The power of self-discipline?

I picked up a book that was recently sent to Glenn entitled a href=”http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1593155824?ie=UTF8tag=wwwviolentkicomlinkCode=as2camp=1789creative=9325creativeASIN=1593155824″span style=”font-style:italic;”No Excuses!: The Power of Self-Discipline/span/aimg src=”http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=wwwviolentkicoml=as2o=1a=1593155824″ width=”1″ height=”1″ border=”0″ alt=”” style=”border:none !important; margin:0px !important;” / because it looked like it might have something interesting to say. The book basically takes the premise that you don’t need wealth, luck or contacts to succeed–you need self-discipline. From the a href=”http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1593155824?ie=UTF8tag=wwwviolentkicomlinkCode=as2camp=1789creative=9325creativeASIN=1593155824″amazon page,/a the description states that people don’t succeed because “they take the path of least resistance (in other words, they’re lazy) and/or they want immediate gratification: they don’t consider the long-term consequences of the actions they take today.” I used to believe this, I no longer do.br /br /I spent my life working hard, taking personal responsibility and thinking about long term consequences. I watch in mild disgust while those who thought only about today and want immediate gratification are bailed out, while those who used self-discipline to turn themselves into a success are made to pay the price for those who aren’t. Now, I call myself a sucker–not a disciple of self-discipline.br /br /What is the point of self-discipline? Is the intrinsic reward it might bring enough? Any thoughts?