, the method to have a healthy relationship between who I am and who I want, between who we are and who we want to be without digressions or excuses, discipline is the compass that marks the direction where we should go. Motivation is like the road map, it can be of great help at a specific moment. It traces the exact route at a specific moment, but this can vary depending on the circumstances, emotional state or environment, a storm, a distraction or a bad day can erase the path, but it does not matter if there is discipline, if we know in which direction we have what to go
Why is discipline love? Both require perseverance, work without expecting an immediate reward. A blind passion with inexorable dedication is essential while walking the path towards a goal that seems unattainable: plenitude, serenity and peace. All this with a positive attitude, happily with the sweet feeling of happiness. It is not something simple, it is not always pleasant, it is not fleeting or ephemeral, it is a conviction due to the belief in oneself, in a fuller and freer life. A commitment to ourselves, to our convictions, principles and values that elevate us beyond the linear settlement of hedonic passivity. A relationship of deep intimacy that makes us know the limits and confines of our human potential, where discipline and love show us the truth of who we are, giving ourselves, not what we want, but what we need.
