The Key to Conquering Yourself
There is no way we can become disciplined if we do not first conquer ourselves.
I’ve written quite a bit in the past about discipline, because I believe that it is fundamental to growing into the best version of yourself.
Developing discipline is often compared to a muscle: the more you work it, the easier it gets.
But that hasn’t been my experience.
While the motions may become more fluid, it’s still just as painful to pull myself away from what my reptilian brain wants to do (Netflix and snacks and naps) in order to actually accomplish my goals.
There is no way we can become disciplined, however, if we do not first conquer ourselves.
The Stoics knew this intimately: that self-control and discipline is first achieved by conquering your own mind. As Marcus Aurelius once said:
“If you are distressed by anything external, the pain is not due to the thing itself, but to your estimate of it; and this you have the power to revoke at any moment.”
The power to change our lives starts, at its very core, within our minds.
