Discipline - Good or bad?

Discipline.

What is it, what does it teach us?

This may sound like a silly question, but have you ever truly thought about what discipline is?

Firstly, there are two grammatical types of discipline: a noun and a verb. The former is the 'discipline' of abiding by rules, ours or society's; or a verb, where it references instructing the self or others to abide by regulations or rules, and if they don't do as told, to 'punish' them for not complying.

It can also refer to an individual or the collective.

Some people see it as a negative, others view it in a positive light.

It can be both...through our mindset, we will decide on our personal view. Are we punishing ourselves by being disciplined, or do we see the benefits of discipline in our lives?

We might even waver between the two stances, depending on the circumstances. Our minds tend to try and find ways to justify why some 'rules' should not apply to us...depending on the driving force behind the choice we're making.

Discipline teaches us responsibility, self-control, and time management; that it isn't always about instant gratification, that important goals may take longer to achieve than others.

It is about understanding that being disciplined might be hard work, and we may feel we're being confined to societal norms; however, our brain has realised the long-term advantages of controlling our thinking and behaviour, far outweigh a bit of begrudging compliance. This applies to self-imposed or societal-induced rules.