Discipline is freedom. You may disagree with this statement, and if you do you are certainly not alone. For many people discipline is a dirty word that is equated with the absence of freedom. In fact the opposite is true. As Stephen R. Covey once wrote, "the undisciplined are slaves to moods, appetites and passions". And in the longer term, the undisciplined lack the freedom that comes with possessing particular skills and abilities – e.g. to play a musical instrument or speak a foreign language.

    自律就是自由。你有可能质疑这句话，也有人相信这句话。对很多人而言，自律是一个贬义词，因为它意味着自由的丧失。事实上，只有自律的人才能拥有真正的自由。

    Self-discipline involves acting according to what you think instead of how you feel in the moment. Often it involves sacrificing the pleasure and thrill of the moment for what matters most in life.

    自律要求我们按照自己计划行事，而不是根着冲动走，当然这也要求我们为了人生最重要的事去放弃眼前的小利。

    If you struggle with self-discipline, the good news is that it can be developed. For example, it is only in the past two years that I have trained myself to wake early. The following are what I have found to be the five traits of self-discipline:

    如果你正在为如何成为一名自律的人儿烦恼，那么请放心，它是可以培养的。

    1. Self-Knowledge

    Discipline means behaving according to what you have decided is best, regardless of how you feel in the moment. Therefore the first trait of discipline is self-knowledge. You need to decide what behavior best reflects your goals and values. This process requires introspection and self-analysis, and is most effective when tied to written expression. I highly recommend taking the time to write out your goals, dreams and ambitions. Even better, write out a personal mission statement. I found that writing such a statement gave me a greater understanding of who I am, what I am about and what I value. Dr. Covey has an excellent Mission Statement Builder on his site.

    自我认识

    自律就是意味着你去根据自己最好的打算行事，因此第一个前提就是要很好地认识自己。你要清楚地知道怎样去做有利于你的目标和理想的实现。我建议大家去把自己的目标，理想和追求写下来。最好能有自己的一个座右铭。这样你就能更清楚地认识自己。

    2. Conscious Awareness

    Self-discipline depends upon conscious awareness as to both what you are doing and what you are not doing. Think about it. If you aren't aware your behavior is undisciplined, how will you know to act otherwise?

    As you begin to build self-discipline, you may catch yourself being in the act of being undisciplined – e.g. biting your nails, avoiding the gym, eating a piece of cake or checking your email constantly. Developing self-discipline takes time, and the key here is you are aware of your undisciplined behavior. With time this awareness will come earlier, meaning rather than catching yourself in the act of being undisciplined you will have awareness before you act in this way. This gives you the opportunity to make a decision that is in better alignment with your goals and values.

    自觉意识

    自律要求你能够很清楚地区分什么是应该做的什么是不需要做的。如果你想做的事情不需要自律的，那你何必去做呢？也就是说，当你想培养自律的时候，你本身肯定是缺乏这样意识的。

    3. Commitment to Self-Discipline

    It is not enough to simply write out your goals and values. You must make an internal commitment to them. Otherwise when your alarm clock goes off at 5am you will see no harm in hitting the snooze button for "just another 5 minutes…" Or, when initial rush of enthusiasm has faded away from a project you will struggle to see it through to completion.

    If you struggle with commitment, start by making a conscious decision to follow through on what you say you're going to do – both when you said you would do it and how you said you would do it. Then, I highly recommend putting in place a system to track these commitments. As the saying goes, "What gets measured gets improved".

    全心投入

    仅仅把自己的目标和理想写下来是远远不够的。你必须由衷地想着去实现它们。不然，当你的脑中在凌晨5点想起来的时候，你会很自然地把它关掉，接着睡下去。如果你很难做到全新投入，那么下一个决心，定一个计划，根据自己想做的。

    4. Courage

    Did you notice the sweat dripping from the man in the picture at the start of this article? Make no mistake, self-discipline is often extremely difficult. Moods, appetites and passions can be powerful forces to go against. Therefore self-discipline is highly dependent on courage. Don't pretend something is easy for you to do when it is in fact very difficult and/ or painful. Instead, find the courage to face this pain and difficulty. As you begin to accumulate small private victories, your self-confidence will grow and the courage that underpins self-discipline will come more naturally.

    勇气

    毫无疑问，自律很多时候是很辛苦的差事，很多时候要和自己的情绪，感情和想法对着来。因此，自律的人还要拥有无比的胆量。

    5. Internal Coaching

    Self-talk is often harmful, but it can also be extremely beneficial if you have control of it. When you find yourself being tested, I suggest you talk to yourself, encourage yourself and reassure yourself. After all, it is self-talk that has the ability to remind you of your goals, call up courage, reinforce your commitment and keep you conscious of the task at hand. When I find my discipline being tested, I always recall the following quote: "The price of discipline is always less than the pain of regret". Burn this quote into your memory, and recall in whenever you find yourself being tested. It may change your life.

    自我对话

    自己和自己对话很多时候是不好的，但是如果有一定的控制就不一样了。当你发现自己开始有放弃的疑问的时候，我建议你与自己对话，鼓励自己，肯定自己。毕竟只有你自己知道自己的目标和理想。