1. Recognising the Battleground
How can being ‘more tuned in to my present moment experience’ help with discipline?
Discipline = doing-what-I-set-out-to-do. Whilst there are many reasons why I don't do-what-I-set-out-to-do, e.g., procrastination, laziness, other priorities...) the REAL ISSUE occurs the moment I decide to actually do it, the moment it becomes real, and my immediate thought arising. The process is very quick and the justification convincing.
With social media for example it may be “I will just look at this post: 10 secs won’t hurt,” followed by a chain of other 10secs. If I am more tuned in, I can see in greater detail what is happening. A more pleasant feeling arises knowing I'm about to view a social media post rather than say, go do my chores. I may not register, but it's there: my dose of dopamine. No matter what strategies I try the action is on the front line, where I must make myself move away from the pleasant fix.
Improved present moment awareness means I see the battleground more clearly so any strategy I attempt has a better chance of success. One could say that mindfulness creates a solid foundation for my discipline strategies.
Author: JD
Image by PIRO from Pixabay
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