Mario Martinez, PsyD Portal of Metamorphosis Self-discipline is usually taught as a technique—a mechanical arrangement of habits designed to force the self toward desired outcomes. In this view, discipline is something applied to life in order to produce results: productivity, health, success, longevity. Pleasure, if it appears at all, is deferred until the task is complete. This model misunderstands discipline at its core. Discipline is not primarily a technology of control.