Stop Being Lazy: 10 Ways To Create More Freedom Using Self-Discipline
Stop being a slave to your bad habits and go after the life you deserve
“Freedom is born of self-discipline. No individual, no nation, can achieve or maintain liberty without self-control. The undisciplined man is a slave to his own weaknesses.” ~ Alan Valentine
I’ve spent the majority of my life rebelling against authority, against myself and against the world. I think it’s safe to say that my need for freedom of choice is one of my more dominant qualities.
I’ve spent years attempting to form the habit of scheduling out my days, creating to-do lists and following strict routines.
Unfortunately, I’ve failed under the pretense that all of these things are restricting.
We spend so much of our time trying to figure out how to find success. A fitness goal, a financial goal, a personal goal… so many goals, yet 99% of the time we fail at achieving them.
We fail because things become overwhelming, we lose motivation and we don’t have the discipline that is required to do the hard thing.
A common excuse I use when I don’t follow through with my goals is that I would rather “be free” than to be chained to the monotonous daily activities that are required to achieve the things I want to achieve.
This is an illusion, let me tell you why.
After you read the following two scenarios, I want you to think about which one results in more freedom.
Scenario 1:
You want to start waking up earlier. You hate being told what to do (even by yourself) and end up hitting snooze 6 times. You end up waking up 30 minutes before you need to go to work.
You wanted to start a nutrition plan but you don’t have time to pack a good breakfast with you.
You hurry out of the house with your thoughts racing hoping you didn’t forget anything.
Technically, you are living “freely”. You’re doing what you feel in the moment and not following through with your plan.
You aren’t making yourself wake up early, and you’re not planning ahead because those things require discipline, right?
Scenario 2:
You want to start waking up earlier so you wake up at the first sound of your alarm clock. This feels like a chore, but you gain an extra hour of “free time” in the morning.
You wanted to start a nutrition plan and luckily took the time the night before to prep a little bit of food. You have successfully packed everything you need for the day and still have 45 minutes to spare.
You ease into your morning with a good book and a coffee. You have time to plan out your day and even shower before work.
Technically, you are living much more disciplined. You are making yourself do things you don’t really want to do, but you’re creating more freedom within your morning and your day.
Only the disciplined are truly free. The undisciplined are slaves to moods, appetites and passions.” ~ Stephen Covey, The 8th Habit
Self-discipline is the ultimate form of freedom. If you don’t have self-discipline, you become a slave to your own weaknesses and laziness.
When I am not actively practicing discipline, I become unmotivated and lazy.
My mornings are unproductive and often leave me playing “catch up” with my day.
By the time I get home at night, I’m so behind and stressed out. I exercise my “freedom” and watch hours of mindless TV and while scrolling social media to forget what a shit-show of a day I had.
Can you relate?
If you can, you are not free. You’re living in an illusion.
Mastering yourself is one of the most difficult yet rewarding things you can do. As coach and counselor Harvey Dorfman once said:
“Self-discipline is a form of freedom. Freedom from laziness and lethargy, freedom from the expectations and demands of others, freedom from weakness and fear and doubt. Self-discipline allows a pitcher to feel his individuality, his inner strength, his talent. He is the master of, rather than a slave to, his thoughts and emotions.”
Do you want to be a slave to your thoughts and emotions?
If you’re anything like me, your answer is likely no. Nothing is worse than feeling like a slave to your own poor habits and excuses.
Instead, I want to challenge you to think differently about implementing and sticking to a self-discipline routine.
10 ways create more freedom using self-discipline
1. Wake up earlier
This one is a no brainer. If you want to create more freedom for yourself, you need to create more time in your day. There is nothing more unproductive and unmotivating than waking up right before you need to.
Create time for yourself to wake up and do something that will ensure you win your day.
Tip: Try waking up 15 minutes earlier than your normal time. Work your way up to an hour or more over the next couple of weeks.
2. Form a morning routine
Morning routines are all the rage right now for a reason. If you’ve ever read Hal Elrod’s book, The Miracle Morning, you’ll find thousands of success stories and examples of people who’ve changed their entire lives just by waking up earlier.
“To reach levels of success you’ve never reached before, you must be committed at a level you’ve never been committed at before.” — Hal Elrod, The Miracle Morning
In my personal morning routine, I set 20–30 minutes aside for the following:
If I have time, I also make exercise and writing a priority as well.
Tip: Form a morning routine that excites you to wake up every morning. Perhaps this means setting up your favorite smelling candle or designing a new reading nook. Or maybe you buy a new book or journal. Anything that inspires you to wake up and commit!
3. Exercise
Last summer I had a fling with my gym. We only saw each other in the evenings and I fell in love with the routine. I felt productive and great. This summer has been even better. I’ve been committing to getting up earlier to go to the gym before work or going during my lunch hour. This leaves my evening's wide-open and I’ve never felt freer.
Setting aside time to move your body will leave you feeling productive and motivated. I highly recommend getting your workout done during the day at some point so you go home feeling accomplished and ready to take on your evening.
Tip: Start with 30 minutes a day. This can be done at home, at a gym or outside! Make it during a time that you can commit to 5 or more days per week.
4. Avoid sitting in front of the TV
Most people think that having free time to sit in front of the TV every night equals freedom when in fact, it’s the opposite. Have you ever had a free night where you had nothing but time? How did you use it?
Did you study for that course?
Work on your business?
Write?
Read?
Learn?
If you had asked me that question 2 years ago, I would have told you that I spent about 3–4 hours a night watching TV.
Think about all of the opportunity you have to improve your own circumstance and create a better life for yourself! Instead, we’ve become slaves of distraction.
Tip: Only spend 30–45 minutes watching TV (or 1 episode of your favorite show) as a reward for doing something productive during the evening hours.
5. Spend less time on social media
Unless your job is a social media analyst, there is no reason for you to fill your time with scrolling the gram. I’ve gotten caught in the vicious cycle of endlessly scrolling and hoping I’ll find something that stimulates my mind.
Studies have shown that social media releases dopamine and makes us feel good. This is a shallow high that shouldn’t be happening every 30 minutes.
Instead, make a rule for yourself that you can only check social if you’ve completed your biggest task of the day.
Tip: Do not check social media immediately after you wake up. Give yourself permission to check it during a break from your morning, afternoon and evening activities (3 times/day). Each time should be no longer than 5 minutes. Oh, and don’t forget to turn off your notifications!
6. Designate the days you clean your house
Ever get caught up in the busyness of being busy? This is addicting and a really clever way to procrastinate from the things you should actually be doing.
In University, I used to have to make sure my entire apartment was spotless before cracking a textbook. Why? Because I wanted to wait as long as possible before having to do the work. Right around finals, my apartment was spotless but my grades suffered.
Tip: Choose 1 or 2 days a week where you do things like vacuum, do a load of wash or clean your bathrooms. For me, this is every Friday night after I get home from work. Throughout the week I like to keep things tidy, but I don’t spend more than 15–20 minutes/day tidying up unless it’s my cleaning day.
7. Designate the days you go grocery shopping
Do you know how much time it actually takes to go to the grocery store? Especially if you end up running there 2–5 times/week.
Instead, I want you to designate 1 day/week to run to the grocery store. For me, the ideal day is Sunday. I clean out my fridge before I go to make room for the new items I pick up and I’m left feeling like I’m on top of my week.
Tip: Create a list on your phone at the beginning of the week of things you need. By the end of the week, you’ll have an entire list of groceries and house supplies that you’ll need to pick up.
8. Meal Prep
On top of my weekly grocery store trip on Sunday, I also meal prep on Sunday’s and Wednesday’s. It’s the perfect opportunity to clean out my fridge and get cooking. Some things I meal-prep are:
- Oatmeal
- Rice, potatoes, sweet potatoes, couscous
- Chicken
- Pork Loin
- Veggies
- Eggs
I like to know that all of my meals are prepared for the week and I won’t have to cook every night. I enjoy cooking a freshly made dinner as much as the next person, but when you don’t work from home, packing meals has never been easier.
If you care about your health and eating habits, you will find this to be extremely efficient when you don’t have to cook breakfast, lunch, and dinner every single day. Enjoy your spare time!
Tip: Do a larger prep on Sunday, and a “mini” prep on Wednesday. If those two days don’t work for you, choose 2 different ones that will. This way, you will have a better idea of how much food you need to cook, what grocery items you need to pick up and food will stay fresh. For more nutrition and fitness tips, head to my Instagram page.
9. Audit your days
For 2 days, I want you to write down everything you do and how long it took you to do it. I mean everything. This is a really great way to look back on your day and figure out all of the bad habits that are keeping you from becoming who you want to be.
Highlight all of the activities and habits that are taking you further from your goals then attempt to replace them with better habits and more self-discipline.
For example, if you’ve identified that you spend 2 hours on social media/day, what can you do instead that will take you closer to your goals?
Tip: While you’re writing everything down, do so without judgment. Go about your day as though you aren’t under the microscope. It’s important to act completely normal so you can identify everything you’re doing that may be detrimental to your freedom.
10. Join a challenge group or find accountability somewhere
Hiring a coach, finding a mentor or joining a challenge group are some of the most effective ways you can make sustainable change and become more disciplined.
When I was attempting to wake up earlier, I joined an online group dedicated to people who wanted the same thing I did. I checked in with them every morning and they held me accountable.
Some examples would be to find:
- a business coach for your side hustle
- a life coach for your lifestyle goals
- a personal trainer for your fitness goals
- a gym buddy who makes sure you go to the gym 4x/week
- a writing buddy where you exchange your work and do edits, establish deadlines and provide encouragement to each other
You get the idea.
Tip: Think about your personal “audit list” you just finished. What are some of the bad habits that stood out to you? What are some of the changes you want to make? Is it possible to find an accountability partner or coach to help you figure out a way to be better in a particular area?
In Conclusion
What does freedom mean to you? Does it mean being a slave to distraction? Or does it mean developing the discipline to go after the life that you want?
Be greater than the illusion you’re being shown and start to develop self-awareness and discipline right now.
Once you’ve mastered the list I’ve provided, you will be well on your way to becoming the freest version of you there has ever been. Remember, you don’t need to be perfect and you will fail. As long as you fail forward, you’ll be just fine.
Check out my website www.bylindsie.com for more!
For nutrition coaching, contact me at lindsiescott@gmail.com
For day-to-day motivation, catch me on Instagram at @lindsiescottt or go here
