People who say it cannot be done should not interrupt those who are doing it.

Some people don’t want to start exercising because they’re afraid that others will laugh at their inability to perform a pushup or run for more than sixty seconds without losing their breath. They might be afraid that their friends will talk behind their backs, taking bets when they’re going to fail.

Thousands of people all over the world dream of entrepreneurship, but are afraid to take the first step because if their business fails, their ego will suffer too hard of a blow.

Self-discipline isn’t only about forcing yourself to do things that are unpleasant for the sake of long-term goals. It’s also about resisting the temptation to stay mediocre in order to avoid criticism. True, staying in your comfort zone is safe and there’s little criticism you’ll encounter along the way. However, there’s a high price associated with this choice: you won’t ever get to change your current situation.

Over the long term, how important is it really that some unintelligent meathead smirks at you at the gym when you’re struggling to complete a set of pushups? Is the momentary pain of that really greater than the pain of regret when you realize that another year has passed without you acting on your goals?

Most of us dread the deadening of the body and will do anything to avoid it. About the deadening of the soul, however, we don’t care one iota.

Epictetus

It’s curious that millions of people all over the world spend countless amounts of money and time to improve their appearance through the use of cosmetics, plastic surgery, expensive clothes, supplements, and other treatments, but spend little to nothing on improving themselves on the inside.

It’s more important to avoid wrinkles than to prevent negative habits from forming. It’s a better investment to fix your sagging cheeks than to learn how to exercise restraint in unnecessary spending. Nobody will comment or even notice your deterioration of mental toughness and a growing preference for complacency over growth, but everybody will praise you for your new clothes. $10 for a book that can change your life is too expensive. $100 for another pair of jeans is a screaming deal.

Your spending habits — including spending in the monetary sense and the investment of energy or time — reveal your true priorities.

How much do you spend on your external appearance, and how much do you expend on developing your inner world? Is the proportion healthy, or do you find it hard to justify spending for personal growth, but never fail to invest in your superficial appearance?

The loafer believes he is enjoying life, but sooner or later he must face disillusion.

Fausto Cercignani

Since self-discipline shines in the long term, and often doesn’t seem to provide any benefits in the short term, you may be tempted to believe that people who are loafing around have it better.
While you’re watching your finances like a hawk, they spend money they
don’t have and show off with all the new cool gadgets.
While you’re eating a salad and washing it down with a cup of green tea, they’re eating a bag of delicious potato chips and gulping down sugary cans of Coke.
While you feel like throwing up during your workout from trying to to squeeze out one more rep, they squeeze more mayo out of the bottle to put it on the French fries they gorge on while watching their favorite TV shows.
It might seem they have it better, but sooner or later the person exposing himself or herself to discomfort for the sake of achieving their long-term goals will come out on top, while the people loafing around will get to feel the negative consequences of their laziness.
Irresponsible spenders will realize they’re on the brink of bankruptcy. Potato chip addicts will be diagnosed with diabetes. The inactive TV fans will start taking hypertension medication .
You, on the other hand, will look back at your past sacrifices and smile, happy that you’ve never succumbed to the temptation to take it easy and loaf around.

You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, “I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.” (…) You must do the thing you think you cannot do.

Eleanor Roosevelt

Self-discipline is a lot like dealing with fear. When you face temptations, look them straight in the eye and send them packing, the next time they appear in your life, you’ll be able to say to yourself, “I managed to overcome them once. I
can handle them this time as well.”
The more times you successfully overcome the temptations, the easier it will be to handle them again. Regular practice will make you less susceptible to temptations and even more likely to ignore them, just like looking fear in the face will make you more likely to act in spite of it.
Granted, it’s not that with enough experience, you’ll become unconditionally self-disciplined, just like you won’t one day stop being afraid of anything. Just remember that each situation that tests your resolve is another experience from which you can draw inspiration to overcome future challenging circumstances when they occur.