Self-denial is something that whether we like it or not, we’re gonna have to do to ourselves at one time or the other of our lives. Especially if we have goals we’re looking to achieve and they require some sacrifices to be made.
What makes this very important is because it requires us to look past the present, and make decisions that will affect the future. We deny ourselves a lot of things with the hope that the sacrifice will pay off greatly later in future. After all, nothing comes for nothing.
We might not even notice it, but we all deny ourselves things every day. We do it so much that we no longer notice. Take for instance, you having to get up in the morning despite feeling weak and sleepy. You know that it’ll just be awesome to pump your pillows and get more comfortable. Instead, you let out a grunt of dissatisfaction as you get off the bed to prepare for the day.
As you choose to get up, you’re denying yourself a few extra hours of sweet sweet sleep, just so you can call in to work on time. However, should this self-denial not take place, you could choose to remain in bed and of course wake up late. This could lead to you getting to the office late. And if care is not taken, it could cost you your job.
That’s how it is for just about everything we do, from mundane things to the major ones that really have us racking our brains to get a definite answer.
As for this self-denial, this is a hill I am very familiar with. Especially this year alone, there are so many sacrifices I’ve had to make just so that I could achieve my goals. And this is not just financially, I’ve made so many commitments and had to let go of others so that everything will not get jumbled up in my brain.
As a worker, especially someone like me that works from home, it’s so easy to get distracted. Things that won’t affect people that work in the office space, would affect most remote workers, and succumbing to them will mean that for that day, there’ll be no work for you that day.
And then, let’s not talk about the sacrifices one has to make as they run a business or seek to make an investment. A lot of us would much rather spend all those monies on ourselves and use it to have a good time than invest it. However, we all know why we do what we do. We know the value of it and that is enough reason for us to do it, denying ourselves everything.
As I said, self-denial is not something one can avoid. However, there are some things that are too difficult to deny ourselves, probably because of the value attached to it. Here, a great strength of mind would be required.
One can only hope that as we deny ourselves a lot of things in search of the one, we’ll not come up empty. But on that, only time will tell, I guess.