If is written in a didactic manner which is often used to teach the reader something.
The poem seems to be an ongoing thought as it includes comas, however no periods it rather ends with exclamation point. It is made up of four stanzas each containing eight lines which seem to be split up into couplets. It uses the iambic pentameter and sometimes one syllable is added. Stanza one follows an AAAA rhyme scheme whereas the other stanzas follow am ABAB rhyme scheme. The poem somewhat promotes stoicism.
The use of paradox is quite efficient in If as Kipling asks the reader to something without doing the other such as “if you can dream and not make your dreams your master”