How To Be Disciplined

Linette Teerlink • April 7, 2025

Here's the reality of the situation. When life-changing events occur, as human beings we tend to revert back to things that make us comfortable. We go back to drinking and snacking. We stop working out because it's difficult. And before you know it, our discipline has fallen by the wayside. We try to preserve as much mental energy as we can because the worry that plagues our mind takes up so much bandwidth, we don't truly have a lot of energy to direct elsewhere. And because we don't have a lot of energy to direct elsewhere, our mind starts negotiating with itself.

"Nah, let's just order out, I don't feel like cooking."

"Meh, I'll just workout tomorrow, I can't handle it today."

"Eh, I'll get around to cleaning the kitchen tomorrow, I'm just going to pour another glass of wine and relax."

While there is nothing wrong with the above thoughts every once in a while, you have to be careful that these don't become the norm.

It's how you fall into a gross pit of nasty and slothy messiness

It's a vicious cycle, the more you do it, the easier it is to do it next time. In order to combat these emotions and become the best version of yourself, below are 3 tactics you can use to get back on the right track.


1. Follow a morning routine

You should have a routine in the morning when you wake up. As an example, my morning routine is to wake up at 5am or 6am depending on the day, brush my teeth, put my work clothes on (gym shorts), do my daily devotional, and make coffee. All in all it takes about 15 minutes. 

It's important to have a morning routine because it sets the tone for the rest of your day. Use your alarm, take a shower, and get ready as if you were going out in public. This will signify to your subconscious that it is time to be productive. And the brain likes being productive. 

If you accomplish one productive thing in the morning, like completing your morning routine, it makes the second productive thing that much easier. It's also a sign of self-respect. You respect yourself enough to take care of yourself. It's not enough to think about these things, you have to put them into action.


2. Follow an evening routine

As for the night routine, this is equally important but for a different reason. 

Your body likes routine. If you have a habit that sends bedtime signals to your brain, you will have quality sleep. Do not scroll through Facebook, do not watch Netflix, in fact, don't look at any screens. They will mess with your sleep and you will wake up tired the next day because even though you thought you were sleeping, you didn't get any REM sleep. Thanks blue light.

As an example, my evening routine is just as simple as my morning routine. I head upstairs at 9pm, shower, brush my teeth, take my medication, and read or listen to the bible. All in all it takes anywhere from 15-30 minutes but by the time I'm deep into my reading my brain is already trying to get me to go to sleep. 

An evening routine is extremely helpful, ESPECIALLY for those who struggle with falling to sleep. It's not so much that you struggle with sleeping, you struggle with having a routine that makes you fall asleep.

Quality sleep during the night = Quality work during the day


3. Follow a daily routine and stick to it

You've got the morning routine down. You've got the evening routine down. Now what? 

The final part of our daily discipline sandwich is to create a schedule for your day, and stick to it. If you do not give yourself a schedule during times where schedules are not given to you, you will float around from pastime to pastime not accomplishing as much as you could.

The simple act of creating a daily schedule for yourself can help provide the boundaries you need to get the most out of your day. And the best part is, it doesn't have to be overly complicated. In fact, the simpler the better.

My daily schedule typically has about 5-6 items on it. And because there are only 5-6 items on it, I am usually able to accomplish everything on it. This gives me a sense of pride that I was able to be so productive. 

So grab a pen and paper and write down 5-6 things you would like to accomplish tomorrow. Now write the time that you are going to work on them next to the items themselves. And bam, there you go. Now you have a schedule. Just make sure you stick to it.


During uncertain times, it's helpful to create your own certainty. The best way to do that is control what you can control, and that only ever was yourself and your actions. So give these 3 tips a try and watch your productivity and your mood soar.


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