What Does It Mean To Be Self-Disciplined?

In the game of basketball, self-discipline is a word that all coaches want players to embody on a daily basis. The word ‘Discipline’ is used for some teams as their standard of excellence, for others it is a pillar that their culture is built upon.

Famous stoicism author, Ryan Holiday, says this about self-discipline, “We must master ourselves unless we prefer to be mastered by someone or something else.”

In this quote, Holiday is saying that if we discipline ourselves to be great, someone else doesn’t have to.

Self-discipline as a basketball player shows up in a myriad of ways, getting up extra shots after practice, showing up to practice early to work on ball handling, getting extra sprints on an off-day, communicating defensively even though you feel fatigued, encouraging teammates when you do not feel like it.

The ability to do something that has long-term benefits to yourself and your teammates is what self-discipline is all about. With so many players wanting something in the moment, it takes self-discipline to work on something like skill development where you may not see the results in a day or two.

In regards to self-discipline, Georgia Tech strength coach Lewis Carralla defines it well. He asks his players, “Are you willing to sprint if the distance is unknown?” Which means do you have the self-discipline to run as fast as possible, even if you don’t know how long you’ll be running?

A commonality between players that win championships, get all-conference accolades, and move on to play at the next level is that those players have an ‘understanding’ of the benefits of being self-disciplined. It is true that discipline equals freedom in life, and it is also true in basketball- the more discipline you have to get your shooting workouts done daily, the more freedom you’ll have to take shots in games. The more disciplined you are in your positive self-talk the more freedom from anxiety you’ll have in pressure moments. The more discipline you have in your pre-game mobility routines, the more freedom from injuries you’ll have in the season.

If you lack the discipline to manage your time correctly, you’ll end up with no free time.

The reason most players are not self-disciplined is because they don’t see the results immediately and that can be hard for most people. Putting in work pretty consistently and not seeing a huge improvement causes the majority of people to quit.

The self-disciplined players understand that we are a ‘lagging measure’ of our habits. Your net worth is a lagging measure of your financial habits, your strength is a lagging measure of your workout habits, your clutter is a lagging measure of your cleaning habits. And your basketball game is a lagging measure of your skill acquisition habits.

You get what you repeat.

OUR GIFT TO YOU!

We’re excited to give you three free videos! Inside these videos, you’ll discover how to become an Unstoppable Playmaker.