The benefits of investing in personal development

In hostile family environments, children quickly learn to attribute hostile motives to others. The experience of physical and/or psychological abuse by one's parents during the first five years of life predicts a tendency toward the hostile attribution bias, which in turn predicts aggressive behavior years later (Dodge et al. Weiss et al. Hostile attribution bias The tendency to attribute hostile intent to others' actions, even when others' intentions are innocent. Genetic Factors The clearest evidence for the role of genetic influences on aggressiveness comes from studies of twins (Miles & Carey, 1997; Rhee & Waldman, 2002). In one study (Rushton et al. Just taking a few minutes at the end of each day, you will be more in touch with your feelings. For people who are more emotionally closed, it can take a few weeks of work to even start tapping into what's really below the surface. It's worth the effort, so get started immediately. Being more aware of your feelings allows you to deal with them better, before they become a problem. In the long term, you can look over a log and start identifying patterns on when you feel down. Keep your schedules and progress lists to check this off against and see what causes you to be down. Are there times with a heavy workload that seem to cause you distress or discomfort? Do you seem to be going in a cycle, with down patches coming at regular intervals? Are the bad feelings happening more when you slack off in a specific area, like exercise or diet? All of this information is important. What about your spouse? Are you comfortable with each other's traits?

How do your traits impact your communication with each other? The Thinker If you're a thinker (T), you are the one who stays calm and collected in a situation where everyone else is upset. You keep your wits about you. You're the epitome of fairness when you make a decision. But you're not that concerned with what will make others happy. You are more firm minded than gentle minded. You want to make sure others know where you stand, whether they like it or not. In another study (Eley et al. Twins' aggressiveness over time was highly correlated, particularly when they were identical, suggesting that aggressive behavior might be influenced by genetic factors. Although there have been few successes so far in identifying any single gene that makes people aggressive, studies have found interesting links between aggressiveness and genes involved in the production of serotonin. As noted earlier, serotonin is a neurotransmitter that helps regulate stress. Low levels of serotonin are associated with high levels of aggression. For the body to metabolize and secrete serotonin, it needs an enzyme called monoamine oxidase A, or MAO-A for short. A rare genetic variant that causes low levels of MAO-A has been linked to violent and antisocial behavior (Brunner et al. It's important to keep in mind that this genetic factor--referred to by some researchers as the warrior gene--does not universally predict aggressive behavior. It does so largely in response to enduring and situational stressors. For example, the genetic variant causing low MAO-A levels predicts aggressive behavior only among people who had been exposed to high levels of maltreatment and stress during childhood (Caspi et al. Approach it without emotional attachment and stick to the facts. An honest overview will give you areas to focus on for change, which will then make you even better and more disciplined.

Another thing to keep in mind with self-care is your long-term plan. It's a small minority that wants to just dominate their area day in, day out. Most people are working towards something - their discipline exists to create a desired lifestyle. That lifestyle should always have some discipline involved just for the sake of living a happy, healthy, and productive life. With that said, most of us definitely want to enjoy our time as well. Think about that when you make your life plans moving forwards as well. If something is going to be part of your long-term plan (eg tennis, yoga, or travelling) then you might as well start trying to incorporate it as soon as possible. It will keep you happier and can act as a reward. You will state your beliefs rather than have others think they are right. In fact, you're not concerned with whether people like you or not. What's important is being right. Your skin is quite thick. You can take it. Sure--sometimes just for the fun of it. It's important for you to be objective even if others misinterpret you or your motives. And if you're also an E, how might this affect arguments? If you're a T you enjoy making hard decisions and you can't understand why it's so difficult for others to do the same. Anything logical or scientific impresses you. Kim-Cohen et al. If an individual had been mistreated early in life, this genetic variant increases the risk of aggressiveness later in life.

But if the individual was reared in an environment that was nurturing and supportive, this genetic variant does not predict aggressiveness. The genetic variant indicating low MAO-A also predicts higher levels of aggression when people are currently provoked. McDermott and colleagues (2009) showed that, in the absence of a provocation, MAO-A levels did not predict aggression. However, when participants were told that another person had taken money from them, those with low levels of MAO-A forced that person to consume more painful hot sauce. Thus, we should consider this genetic factor a biological predisposition that interacts with the person's environment, rather than as a strict determinant of the person's behavior. Intelligence Poor intellectual functioning is linked to high aggressiveness, especially in children (eg, Pitkanen-Pulkinen, 1979). For one, if people are less able to process the subtleties of a social situation and the intentions behind other people's actions, they may be more likely to infer automatically that other people are deliberately trying to offend them (Guerra et al. Good, positive goals like this will also help in other areas of your life that affect discipline, like exercise or happiness. It can even be something as simple as video games. If video games are a big source of happiness for you, then incorporate them into your routine. Remember to limit the time and stick to your planned limits as well, otherwise it goes against discipline. Everybody should be able to enjoy life, but if you want to succeed, then you have to limit the fun for now, so you can live however you want to in the future. T he last article covered tips for the planning and preparation areas of mental discipline. This article focuses more on putting those plans into action and making the most of your time. Jocko Willink has a simple motto that sums up the best reason to have discipline. Discipline equals freedom. It's true, and it's the biggest reason for people to pursue discipline so much. You're drawn to it. In your interpersonal relationships you may have difficulty remembering names.

In a relationship, you need logical reasons for the purpose of the relationship's existence. You look at your partner not only in a realistic way but in a critical way, too. You tend to correct and try to redefine your partner. This can be expressed both verbally and nonverbally. T's are reserved in the way they show love, and sometimes that expression is quite impersonal. They don't want to be out of control. T's have a built-in filter to screen out the emotional parts of communication. It's uncomfortable for them to share their emotions. Poor intellectual functioning also makes it more likely that people will feel frustrated in their lives. This may be especially evident in school, where students with deficits in reading comprehension and mathematical reasoning may be continually frustrated by the tasks assigned to them (think back to frustration's role in aggression). Intellectual deficits may also make it difficult to understand the inappropriateness of aggression, consider future consequences, or to think of nonaggressive means of responding to frustrating situations (Geen, 2001; Slaby & Guerra, 1988). Finally, not only does poor intellectual functioning lead to aggression, but aggression can in turn impair intellectual functioning (Huesmann, 1988). Children who tend to lash out aggressively often end up disrupting good relationships with their teachers and peers, depriving them of opportunities to learn problem-solving skills and advance intellectually. One 22-year longitudinal study showed that aggressiveness in children at age 8 predicted poor intellectual functioning at age 30 better than intellectual functioning at age 8 predicted adult aggressiveness (Huesmann & Eron, 1984). Personality Traits and Reactivity to Provocation We've seen that perceived provocation is a major trigger of aggressive behavior. A number of personality traits predict how strongly people react to provocation, and thus how likely they are to retaliate with anger and aggression. Discipline creates results and rewards. Discipline shapes your life into what YOU want it to be.