The pleasure of discipline; the discipline of pleasure

A few weeks ago, I took a mid-morning break from work to walk around the neighborhood. I was strolling at a good clip while listening to a podcast, as I often do, when the guest made a comment that caused me to slow down. She was talking about the discipline of pleasure — of forcing yourself to stop working, to relax, to be in the moment, no matter how hard or uncomfortable that could be. Having to find discipline in pleasurable things resonated with me: I’ve long found a weird sort of pleasure in discipline — in getting shit done, in being productive, in crossing yet another item off one of my many to-do lists. But the flip side? That was harder.

I paused the podcast and my walk long enough to jot down a mantra to remember: The pleasure of discipline; the discipline of pleasure.

Like so many things in life, I thought, they balance each other out. Both approaches — together — make a life worth living.

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