Is It Discipline or Habits?

Discipline is the decision muscle. Discipline says, “I will do this.”

Habits are the default settings. Habits say, “I’ve got the system in place to get it done.”

As a former Capitol Hill staffer to a Congressional member, I learned that while my answer was always “Yes,” I needed my specific list of influencers to rely on, depending on the nature of the assignment the Congressman handed me.

Habits? Those are the checklists, the series of questions, the A-list contacts I relied on to help me become efficient and productive.

Discipline forces me to make the right call. And habits help me make that call the right one!

Obviously (for me) discipline and habits must work together.

Discipline can be loud at first. But our daily habits are stealth, quiet and powerful!

Discipline requires energy to get the job done. But our habits help us focus that energy; organize our to-dos; and pace our efforts so we deliver on the goals or tasks at hand .

Here are my 5 insights for Managing Life and Not Losing my Mind!

1. Discipline builds the habit. Habits protect my energy.
   At the airport, discipline demands we arrive early. But the habit of always placing our ID and boarding pass in the same pocket saves time when TSA pressure hits. We don’t panic. We present our documents.

   But I did mess up by not double-checking my surroundings before I left the TSA area, to make sure I had all my clothes! That won’t happen again! Check!

2. Discipline is most necessary at the beginning of change.
   Starting a new assignment on Capitol Hill required discipline. Learning the names, the protocols, the power dynamics often resulted in serious headaches by day’s end.

   But over time, habits form. Eventually, I moved with confidence through the meeting rooms; smiling and nodding politely as I interrupted staff or other Members on behalf of my congressman. The repetition (those habits) replaced my hesitation.

3. Habits reduce decision fatigue. Discipline asks, “Should I do this?” Habits say, “This is what we do.”

   Make morning routines habitual - before your feet hit the floor!
   Review your goals for the day in your journal (that you wrote the night before); read your scripture, and pray. You don’t waste any energy deciding what’s on your plate for the day. You’re saving your energy for chaos later.

4. Discipline to the rescue when habits break.
   Let’s be real. Travel days. Delayed flights. Terminal changes. All are things that break my habits. That’s when discipline steps up and says, “Do it anyway.” Our discipline is the emergency backup generator.
5. Small habits create big wins.
   You don’t run through an airport successfully with the wrong shoes on! You run through the airport because of the right habits: packing the night before, arriving at the airport two hours before flight departure, wearing those running shoes, leaving ego in the Uber!

Here’s my bottom line…

Discipline is the spark that gets us going. Habits are the system used to get it done.

They determine whether or not we will get there!

Discipline can change our direction. And habits keep us moving forward when life is a mess.

On Capitol Hill or in an airport terminal, the goal isn’t perfection, it’s progress that can survive the pressures.

Discipline gets us moving when motivation disappears.

Please, don’t choose between discipline and habits!

Build discipline intentionally. Then install those necessary habits that will carry you forward automatically to the finish line.

Our real win isn’t starting strong.

It’s finishing well…gate made, goal achieved, and peace intact.

Question(s) for you:

What’s one hard decision you need to make NOW?

List the steps (habits) you need to put in place to make that decision work.

Get started NOW!