Am I, am I still tough enough?
Feels like I'm wearing down, down, down, down, down
Is my viciousness losing ground, ground, ground, ground, ground
Am I taking too much?
Did I cross the line, line, line?
I need my role in this
Very clearly defined

I need your discipline
I need your help
I need your discipline
You know once I start I cannot help myself

And now it's starting up
Feels like I'm losing touch
Nothing matters to me
Nothing matters as much
I see you left a mark
Up and down my skin, skin, skin
I don't know where I end
And where you begin

I need your discipline
I need your help
I need your discipline
You know once I start I cannot help myself

Ooh, ooh, ooh oh
Ooh, ooh, ooh oh
Ooh, ooh, ooh oh
Ooh, ooh, ooh

(I cannot stop myself)
(Once I start I cannot stop myself)
And you know
Once I start I cannot stop myself
And you know
Once I start I cannot stop myself
And you know
Once I start I cannot stop myself
And you know
Once I start I cannot stop myself

I need your discipline (and you know)
I need your help (once I start I cannot stop myself)
I need your discipline (and you know)
Because once I start I cannot stop myself

I need your discipline (and you know)
I need your help (once I start I cannot stop myself)
I need your discipline (and you know)
Because once I start I cannot stop myself

And you know
Once I start I cannot stop myself
And you know
Once I start I cannot stop myself
I need your discipline (and you know)
(Once I start I cannot stop myself)


Lyrics submitted by noctem9

Discipline Lyrics as written by Trent Reznor

Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

Discipline song meanings
Add Your Thoughts

59 Comments

sort form View by:
  • +3
    General Comment

    with all the connections, and as a long term NIN fan lol, the VERY FIRST THING that came to my head was sex. sexsexsexsexsex. c'mon guys discipline? if any here have been in a sub/dom relationship you will know what i mean.

    building on what lilli and sunnyside said earlier and my own impressions

    vampyre459on May 16, 2008   Link

Add your thoughts

Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.

Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!

More Featured Meanings

Album art
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
Album art
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version. Great version of a great song,
Album art
No Surprises
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
Album art
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
Album art
American Town
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran shares a short story of reconnecting with an old flame on “American Town.” The track is about a holiday Ed Sheeran spends with his countrywoman who resides in America. The two are back together after a long period apart, and get around to enjoying a bunch of fun activities while rekindling the flames of their romance.