Wednesday, November 27, 2024
Discipline is good. I’m all for discipline. But I think discipline can be misunderstood. The formal definition of the word is the practice of training people to obey rules or a code of behavior, using punishment to correct disobedience.
As a musician, I was disciplined. I understood how important practicing was, but it didn’t feel like adherence to rules, it felt like obedience to my passion. I wanted to be so good at it that I would stop at nothing to improve, so practicing was always fun. The passion for it grew from within me and I spent hours with my craft, simply because I loved it so.
Within the word discipline is the word disciple. Disciple means a follower or student of a teacher, leader, or philosopher. What I think we fail to understand is that we are followers, followers of what’s deep inside. If the student recognizes what’s already there, The Teacher within will guide.
Devotion is the act of dedicating something to a cause, enterprise, or activity. I devoted my life to music because music was chosen for me. I didn’t choose it off of a list or do what someone else told me. I listened to The Teacher within. When you try to follow a cause, a religion, or something outside of yourself, it takes discipline in the strictest way.
If you devote yourself to following your inner compass, when you stray, you’ll know it. It will feel pretty icky, but the right path is always there. It’s not on a menu, a map, or in written words. There’s only one “law” to follow. The law of your inner self. Be a disciple of that Inner Guide, and discipline won’t ever be a problem for you – it will feel like joy, play, and love.