Written by: Gabriela Manciulea, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
The words that we use have incredible power. They can inspire us to make the big jump, take the bold step, or they can hinder our progress before we even start.
What we hear can lift us up and help us persevere in our ventures, but it can also drag us down and slowly strip away our motivation.
Let’s look at discipline as an example.
Does this word seem to chip away at your enthusiasm? Does it make you feel restricted? Do you think about all limitations that discipline might bring?
We all tend to associate the word discipline with external control. Discipline equals restriction, and we associate it with angry parents, teachers, supervisors, and other authority figures.
At first glance, it seems to be quite the opposite of the freedom-seeking entrepreneurial spirit.
Until we look at it from a different perspective.
Discipline is the one thing that all successful entrepreneurs have in common. They may have different skills, backgrounds, and experiences but they all share one common trait: discipline. Without it, achieving anything of significance is nearly impossible.
So how do they do it? How can they see discipline as not only beneficial but critical to their journey to success? How is it a liberating force that makes success possible for them?
Successful entrepreneurs change the narrative. They move away from the feeling of being confined, restricted, controlled and understand that discipline enables them to do what they need to do when they need to do it.
They don't see discipline as something imposed or enforced on them from outside; it is instead a promise they made to themselves, keeping them centered and focused on activities and behaviors conducive to success.
It is about having clarity around priorities and making a conscious decision to eliminate all the distractions.
From this perspective, self-discipline serves as the foundation for freedom. It's a way of being, a way of taking action. It's a decision to focus on the goals and take consistent action rather than a restriction. It is a choice of moving forward.
The secret to seeing discipline as a liberating force that empowers you is to understand that discipline is not about limiting your freedom or focusing on limitations. On the contrary, it is the engine behind building wealth, getting fit, learning something new, progressing in your career or anything else you want to do. When you are disciplined enough to focus on your goals and consistently work toward them what seems impossible becomes possible.
Self-discipline is like a gate to your greatness: it gives you the power and ability you need to create the exact changes and habits that will propel you forward.
It sounds simple enough in theory, but putting this into practice can sometimes be a challenge. It's one thing to understand that discipline is the key to success but it's another thing entirely to do something about it.
1. Develop a disciplined mindset. Instead of thinking about the limitations, focus on all the opportunities that discipline will open for you. It's a way of approaching your business and life with intentionality: this means making decisions based on what is best for your dreams and goals rather than what is most accessible at the moment. When you shift your mindset and focus on what discipline can do for you rather than what it does to you, a world of possibilities will open up.
2. Don't expect instant results. Flipping the script takes time, and the discipline that feels good, motivating, and aligned is a work in progress. Allow yourself to absorb that being disciplined in your approach has nothing to do with being restricted and everything to do with your choices and then sticking to the plan.
3. Always make sure that activities that are making it on your calendar are part of the bigger vision; they are meaningful to what you are trying to achieve. It makes a world of difference: even when you have to deal with activities that are not your favorites, you can stick to the plan if you know that they are part of a greater vision.
4. Create the winning habit loop: make it a commitment to track your progress, identify the habits that are conducive to success, and celebrate the wins no matter how small they may seem. Discipline is not about perfection; it is about progress. The idea is not about being perfect or doing everything perfectly, but instead about taking consistent action and showing up for yourself and your dreams every single day.
Once you get started and see the benefits of being disciplined in your life it becomes easier and more natural over time, and you’ll see discipline as your ally, your friend, your best partner to make success inevitable.
Gabriela Manciulea, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Gabriela is a passionate entrepreneur and the founder and CEO of Calibrated Leadership, a consulting company that specializes in helping service-based entrepreneurs build profitable and authentic businesses based on strategic and unshakable foundations. She loves working with leaders to create custom-tailored frameworks that provide them guidance on how they can grow with ease and confidence into thriving companies. She does this through her signature programs, speaking engagements, workshops, and trainings.
Gabriela is an avid learner and has a curious mind and always strives to serve her clients at the highest level. She holds many certifications like American Board of NLP Associate Practitioner, Certified Behavioral Analysis Trainer and Certified Extended DISC Practitioner. Gabriela is also a certified Organizational Leadership Coach, Teacher, Trainer and Speaker and Certified Transformational Coach.
Today she devotes her time to helping entrepreneurs simplify and grow their businesses with clarity and ease and make success inevitable.
