I am sure you’ve heard the term ‘discipline’ numerous times. Honestly, what will be your intimate feeling if you come across this word? Perhaps, a sense of resentment, if not disdain. This is because we associate discipline with controls, restrictions, and even repression. It is for young learners and for people working in the army! Why the hell do I even need discipline? This is the universal feeling of many leaders.
This sort of attitude fails to see the importance of discipline. Discipline simply means doing stuff correctly. It is separate from doing the right things, which is covered by what we lack in 21st Century – ethics. There is a way to do something, and things have to be performed that way. And more importantly, a thing that has to be done has to be performed whether you like it or not. If you are employed at a fancy organization, you have to adhere to the organization’s rules. The set of rules may range from reporting to your work on time to properly meeting your role’s demands. There should be no major issue with this.
One of the areas where discipline is more stressed is in keeping important time commitments. Punctuality, a highly valued entity in almost all Ancient Cultures, is often considered one of the hallmarks of obedience. If you are notorious for being late, you are deemed undisciplined for your official work or for social get-togethers, and you will be ignored by your peers.
Much as leaders and employees alike resent discipline forced on them, they are embarrassed at being deemed undisciplined. Surprisingly, the tag ‘undisciplined’ is deemed more offensive than the label inefficient. We feel that it is alright to be ineffective but not undisciplined. After all, many leaders and their followers are inefficient. But can we say not many are not undisciplined? We haven’t done any valuation on this. Yet, we hate this label. This discontent stems from our boyhood memories.
As a kid, one thing that was most stressed was discipline. In fact, discipline was emphasized as a cardinal principle. The training in discipline would begin at home. The kid is repeatedly admonished for lacking discipline, for not doing things the correct way. Once you are put in a primary school, the condition becomes worse. The head of the school, the teachers, and of course the parents who are continually watching you zither so much on discipline that you start cursing the word. It is no wonder that we find the discipline to be such an unpleasant task.
But the trust is that it is straightforward to be disciplined. Discipline is nothing but plowing some beneficial habits. Habits are simple to form. All you really need to do is to perform things the right way for a couple of weeks. Afterward, you will begin completing things unconsciously, and discipline will no more be an uncomfortable word.
