Both this article and the article about discipline and motivation posted yesterday distinguishes discipline from motivation, and then say something about how di

Both this article and the article about discipline and motivation posted yesterday distinguishes discipline from motivation, and then say something about how discipline is about controlling base-emotions, or ignoring them. Both of these articles are wrong, or at least, only come to a superficial understanding of motivation and discipline. Exerting will power over your base emotions like that is a losing game over the long run. While it is a skill worth learning how to do, it is only a small tool within a larger spectrum of tools when dealing with aspects of your consciousness, mind, and life. First of all, it's not about controlling your base emotions. Emotions are already there pervasively lurking everywhere, they come and go. They constitute a large portion of your consciousness, and the attempt try to "control" it is something socially conditioned in us, and the conventional way of "controlling" emotions robs us of what emotions brings to the human experience. In an effort to control emotions, you start judging them as good or bad, and react to suppress ro amplify them when they arise. Over time, this kind of self-directed judgmental attitude will ossify your mind, and you become less and less adaptable to changing circumstances and the unexpected. So the first insight is this: it's not about trying to control emotions, it's about not allowing emotions to control you. You don't allow the feeling of elation and excitement (motivation) control when you actually work on things, and you don't allow the feeling of anxiety (aversions) and ill-will (nerd rage) control when you _don't_ work. When you've stripped away all the reactions to impulses and external factors, all they "I am doing this because X", what you are left with is the pure choice of whether you do something or not. This might sound like it is nitpicking, since it superficially takes you to the same place as "controlling emotions". The key part is that, by acknowledging your emotions while at the same time, not necessarily allowing them to control you will eventually gain you greater space, and greater freedom of action. Your world will get bigger. Whereas, attempting to control emotions will eventually narrow the options you have (or think you have). Your world will get smaller. Lastly, by coming from the perspective that you are not controlled by motivations or aversions, then having worked with it, eventually you'll come to be able to use motivations and aversions. When you can discern the difference between wants and needs, that is, something shiny or "cool", and something that feels deeply fulfilling and rewarding, you would be capable of inspiring others to follow your vision. You don't need to throw motivation completely out, you simply don't allow yourself to be controlled by it. Further, by being able to acknowledge your aversions, being in equanimity with them, and still set out to accomplish your goals, you would be able to persist even when time gets rough.