Discipline Quote by Robert Walser
““We grasp one thing after another, and when we have grasped a thing, it is as if it possessed us. Not we possess it, but the opposite: whatever we have apparently acquired rules over us then. It is impressed upon us that a beneficent effect is to be had from acquiring a little that is firm and definite, that is to say, from growing accustomed and shaping oneself to laws and commands that prescribe a strict external discipline. Perhaps we're being stupefied, certainly we're being made small.””
About This Quote
Source Book: The Walk, Robert Walser, 1916
Acquiring habits and rigid rules can dominate us, making us feel small and controlled rather than empowered.
In simple terms: Strict discipline can enslave us.
Key Takeaway
Seek flexible growth, not oppressive rules.
Themes
discipline
identity
control
growth
self‑mastery
Mood
reflective
contemplative
Type
philosophical
critical
When to use this quote
- personal development
- habit formation
- education
- career planning
Key Concepts
existentialism
psychology
autonomy
Questions to Reflect On
- Do you feel your routines rule you?
- How can you balance order with freedom?
A Different Perspective
Rigid structures can stifle creativity and personal freedom.
![“It is essential [...] that discipline should not be practiced like a rule imposed on oneself from the outside, but that it becomes an expression of one's own will; that it is felt as pleasant, and that one slowly accustoms oneself to a kind of behavior which one would eventually miss, if one…” quote by Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/bc3/erich-fromm-367_discipline_it-is-essential-that-discipline-should-n_2615916.jpg)
![“I am not here [in the sanitarium] to write, but to be mad.” quote by Robert Walser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/d68/robert-walser-6307_inspirational_i-am-not-here-in-the-sanitarium-to-write_222396.jpg)
