The Value of Life

Constant self discipline is not easy. It is the price we pay for achievement. We basically have two choices in our life. We can choose the "easy" life, a life free from effort and self discipline, or we can chose to pay the price for success.

At any given moment, the "easy" life of leisure and fun is the most effortless choice. The rewards are immediate. It is easier to spend the day at the lake than to spend the day working.
It is easier to sit in front of the TV than it is to read a book or write a business plan.
In the long run, however, the easy life leads to mediocrity. If we don't do much, nothing much gets done. Our life gets nowhere.

A life of effort and self discipline is more difficult on a daily basis. We have to get out of bed early every morning. Sometimes we have to do things that are unpleasant. It isn't always fun. But we ended up accomplishing something. We make something of our life. All those days spent working and disciplining ourselves will eventually pay off.

Jim Rohn talks about the pain of discipline versus the pain of regret. Either way, he says, we pay the price. We can choose to pay the price of discipline now, today, and every day. Or we can choose to pay later with the price of regret. He points out that the price of self-discipline is pennies and the price of regret is a fortune.

Think of that. Just imagine how we would feel, knowing we could have had success, accomplishment, and wealth, but didn't do it because we chose the easy life. Just imagine the depth of pain we would feel when we realize it's too late, that we no longer have the energy or the opportunity to make something of ourselves. Wouldn't we rather pay the small price of self-discipline now, and look back at a life of accomplishment? As Jim Rohn says, we can choose to go to the beach today, or we can work today, and tomorrow, and the next day, and eventually own the beach