What your dirty house says about you

You lack discipline.  You can’t have part-time discipline.  Discipline is something you must have in all areas of your life all of the time.

Here is what I have learned about discipline:

1st: Disciplines initiate new disciplines:  When I made a decision to focus more on my health and exercise it immediately impacted my sleeping habits.  I knew that my sleeping habits would impact my energy level which in turn would impact my exercise plan.  I knew that I had to ensure that I went to bed early and I had to get up early.  Knowing that sleeping correctly would impact my health and exercise, I also had to decide who I would spend my time with.  I can’t spend time with people who think that staying out late or wasting time doing nothing is good.  I have to decide who I associate with.  All of these changes in my life that have now become disciplines all started because of one discipline that I made a commitment to which was my health.

2nd: You can’t do it sometimes: If I hurt someones feelings, I apologize.  If you allow dishes to pile up in the sink, trash to overflow out of your garbage before you take it out, leave your clothes lying around instead of putting them in their place.  You have yesterdays lunch on your floor board in your car, or last weeks snack wrapper on your seat, or your back seat has become another place to store clothing.  If it is not you doing these things, maybe you allow your children to make these things this way.  It means you are lacking discipline. If you are lacking discipline in these areas, the chances are you are lacking discipline in the other major areas of life.  Such as your finances, your work, and possibly your health.  Little things lead the big things.  Don’t forget that, everything you do does matter.

A personal story for you:  A few years ago, I had been in a relationship that was very comfortable.  It was very comfortable for the both of us.  There wasn’t anything wrong with the relationship other than it wasn’t going anywhere and I knew it.  However it was comfortable and safe.  In my life as a leader, I preach excellence.  Excellence means you put everything in whatever you are doing all of the time.  I was not putting everything into this relationship all of the time. I am sure there are many reasons for this, but that isn’t the point here.  The point is I knew I couldn’t preach excellence and not pursue it in all areas of my life.  You can’t be excellent part-time.  And you can’t have discipline part-time.  Once you start to slack off in one area, it will lead to another area where you slack, the next thing you know you will be way off course.

3rd: It’s HARD: Having discipline 24/7 is hard.  If it was easy everyone would save their money, nobody would be in debt, there wouldn’t be any need for all of the diet products, there wouldn’t be any need for jails, you would never have to apologize to anyone because there wouldn’t be a need to,  everybody would finish school (all the way). It is hard to pay now so you can be rewarded in the future.  By the way: I am not saying I have it all figured out when it comes to discipline either.  My suggestion is to focus on the “big rocks” in your life.  The areas that are most important and focus your disciplines there.

What areas of life do you need to make a new or renew a commitment to and create a discipline to ensure you meet that commitment?

Please share with me your thoughts and your commitment!

To your success and your future.