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There are 10 Yamas and 10 Niyamas - yogic take on human values and ethical practices that help us reach our full potential for personal, spiritual, and professional growth, and to liberate us from the repetitive cycle of suffering. When we live in contradiction to the highest values, when we avoid taking the higher road -  we can get stuck in a rat. 

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This month we are diving into our ability of self-discipline and self-regulation. 

I look at self-discipline as a lesson that some of us have been exampled during our developmental period, and some of us have not. Regardless of whether we were taught it or not, self-discipline is a noble practice, it is our birthright, the fundamental tool we can use to achieve anything, to develop ourselves, and to share all of our given gifts.

I think that our life comes with unavoidable pain - the pain of showing up through discomfort, the pain of waking up early, the pain of hard work, of choosing not to react, or on the other side, there’s the pain of regret, what ifs,  rumination, procrastination, or feeling stuck.  The fire that burns regret is the fire of discipline. The great news is that self-discipline is a tool we can implement at any age! If we haven't learned something decades ago, a better way is always possible today. When I put my head on the pillow at the end of the day, knowing that I chose to honor my values, it helps me sleep better, plus that feeling is empowering.

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In this PODCAST Episode where I talk about the human superpower of self-discipline, and what motivates me to maintain my commitment to daily self-care and making moment-to-moment choices for the greater good. The episode finishes with a little bit of breathing and EFT, an emotional freedom technique tapping exercise. Discipline is a big part of Yogic philosophy that helps us with our personal, professional, and spiritual growth. There is a pandemic of marketing misinformation from fitness trends, and cults. It is important to clarify our vision and work our way to unlearn the limiting beliefs, including the toxic body image and unsustainable goals behind so many fads. 

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5 Steps to Embody Self-Discipline

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1. We decide to Grow up. If we have not modeled self-discipline at the early stage of development, we have to consciously choose to implement it going forward. While there is nothing we can do with our PAST habits and experiences, today, as adults and we have ALL the power to pursue our development, to 'wisely parent' ourselves. As the first step to embodying this life-changing value, we have to make a firm decision to grow into the best version of ourselves.

2. Let go of past habits, and forgive ourselves, and our past. We have to forgive ourselves for buying into the misbelief that we aren't capable of making self-honoring choices. Self-forgiveness is key. It was not our fault that we haven't learned self-regulation in our childhood.

3. Mental hygiene. If we have more self-doubting thoughts than self-empowering thoughts at any given moment, procrastination becomes a life-saver. How would I ever, if I know I can't?  When self-doubting thoughts are more common than self-empowering, procrastination is a solution for keeping things as we believe them to be. Thoughts, if not tempered, can put us in prison. There will never be a new routine possible unless we clean up our mental mess. In yogic texts, it's often translated as 'burning in the fire' all the outdated garbage (pardon my language) that holds us back. Mental hygiene is meditation, breathwork, journaling, and neutrally observing our mental patterns. We build awareness of all the self-critical thoughts that disempower us, and we mark those thoughts as untrue, we ignore them so they eventually lose their power to sabotage us.