Craving the need to be free from all constraints is nothing new. Be it our ancestors from the clutches of the British, or us trying to break free from the hold of the distracting social media.

Being able to do whatever you want, whenever you want, however you want seems to be the ultimate definition of freedom nowadays.

To some that might mean going wherever they want with their friends. To others, it could be blowing up money on something they love, without somebody nagging about it, or worse feeling guilty about it.

You’d do anything to get this kind of freedom, wouldn’t you? I know I would.

But would you be disciplined for it?

Would you ignore your temptations to be distracted and work even when you don’t feel like it?

Now you may go ahead and say, “Wait a minute. Isn’t this counter-intuitive to freedom? To ignore whatever you want to do, without a care in the world?”.

Well it might be a little counter-intuitive, but it isn’t the opposite of freedom.

Discipline seems to be the direct opposite of freedom — but they go hand in hand.

Discipline equals Freedom.

While Discipline and Freedom seem like they sit on opposite sides of the spectrum, they are actually very connected.

When you’re disciplined, you’re able to make time and space for things you want to do. When you’re disciplined, you’re able to avoid distractions and focus on what you need to do.

The reason there is such an aversion to discipline, is because since childhood you have been disciplined others, often against your will. You’ve been forced to take a nap when you just didn’t want to and eat veggies that you didn’t like. But the kind of discipline that gives you freedom is self discipline.

Early in the morning, when you’re in bed and you wanna sleep in, you might think that’s your freedom, it’s doing what you want to. But when you will wake up later in the day, you’ll have to do things, thus becoming disciplined by the circumstances.

How can we apply this to our lives?

Look for the parts in your life where you crave freedom. That is where the answer would lie. Those areas would be the one where you require discipline. If you’re looking for freedom in terms of time, you’ll have to look at managing your time better. If you’re looking for freedom with your money, look at your spending habits and see where you could cut out some unnecessary expenses.

Some areas where most people (me included) could do with a more discipline are

• Waking up early
• Sleeping on time
• Working out (or just moving around in general)
• Sticking to deadlines
• Limiting Screen Time

Recap for memory:

1. Getting Freedom but from discipline seems counter intuitive
2. It’s actually self discipline that’s required
3. The areas you crave freedom are ones that require discipline