Self-Discipline The Spartan and Special Operations Way to Mastering Yourself Written by Ryan Hunt Narrated by Russell Newton You want to wake up early in the morning to be more productive, but you always end up pressing that snooze button on your alarm.
You want to stop buying things that you don't really need, but you always find yourself maxing out your credit card.
You want to lose weight and just become a healthier individual, but you just cannot stop yourself from ordering at a nearby fast food.
You really think you need to go to the gym and get in shape, but you just find it so hard to spend an extra hour to exercise, especially after work. Everything just feels so difficult to do.You know what you need?Self-discipline.
And the good thing is, you're not alone in this constant battle against temptations and impulses.Misery does love company.A lot of people suffer from the same predicament.
They always have the best goals and objectives to make them successful in life, but they always end up not doing it. Lucky for you, this book will be your companion and ally in your daily struggles of resisting temptations.
It will tell you all about how inspiring and amazing groups of people, such as the Spartans and Special Operations Units, practiced self-discipline in order for them to achieve their goals and complete their missions.
If you feel like giving up, always remember that these strong people had to face more difficult challenges, but their discipline never wavered.
This book will not only teach you how the Spartans and Special Operations Units trained that shows how they become the epitome of self-disciplined individuals, but also the science and psychology of self-discipline, and how you can improve it to become successful in life.
If you're searching for someone to look up to when it comes to improving your self-discipline, you can choose between the Spartans and the different Special Operations Units, or you can choose both, since both groups of men have exemplary self-discipline and willpower.
The Spartans Sparta was an ancient Greek society that placed high value on its military prowess, with boys starting military training at the young age of seven.
When Sparta defeated Athens, its rival city-state in the Peloponnesian War, it became one of the most powerful cities during its time.
This can be attributed to the fact that the Spartan culture was mainly focused on military service and loyalty to the state.At the age of seven, young boys start their military training sponsored by the state.
They followed the Agogi system, which puts emphasis on endurance, duty, courage, obedience, and, of course, discipline.
Although there was no need for Spartan women to undergo military training like men, they were still highly athletic and physically strong.They were also more educated and enjoyed independence and higher status than the rest of women in Greece.
Since men in Sparta spent all their lives training for the military to serve the state, and later on became professional soldiers, all manual labors that are necessary for the survival of any society were assigned to the helots, a slave class in the city.
Another group of people who lived in the city were the peri-esai, which literally means dwellers around.These were the people who were neither professional soldiers nor slaves, and worked as traders and craftsmen.
They were also the ones responsible for building the weapons used by the Spartan soldiers.This division in the society only shows that the state did not want its soldiers to be distracted by other things.
They only wanted them to focus solely on their military training, which is no wonder why the Spartans, up to now, are known for their military strength.The Agogi System
As mentioned previously, the Spartans followed a rigorous education system called the agoge system, which was mainly centered on self-control, courage, obedience, and endurance, to name a few.The word agoge literally means rearing in English.
Agoge was a controversial education system, even during the ancient times, because of how rigorous and intensive it was. However, it was a requirement for all Spartans for them to receive Spartan citizenship.
The main goal of the Agoge system was to have brave and strong soldiers who can protect the state in times of adversity. Unlike other Greek states, public education was provided by the Spartan government.
Young children, both males and females, should complete said education, although they were taught and trained in different manners.Only the royal heirs were exempted from this requirement.
To understand more about the agoge system, here is a brief outline.Birth to seven years of age. The Agoge values were instilled in the minds of the Spartans as early as infancy.
After birth, the mother will bathe the infant in wine because they believe that wine will make a child strong.The infant had to undergo inspection by the elders of the city, called the Gerousia, to determine whether the child is healthy and strong.
They only wanted healthy and strong babies.If the infant passed the inspection with flying colors, he will be sent back home with his parents.
If the elders found any kind of birth defect or deformity, or signs that the baby will grow up weak, the parents had to abandon the baby at once. these babies were left to die alone or were rescued by strangers.
Some even said that weak babies were thrown off a cliff.While others claim that the babies were left alone on the cliff and if they survived, it means they were worthy to become a Spartan.
Growing up, children were not cuddled and showered with TLC, which is what modern parents do to their children.Spartan children experienced tough love from their parents.Instead of bathing them with warm water, the children were bathed in wine.
Instead of picking them up when they started to cry, the babies were often ignored.
Instead of reading them children's stories and singing them lullabies, the Spartan parents started to plant the seeds of the Agogi system in the minds of their young ones, telling them that they are not worthy of becoming a Spartan if they do not become the strongest and bravest men who can protect their city.
Children were also taught that fear is a sign of weakness. This extreme parenting approach was known far and wide in ancient Greece, which is why elite families outside Sparta would often hire Spartan women to become caretakers of their children.
Age 7 to 20?Officially, the Agoge system starts when a young boy turns 7, unlike today when kids are expected to leave their homes at the age of 18.
When they start the Agoge system, they become under complete control of the government because the training and education is financed by the state.
The boys were sent in groups and they had to live with a group of older men who will serve as their mentors. The children were housed in a dormitory and were educated in a communal barracks.
The subjects ranged from academic and sports to hunting and warfare.Their education is military-oriented because they are basically grooming the children to become soldiers.
When the boys reached the age of 12, they were given only one piece of clothing item, specifically a red cloak that they have to use no matter what the weather conditions were.
The reason behind this was that they would be able to withstand even the harshest of weather conditions without being dependent on clothing, which would turn them into tough soldiers.
They should also be barefoot when doing any kind of sports or physical activities such as gymnastics.
Their food was also strictly rationed, much stricter than in modern-day prison, because the Agoge system used hunger and thirst to promote self-discipline. You might think this is a little too much and can be considered inhumane in today's standards.
However, keep in mind that the intention was not to torture these children or to give them a difficult life, but to prepare them for when they became full-fledged soldiers, and scarcity of water and food while in battle is a common occurrence.
Feeding them less also makes their bodies leaner and more fit to endure hard physical activities. Young Spartan boys were also taught to make their own bed, literally.
They had to get the materials, such as straws and reeds, from the banks of the Euritas River without using a knife.Another interesting thing about the Agogi system is that the boys were encouraged to steal, as long as they don't get caught.
If they are caught, they were given severe punishments.This helps develop stealth that can prove useful when it becomes necessary to steal supplies and provisions from the enemy.
To bring out the toughness of these young boys, the elders in the barracks instigated fights among the young students.Whoever loses will be made fun of and ridiculed because they were seen as weak and cowardly.
In fact, some records show that every year adolescent students had to undergo an endurance test where many died.To honor those students who successfully passed the test, they were given wreaths, a symbol of victory in Greece in the olden times.
do not think that the Agoge system is all about physical strength and discipline.Other areas that were taught to the students include reading, writing, history, singing, dancing, war poems, and literature.
They were even required to study the works of Homer.This makes it a little similar to a typical modern-day education system. When the boys reached the age of eighteen, they began serving in the Spartan army as military reserves.
There are some who became members, specifically spies, of the secret police force of Sparta.They had to spy on the helots, or the slave class, and report them to the authority if they were doing something against the government.
They were also licensed to kill. age 20 to 30.The Agogi training officially ends when the male students turn 20 years of age.
At this point, when they were already considered as adults, they became official members of the Spartan army, and they had to undergo professional military training under the army.
The men had to become a member of the Cicicia, a military-style mess where they had to undergo training for war. The members of the mess, who were also Spartans, had to elect members from the newcomers.
Aside from military training, the secessia is also involved in the granting of citizenship.It is extremely important for the student to be elected and become a part of the mess if he wants to secure Spartan citizenship.
The election all depends on the unanimous vote of the old members. When a man becomes a citizen of Sparta, he would be able to do things that non-citizens did not have the right to do, such as voting, marrying, and running for public office.
Some soldiers married before the completion of the training, meaning before the age of thirty, but they were banned from living in the same house as their wife. It was possible to not get elected into a mess.
Men who were still not members of a mess, even after 10 years of completing the Agoge, they would not be able to secure citizenship.The military training in the Secessia ends when a man reaches the age of 30.
But a Spartan man had to be a soldier until retirement at the age of 60, or until the day he dies.Education for females. Unlike other cities in Greece, Spartan women were highly educated.
Although the state also sponsored their education, it was not as demanding and as rigorous as the education for boys, although focus was also on the military.
If boys were groomed to become soldiers, girls were trained to become mothers of a true Spartan soldier.They did not need to go to a dormitory away from their family.They lived with their parents while attending school.
They had subjects that would make them physically strong, such as gymnastics, sports, and dancing.If they were strong physically, they would also be strong enough to give birth to strong babies.They were also taught subjects about war and combat.
Females were also trained to help male students in their military training.What kind of help, you ask?
The girls motivated the boys to do their best by teasing, humiliating, and ridiculing them in public if they were not performing well during a physical activity such as sports or exercising.
The girls would create a list of the men who they thought were underperforming so that they could shame and humiliate them to motivate them to be and do better.They were also taught typical school subjects such as poetry, history, and music.
At the age of 20, the education of girls would be officially completed, and they were then expected to find a partner to marry.
They were encouraged to find mates who were physically strong and courageous, who could in turn help them bring out a future Spartan warrior into the world.
Marriage was not seen as a union of two individuals who were in love, but rather as a way to produce warriors who are brave and strong, and who can protect the state from enemies and invasion.
As what can be observed, the Spartans had a do-or-die approach when it comes to their education and training, and also in everything they did.Mediocrity was not tolerated.It's either they were the best soldiers, or they had to leave.
You're probably thinking right now that the Agoge system is too much and is kind of extreme, especially in these modern times.However, you have to understand that the period when they lived was very different from today.
It was a turbulent time where battles and invasions were a common occurrence in their daily lives.And if they were ill-prepared, they would not have a chance at all.
Although the entire approach is no longer suitable to today's standards, you can still learn a lot from how the Spartans trained their soldiers, especially when it comes to developing self-discipline and will-power.The Special Operations Units
Today, what comes close to the Spartan way of training is the training of the Special Operations Units or Special Forces.
Some examples of this elite group are the Special Air Service, SAS, Navy SEALs, Green Berets, Special Boat Service, SBS, and U.S.Marine Raiders.
They are involved in high-profile operations, which is why their training is also more demanding than the regular military troops.
In any military setting, discipline and obedience are an integral part of their day-to-day work routine if they want to successfully accomplish their missions.
Following each and every step is crucial because it affects not only the entire military operations, but also the civilians.
Soldiers are taught to be obedient to authority and regulations at all times, and also to always observe strict self-discipline that will result in excellent performance, which means minimizing dangers to both the soldiers and the civilians.
Military Discipline and Self-Discipline Soldiers were taught to be disciplined and obedient.They had to follow authority, commands, and rules without question.If they question the authority, then it becomes a problem.
To be considered well-disciplined, the team has to follow orders whether they like it or not, and no matter how unpleasant and dangerous the task at hand is.Total compliance is required to achieve efficiency within the organization.
Disorganization and disobedience in the team is dangerous and can put the lives of the other group members at risk.
The survival of the military groups and special forces units depends a lot on the obedience of the team to a centralized command and the self-discipline of each and every member.
Military self-discipline is achieved when the soldier starts to see himself as an integral instrument to achieve the organization's mission.This internalization involves acceptance of regulation and obedience to a higher authority.
Soldiers who are self-disciplined know how to control themselves and always make decisions based on how it will affect the entire organization.They also do not need to constant external supervision because they know how to keep themselves in line.
When a soldier has self-discipline, obedience comes from within and not from coercion or other forms of external force.Those soldiers who exhibit strong willpower and self-discipline are viewed by their superiors as reliable.
The higher-ups know that these soldiers can perform their duty correctly and willingly without the need to use force or coercion.
These highly disciplined soldiers are the ones who move up to become members of the highly elite Special Forces, or Special Operations Units.Special Forces Training
Of course, the different units of the elite special forces have different kinds of training, but they are more or less the same.They are all physically, mentally, and emotionally demanding, exhausting, and intensive.
Their training is a lot more difficult than the training of regular soldiers.This is because they will be assigned to work in high-risk and high-profile operations that affect not only their own country, but the whole world.
The Special Forces training is the toughest training and testing platform in the military.It is a year-long process that is designed to break even the toughest soldiers.
In fact, it is so difficult to pass that only 15% of the candidates successfully finish the entire process. Once you enter the training, you only have three options, to quit, get injured, or outlast.
And of course, the third option is the only option if you want to become a member of the Special Forces group.You are probably wondering, how can an individual survive such training if it is designed to break even the toughest person?
Keep in mind that the human body is a wonderful machine and can adapt in almost all kinds of situation.Heat, cold, pain, and stress.
Someone who is tough means that his body and also his mind and emotions are highly adaptable and does not easily give up because he knows that it is possible to successfully complete the training. More often than not, it is mind over matter.
The training also puts a lot of emphasis on mental strength aside from physical strength.If the body is strong enough to withstand pain and discomfort, it becomes easy to develop mental strength.The Right Mindset
Members of these Special Forces units are highly self-disciplined because they have the right mindset.
Self-discipline has more to do with mental toughness than physical toughness, although mental toughness becomes easier to achieve if the body is also strong.
If you want to be successful in life, you have to stick it out until the end, even when things become too hard to handle.This is something that the Special Forces have.
When the going gets tough, they still continue doing their mission, something that the rest of society should learn.
The world you live in today is filled with softies who get offended at the smallest things, and if you develop mental toughness like the special forces, then you have an advantage over all these people.
You're setting yourself up for success when you have the mindset to stick it out while the rest is giving up.Physical Training The Special Forces units have to undergo intensive physical training, as you already know by now.
The kind of physical training that they do requires a lot more than being strong and healthy.To be able to successfully do all the physical tests, you have to have commitment and self-discipline.
Principles included in the training are work capacity, calisthenics or gymnastics, resistance training, and endurance, to name a few.
This kind of training gives Special Forces soldiers a strong and athletic body that is well-rounded and can perform well in any kind of weather and environment, and even in extremely stressful situations.
You do not necessarily need to follow the difficult trainings of the Spartans and the Special Forces units, and you do not need to train at that level, because you're just an ordinary person who wants to improve your life by obtaining self-discipline.
However, the information and facts shared in this chapter will at least give you an idea how the Spartans and Special Forces train that greatly improves their self-discipline.
and you can use what you have learned to greatly improve your self-discipline.At least you know one thing now, being successful takes a lot of hard work and effort on your part.It is not a walk in the park.
This has been Self-Discipline, the Spartan and Special Operations Way to Mastering Yourself, written by Ryan Hunt, narrated by Russell Newton. Copyright 2018 by Ryan Hunt.Production copyright by Ryan Hunt.
Sign in
