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Looking for resources on mental toughness?
In addition to a couple of posts that you can check out here and here, today’s collection of the best self-discipline quotes is intended to help you push beyond obstacles to get where you want to go.
In a world that has become so used to instant gratification, having the will power to forego immediate pleasures in favor of a more satisfying outcome is a feat in itself.
Having self-discipline gives you power to say no to the misuse of your time, addictions, and other distractions. It allows you to always have the right mindset whenever challenges arise.
In other words, being self-disciplined helps you find success in everything you do.
To improve your self-discipline, check out the wise counsel of those who have demonstrated the trait in their own lives.
We have compiled short quotes on discipline, self-control and discipline quotes, discipline quotes for fitness, discipline quotes for kids, and self-discipline and determination quotes for students.
Let’s begin with short quotes on discipline.
Short Quotes on Discipline
- “Through self-discipline comes freedom.” – Aristotle
- “Discipline yourself and others won't need to.” – John Wooden
- “The first and best victory is to conquer self.” – Plato
- “Discipline is wisdom and vice versa.” – M. Scott Peck
- “Rule your mind or it will rule you.” – Horace
- “Discipline is necessary to curb the mind, otherwise there is no peace.” – Jiddu Krishnamurti
- “Self-discipline is the free man's yoke.” – John W. Gardner
- “Accept hardship as a necessary discipline.” – Lailah Gifty Akita
- “Without self-discipline, success is impossible, period.” – Lou Holtz
- “The price of excellence is discipline. The cost of mediocrity is disappointment.” – William Arthur Ward
- “A disciplined person follows values stemming from their source – the self.” – Stephen Covey
- “Discipline is the defining fire by which talent becomes ability.” – Roy Smith
Discipline is the defining fire by which talent becomes ability.” – Roy Smith
Some people mistakenly equate self-discipline with living an extremely restrictive lifestyle, but this is not necessarily the case.
Possessing discipline means having the will to control impulses when they are not beneficial, such as a tendency to overeat or procrastinate.
Self-discipline is important for avoiding bad habits.
Moreover, discipline is essential for establishing positive, healthy habits. For example, it is your will that propels you to take up meditation and stick with it.
Lastly, being disciplined means getting out for your daily run, even in rainy weather when you don’t feel like getting out of your warm, soft bed.
The following quotes describe the nature self-control and discipline, and how they’re essential to success.
Self-Control and Discipline Quotes
- “Self-respect is the root of discipline: The sense of dignity grows with the ability to say no to oneself.” – Abraham Joshua Heschel
Self-respect is the root of discipline: The sense of dignity grows with the ability to say no to oneself.” – Abraham Joshua Heschel
- “Mental toughness is many things and rather difficult to explain. Its qualities are sacrifice and self-denial. Also, most importantly, it is combined with a perfectly disciplined will that refuses to give in. It’s a state of mind-you could call it character in action.” – Vince Lombardi
- “Do not bite at the bait of pleasure till you know there is no hook beneath it.” – Thomas Jefferson
- “What lies in our power to do, lies in our power not to do.” – Aristotle
- “There is no magic wand that can resolve our problems. The solution rests with our work and discipline.” – Jose Eduardo Dos Santos
There is no magic wand that can resolve our problems. The solution rests with our work and discipline.” – Jose Eduardo Dos Santos
- “Discipline in its highest notion is not punishment or self-punishment. It is rather something seminal to the self. It is our foundation. It is our architecture. It gives us structure. It allows us to steer our energies and pull our wagon.” – Noah Benshea
- “If you will discipline yourself to make your mind self-sufficient, you will thereby be least vulnerable to injury from the outside.” – Critias of Athens
- “Striving to be good is the ultimate struggle of every man. Being bad is easy, but being good requires sincere commitment, discipline and strength. We have to work hard every day just to remain good.” – Suzy Kassem
- “By constant self-discipline and self-control you can develop greatness of character.” – Grenville Kleiser
- “The most powerful control we can ever attain, is to be in control of ourselves.” – Chris Page
The most powerful control we can ever attain, is to be in control of ourselves.” – Chris Page
- “Discipline is like moonlight to cool the wild mind that is burning with anger, attachment, ignorance, jealousy and so forth. One becomes calm, concentrated, and magnificent, towering over ordinary beings like Mount Meru rising above the world. Others will be drawn to one's strength and will find great inspiration and confidence in it. It pacifies our own being, and it brings peace into the way other people and sentient beings relate to us. Thus wise practitioners protect their discipline as they would their eyes.” – Bstan-Dzin-Rgya-Mtsho
- “Leaders are rarely born; they are made. Persistence and circumstance play a bigger role in developing a great leader than initial circumstances ever will, so it is this discipline that you must work on, building within your personality.” – Kula Sellathurai
- “Self-control is the chief element in self-respect, and self-respect is the chief element in courage.” – Thucydides
- “Discipline imposed from the outside eventually defeats when it is not matched by desire from within.” – Dawson Trotman
- “The best sort of character, however, cannot be formed without effort. There needs the exercise of constant self-watchfulness, self-discipline, and self-control.” – Samuel Smiles
We’ve already mentioned how discipline is necessary for creating healthy habits.
In a similar vein, it is only through discipline that one can reach his or her health and fitness goals.
Discipline helps a person stick to their workouts until results are achieved. It is also what prevents someone from eating the wrong foods while on a particular diet.
The following discipline quotes for fitness are chosen for their encouraging messages.
Discipline Quotes for Fitness
- “Self-discipline is a key to many doors. Not least of which is one that leads to a better, stronger, and healthier version of yourself.” – Zero Dean
Self-discipline is a key to many doors. Not least of which is one that leads to a better, stronger, and healthier version of yourself.” – Zero Dean
- “Whoever submits himself to a super-discipline can expect great triumphs.” – Samael Aun Weor
- “It’s about staying ahead of what happened yesterday. When you just in your mind think…nothing’s going to stop me. I don’t care how I felt yesterday. I’m gonna go out today and do what I know I can do. If you can just tell yourself…no I’m stronger than this, no I’m better than this, no I’m faster than this, no I’m tougher than this. I think you can make it through situations that your never thought possible.” – Sanya Richards
- “It’s not who you are that holds you back, it’s who you think you’re not.” – Dennis Waitley
- “Winners embrace hard work. They love the discipline of it, the trade-off they’re making to win. Losers, on the other hand, see it as a punishment. And that’s the difference.” – Lou Holtz
- “I could only achieve success in my life through self-discipline, and I applied it until my wish and my will became one.” – Nikola Tesla
- “You have power over your mind, not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.” – Marcus Aurelius
- “Success doesn’t just happen. You have to be intentional about it, and that takes discipline.” – John C. Maxwell
- “Do not consider painful what is good for you.” – Euripides
- “Respect your efforts, respect yourself. Self-respect leads to self-discipline. When you have both firmly under your belt, that’s real power.” – Clint Eastwood
Kids can benefit immensely from learning the value of discipline early on.
This training will hold them in good stead as they navigate through life, and when they start reaching for their dreams.
Encourage the kids in your life to develop the resilience to withstand tough times with this collection of discipline quotes for kids.
Discipline Quotes for Kids
- “Discipline is just doing the same thing the right way whether anyone’s watching or not.” – Michael J. Fox
- “A person without discipline is like a ship without a rudder in the storm of life.” – Robert Elias Najemy
A person without discipline is like a ship without a rudder in the storm of life.” – Robert Elias Najemy
- “Discipline is like a muscle: the more you practice it, the bigger it gets.” – Steve Demasco
- “Discipline is important simply because we live in an organized society where, if you have not learned life's requirements at early age, you will be taught later, not by those whose love tempers the lesson but by strangers who could not care less about the harm they do to your personality.” – William E. Homan
- “Discipline is like spinach. We may not care for it ourselves but feel sure it would be good for everybody else.” – Anonymous
- “Life without discipline is like a ship without a rudder.” – Ronie Mathew Thomas
- “If love is the heart of the person, discipline is the skeleton, giving a person form and protection.” – Henry Cloud and John Townsend
If love is the heart of the person, discipline is the skeleton, giving a person form and protection.” – Henry Cloud and John Townsend
- “Discipline is like a vaccine. It inflicts lesser pain now to avoid greater pain later.” – Dan Doriani
- “Discipline is teaching a child the way he should go. Discipline, therefore, includes everything you do to help your child learn. Unfortunately, it's one of the most misunderstood words in the English language. Most people generally think of it as punishment or as something unpleasant. We need to understand that discipline is something you do for a child. Punishment is something you do to a child when discipline fails. Both Greek and Hebrew words denoting discipline include the meaning of chastening, correction, rebuke, upbringing, training, instruction, education, and reproof. The purpose of discipline is positive–to produce a whole person, free from the faults and handicaps that hinder maximum development.” – Zig Ziglar
- “All successes begin with self-discipline. It starts with you.” – Dwayne Johnson
- “Fair and reasonable discipline is like a fence that provides protection and defines limits, demonstrating both care and concern.” – Les Christie
- “Good discipline is more than just punishing or laying down the law. It is liking children and letting them see that they are liked. It is caring enough about them to provide good, clear rules for their protection.” – Stanley Greenspan
- “Self-discipline is the magic power that makes you virtually unstoppable.” – Anonymous
Students who are more disciplined than their peers usually perform better academically.
In addition, they tend to enjoy the time they spend in school, as well as the time they spend with friends or engaged in other activities.
The following quotes reflect the experience of young people who forego immediate gratification in the pursuit of higher goals.
Self-Discipline and Determination Quotes for Students
- “One painful duty fulfilled makes the next plainer and easier.” – Helen Keller
One painful duty fulfilled makes the next plainer and easier.” – Helen Keller
- “The satisfaction of seeing the incremental gains, through discipline alone, gives inspiration to apply the same methods in other areas of your life.” – Keith Hill, Jr.
- “Discipline strengthens the mind so that it becomes impervious to the corroding influence of fear.” – Bernard Law Montgomery
- “Discipline is something we despise for the moment…. We all look for a place to run, an excuse with which to stall. No one enjoys it. Yet those of us who have endured it know that the fruit it produces and the pain from which it ultimately spares us makes it worth the agony.” – Charles F. Stanley
- “Your level of success is determined by your level of discipline and perseverance.” – Anonymous
Your level of success is determined by your level of discipline and perseverance.” – Anonymous
- “Knowledge can determine your persistence but when it is not put into practice through skills or properly applied through attitude then knowledge will be useless.” – Thelma Barnes
- “When discipline is sown, like a good seed, it yields a harvest of things that fulfill and satisfy us–things that make us happy and release peace and joy in our lives.” – Joyce Meyer
- “A disciplined mind leads to happiness, and an undisciplined mind leads to suffering.” – Dalai Lama
- “Discipline yourself to do the things you need to do when you need to do them, and the day will come when you will be able to do the things you want to do when you want to do them.” – Zig Ziglar
- “We don’t have to be smarter than the rest; we have to be more disciplined than the rest.” – Warren Buffett
- “The fact is, discipline is only punishment when imposed on you by someone else. When you discipline yourself, it’s not punishment but empowerment.” – Les Brown
- “Robert Collier said it best when he said, ‘All of us have bad luck and good luck. The man who persists through the bad luck, who keeps right on going, is the man who is there when the good luck comes, and is ready to receive it.’ So next time you feel like you don't have any luck, remember these wise words and keep on going – step by step, with enthusiasm, discipline and persistence, and you will find luck!” – Catherine Pulsifer
- “Discipline is the silent force at work that breeds success. It requires only one thing; that you sacrifice time in things you enjoy.” – Anonymous
- “Focus, discipline, hard work, goal setting and, of course, the thrill of finally achieving your goals. These are all lessons in life.” – Kristi Yamaguchi
Motivational Self Discipline Quotes
- “Talent without discipline is like an octopus on roller skates. There's plenty of movement, but you never know if it's going to be forward, backwards, or sideways.” – H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
- “Class is an aura of confidence that is being sure without being cocky. Class has nothing to do with money. Class never runs scared. It is self-discipline and self-knowledge. It's the sure-footedness that comes with having proved you can meet life.” – Ann Landers
- “Self-discipline is when your conscience tells you to do something and you don’t talk back.” – W. K. Hope
- “The great master key to riches is nothing more or less than the self-discipline necessary to help you take full and complete possession of your own mind.” – Napoleon Hill
The great master key to riches is nothing more or less than the self-discipline necessary to help you take full and complete possession of your own mind.” – Napoleon Hill
- “We must all suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret and disappointment.” – Jim Rohn
- “Competing is exciting and winning is exhilarating, but the true prize will always be the self-knowledge and understanding that you have gained along the way.” – Sebastian Coe
- “Self-discipline is often disguised as short-term pain, which often leads to long-term gains. The mistake many of us make is the need and want for short-term gains (immediate gratification), which often leads to long-term pain.” – Charles F. Glassman
- “We all have dreams. But in order to make dreams come into reality, it takes an awful lot of determination, dedication, self-discipline, and effort.” – Jesse Owens
- “There is no easy way. There is only hard work, late nights, early mornings, practice, rehearsal, repetition, study, sweat, blood, toil, frustration, and discipline.” – Jocko Willink
- “Self-discipline is a form of freedom. Freedom from laziness and lethargy, freedom from the expectations and demands of others, freedom from weakness and fear – and doubt. Self-discipline allows a person to feel his individuality, his inner strength, his talent. He is the master of, rather than a slave to, his thoughts and emotions.” – H. A. Dorfman
- “In reading the lives of great men, I found that the first victory they won was over themselves… self-discipline with all of them came first.” – Harry S Truman
- “Nothing is more harmful to the service, than the neglect of discipline; for that discipline, more than numbers, gives one army superiority over another.” – George Washington
- “No person is free who is not master of himself.” – Epictetus
- “There is no luck except where there is discipline.” – Irish Proverb
- “The first step to getting rich requires discipline. If you really want to be rich, you need to find the discipline.” – Mark Cuban
- “Self-discipline is the only power which can keep you energized even in the thoughest of the circumstances.” – Sukant Ratnakar
- “I think self-discipline is something, it’s like a muscle. The more you exercise it, the stronger it gets.” – Daniel Goldstein
- “This quality of self-denial in pursuit of a longer-term goal and, indeed, the willpower to maintain the denial, is excellent training for the boardroom.” – John Viney
- “Good manners are not merely snobbish ornaments, as Mrs. Lippett's regime appeared to believe. They mean self-discipline and thought for others, and my children have got to learn them.” – Jean Webster
- “Self-discipline is the ability to make yourself do what you should do, when you should do it, whether you feel like it or not.” – Elbert Hubbard
- “He who lives without discipline dies without honor.” – Icelandic Proverb
- “Imagine how pitiful life would be without self-discipline. We would achieve very little.” – Anonymous
- “Everybody starts at the top, and then has the problem of staying there. Lasting accomplishment, however, is still achieved through a long, slow climb and self-discipline.” – Helen Hayes
Everybody starts at the top, and then has the problem of staying there. Lasting accomplishment, however, is still achieved through a long, slow climb and self-discipline.” – Helen Hayes
- “At dawn, when you have trouble getting out of bed, tell yourself: “I have to go to work — as a human being. What do I have to complain of, if I'm going to do what I was born for — the things I was brought into the world to do? Or is this what I was created for? To huddle under the blankets and stay warm?” – Marcus Aurelius
- “You never will be the person you can be if pressure, tension and discipline are taken out of your life.” – James G. Bilkey
- “Self-discipline is the act of doing those things which ordinarily you won't but it's profitable to you at the long run.” – Anufa Freeborn
- “Seek freedom and become captive of your desires. Seek discipline and find your liberty.” – Frank Herbert
- “It is time to reverse this prejudice against conscious effort and to see the powers we gain through practice and discipline as eminently inspiring and even miraculous.” – Robert Greene
- “Happiness is dependent on self-discipline. We are the biggest obstacles to our own happiness. It is much easier to do battle with society and with others than to fight our own nature.” – Dennis Prager
- “Mastering others is strength. Mastering yourself is true power.” – Lao Tzu
Final Thoughts on Self Discipline Quotes
It takes a certain level of maturity to achieve mental toughness and become self-disciplined. But with conscious effort and constant practice, this trait can become second nature. Then, success comes more effortlessly.
Did any of the self-discipline quotes featured today resonate with you? We’d appreciate you telling us about it!
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And if you want more eye-opening quotes, be sure to check out these blog posts:
Finally, if you want to use these quotes to make a lasting change to your life, then watch this free video that details the 7-minute habit for planning your day to focus on what's truly important to you..
