Many people have talked about being “motivated” throughout all my time in the military, fire department(s) and as an EMS worker but one thing I have noticed is that this is unsustainable! Life gets in the way, negative thoughts, and self-talk, outside distractions, frequently cause the “motivation” to be easily abandoned even with a strong goal in mind.

Discovering what inspires a person, what passions they possess, are very important when deciding on a life direction and in setting personal (and professional) goals, especially the more significant the goal will impact one’s entire life. However, that is not enough to keep someone to push through difficult times, setbacks, or unexpected/unintended consequences occur that causes that focus, and original motivation, on the original goal to be lost.

Check out Dov Baron’s article, “Motivation is Bull Sh#it!” and how it explains how the brain processes “motivation.”

So, if motivation is not the key to accomplishing goals, what actually works? Discipline is the key to accomplishing goals! Discipline allows one to develop habits that will work incrementally to success in life. Having the goal in mind is important, and when motivation does show up, then it is important to use it to re-energize yourself which helps with discipline but its the practice of discipline that accomplishes the steps required for that goal to be accomplished.

Now some people think that discipline is something you just have but the fact is discipline is a practice (or practices) that needs to be developed and cultivated. Michael Diettrich-Chastain details how to develop discipline in his book, Changes; The Busy Professional’s Guide to Reducing Stress, Accomplishing Goals, and Mastering Adaptability. Diettrich-Chastain notes in chapter 14, “Cultivating Self-Discipline” states that if we build a habit in one area of our life it will cross over into other areas. He further states that discipline is “critical in the creation of any positive change.”

In the public service we become used to disciplined practices of checking equipment, restocking when necessary, completing all required documentation. However, we often overlook our own practices of self-care and self-improvement. How one does anything is how one does EVERYTHING! Develop self-discipline for lasting change and improvement!