“The first and best victory is to conquer self.” - Plato
Jeannie and I grabbed coffee with our friend Jenn Day not long ago, and she mentioned that she and her husband have taken on a monthly challenge: each month, they give something up. I remember thinking, that’s a great way to build discipline ... or at least test it.
I meant to share that idea here earlier, but it slipped my mind. Then today, Bryan Christoforo mentioned he’s doing something similar, maybe with a twist. Each month, he gives up something, and whatever he gives up must stick for the rest of the year.
Hmmm...
Naturally, I asked what he started with. Ice cream. Hmm … okay, I could probably handle that. Chips? No problem. Cake? That might be pushing it.
Chocolate? Wait ... what? For the entire year? “Yup,” he replied.
Now, this is coming from a guy who takes an ice bath every morning, so clearly he has a higher tolerance for discomfort than most. But chocolate? That feels like a different level altogether. Honestly, I’d sooner give up the ice baths — and after doing them for over a year, you could argue that would be notable. Probably even more enjoyable. A real win-win.
Joking aside, it does make me wonder: what could I give up for a full year that would truly require some discipline? Paddling crossed my mind, but that feels a bit counterproductive to both my health and sanity.
I’ll have to think on it. Jenn and Bryan are definitely onto something ... I’m just not entirely sure yet whether I have the resolve to follow through once I decide what that “something” is. But that is likely a big part of this growing discipline, because, as Jim Rohn offered up, “Success is nothing more than a few simple disciplines, practiced every day.”
Wait ... I see a coffee in his hand here ... I didn’t hear anything about coffee? Maybe that is December when it would require him to only give it up for a month. Time will tell.
