How To Stay Motivated - The Locus Rule 

There's a book called Hidden Time Wealth, and it talks about how using some secret techniques, you can overcome procrastination and accomplish anything in life. It's not just a bunch of empty promises; it's the real deal.

This is so accurate, I was always told that I was very smart and as a result, I became lazy, unproductive and unmotivated.

This explains why 3rd grade me being told I was on a “high school reading level” is now depressed and struggles with motivation

"Don't rely on motivation, it might never come, but learn discipline" - My classmate

*First, it becomes motivation. Then, determination. And lastly, when there’s no motivation, it is routine that will push you.*

The entire time of my life, I was told by my surroundings that I was smart, gifted, etc. Until the moment I couldn't do anything on my own. This video is eye opening for me! Thanks

I've been called smart all my life. Now I have 0 motivation to study or do difficult things in general. I'll never do that to my kids.

This video actually made me realize something. My whole life I’ve been told that im “smart” and “gifted” or whatever. So I just came to assume that everything had to be done effortlessly or else I wouldn’t be seen as smart anymore. And instead of putting in the work to get better at something and accepting the need for improvement, I would just feel demotivated because I would feel like I am not smart enough.

As a kid my parents and teachers showered me with “you’re so smart” Lo and behold I finished college in 7 years.

I’m in a gifted class and considered smart by my teachers, but I never get anything done, and I’m always tired.

I actually have an amazing example of this: In my family there’s me and my little brother, I always were an intelligent girl who never struggled with school and always had good grades, my brother, on the other hand, used to have multiple difficulties in school and for several years he needed special education, beside of that he’s really intelligent too. In our childhood, every time we accomplish something my parents celebrate it, the difference was that in my case my parents always told me that the reason why I accomplished that is because I’m a really smart girl, and they always told my brother that was because he worked so hard on that. Now we are in college, and he’s the most motivated person I know and never give up and I, even if I’m doing well in college, always struggle to finish what I started, and if I fail I blame myself and give up. He also has so much confidence in himself while I’m always doubting my abilities. This video hit me hard.

I discovered this myself a while back. I got lazy because I just wanted to blame everything else. Then I watched a certain anime which lead to me realizing what I required to stay motivated and do better. I just began telling myself that everything in school is easy (even if a little tedious) and so I should be able to do it all easily. I found myself way more productive after that.

This video is very true. my self esteem is very low because I was told since I was a kid that I was gifted or naturally talented...but when I compare myself to others I feel left out in terms of skills. Thanks for this video, I feel so motivated

I'm not even surprised that this was sponsored by skillshare lol.

I’ve been told all my life that I’m very intelligent for math, so when I don’t understand something I blame myself, feel bad and I’ve started to low key hate math because of that. I really want to find the joy in numbers again :(

Wow I never thought of this. I have been told by my teachers, coaches and parents that I'm smart and talented. I have become lazy and unmotivated. While I see some of my peers who get different compliments work their butts off! This will definitely help me get back on track.

When your parents say I am not smart Me: That's an absolute win

Everytime someone new sees my art, especially older women, they say that I'm so talented. I always respond with "thanks! It's because I've been drawing for years" It's a let down when they respond "no that's gonna be a natural talent. You're born with the ability to do things like that" They are creating an external locus for themselves, and also inflicting one on me as a result. I dont think they realize how it can be taken as an insult, and apparently quite damaging to motivation.

Be careful not to fall into this trap: not everything is within your control. What you can control is how you work around obstacles and challenges.

I restarted college in 2018 and came across this video that changed my mindset throughout my four-year degree program. Now, I am a graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and having a career in Software Engineering. The trick is always be aware of praises that disregards your hard work and find ways to trick your mind to stay motivated and in control.

You are right but this control thing is so tricky. One also needs to accept when he or she has no control over things. We can control as much... And move on. Learning how to deal with failure is extremely important in order to stay focused.

When I was younger I always was one of the top students without doing anything so I was told I was smart and everything by my parents. Thanks to this video I now know it's their fault if I'm this lazy, I can finally be lazy without feeling guilty, thanks. Wait, I feel like I missed smth here

Wow, so my parents calling me smart is my downfall well that's just amazing isn't

I was always told I was smart and gifted. As a result I did not try, and worse, I am reluctant to try anything challenging in case I fail and prove everyone wrong.

this is literally how korea works. they alway say, ''thank you for your hardwork'' or ''try and work harder next time'' or ''i'll do my best today'' now i see the diff

There is still a danger to an internal locus of control to be careful of. When they fail, those types of people tend to blame themselves even if things were outside their control. And even if they failed, there's a danger they'll take it hard anyways because they feel like they didn't try hard enough

Can we take a moment of silence for us "gifted" kids who are now suffering in college.

I've honestly always resented it when people say I'm talented, this makes complete sense. I've worked extremely hard to be the best I can at art, animation, general film stuff, and music. And people always say "you're so talented", and I correct them and say that I'm skilled. Saying one is talented tends to discredit how hard they worked to get there, and I feel like people tend to say that because they believe it takes talent, and no degree of hard work can get you there. Well, that's entirely false. I suck at being naturally creative, it's only through hard thinking do I come up with an idea for art, animation or music. I would say I have no talent, and I now am very proud of where I am. But I still suck most when I'm confident I can do something with ease rather than hard work

Problem is that it's hard to keep this up and believe in your hard work when everyone else blames it on talent and natural skills, or even luck

Pov: you don’t wanna go to online classes anymore

The teacher tells you that you succeeded because you worked hard... IT FILLS YOU WITH DETERMINATION!

I feel like this video just changed my entire way of thinking in a way. Before I can 100% say I had an External Locus, especially since I have been told I am bright and gifted my whole life. After watching this video I feel like my mindset is starting to shift to have a more Internal Locus and I feel much more motivated on the day-to-day basis.

I searched up "How to stay motivated" because I was starting to fail my Math 3 class of my senior year of high school and felt like dropping out. This video opened up a lot for me and has helped me recognize that me giving up isn't going to do anything. It would just let me lose more motivation as I get older. Thank you for making this video, and thank you to anyone that read this.

i rly needed this. i been on my phone literally more than 10 hours a day

Its weird because i told people that i learned to draw by practicing over and over again... nobody believed me they say im just talented 🤷‍♂️

Yep. I do agree with it. People around me say that I am smart. I was happy about it in the past, but right now I am just passing time not even knowing what to do. I am using the reason to use my intelligence in the right manner to escape everything.

I’ve never been a fan of motivational videos but this is just what I needed. I’ve always been “the smart kid” but at the same time I’ve always felt miserable and unmotivated. It’s a weird mix of over confidence and a total lack of it. I now realize it’s not about how talented you are, but how much work you put into whatever you do that matters. I still think there’s a key component I’m missing for why my job has gotten so absurdly unbearable and boring but I’m definitely making changes and stop having this mindset of “I could make this in just 1 hour if I wanted to”

Natural talent vs grit, passion and perseverence

So basicallyy... “WhEN WiLL YOU LEARN THaT YOUR AcTiOns HAVE CONSeQueNCESS?!?!”

The amount of psychological knowledge these people supply us with is life changing lets all appreciate their advice and take it

Tough times don’t last. Tough people do. - Robert H. Schuller

The locus of control is such a double-edge sword. I've seen plenty of times where believing that you're in control really does help, but I've also lived through things that TRULY weren't in my control, and on top of the collateral damage from those events, I had to deal with the guilt of believing those events were somehow my fault AND deal with the people around me telling me it was my fault, which lead to them not doing what THEY could control to help with the situation. There's power in seizing what's in your control, but there's freedom in accepting what isn't. And there's danger in being punished for what isn't in your control.

so this is why “gifted and talented” kids are all depressed now

This is so real. I always was that kid who would get the highest scores in exams and assignments without studying much. I even got the highest score in a state test of my entire school and one of the highest in the whole country. I could choose any career in any college I wanted and I would certainly get a scholarship if I asked. Seeing how everything was pretty much handed to me in a silver plate, I just accepted the first college who called me and didn't even consider any other option. Now that I'm in the 4th semester of my career, I absolutely regret joining the university I did, I feel frustrated and that I was played, but now I see that I played myself. Always work as hard as you can even for the things that seem unimportant, for every single little thing will eventually have some point to it.

This is such an eye opener for me. The past week I had been procrastinating on work because I was thinking "I have enough time to finish it" but the other day I decided no, need to get it done. So I sat down, removed all my distractions, and got to work. The hardest part was starting but once I got into the working mood I started to fly through my work. The hardest part was this essay I was worried about. But I told myself "I can do this if I am determined" it took hours but at the end looking back I felt so proud of myself and my hard work felt worth it. Truly, appreciation of your work from yourself is often more beneficial that outsider opinion

I never applied myself in school because I always got decent grades and kept hearing I was very smart, now I have serious procrastination and motivation problems. This video made me feel validated

I totally understand this, but I still am procrasinating on my assignments and waking up on the morning.

You had me, until the last line. "Do this, and you'll never have problems with motivation again." That's a tall promise. I am not an expert, but it seems that many factors affect motivation, this is just one effective one.

the most confusing thing about me is, that when someone says smth negative to me, it becomes positive, when someone says smth positive, I get it as a "I've done enough" feeling and I start to lose motivation

To be fair many studies have shown that a purely internal locus of control is also problematic and even as unhealthy as an external one. This can lead to anxiety and a really hard time dealing with loss or failure because why couldn’t you stop it? Sometimes bad things happen by chance but living exclusively internally will make you feel guilt and shame over it. A balance is needed.

"You're talented" Is pretty much the worst, damaging insult there can ever be, huh?

This is so true. So many people blame society or their lack of talent for their failures in life (school, work, relationships etc), instead of looking inward for flaws they can work on.

"Cleaning up your room involves cleaning up far more than your room." - Jordan B. Peterson

I've been told that "you're smart and hard working" since i was a kid, "BUT" I felt really pressured because of everyone's high expectations on me. I studied and worked hard mostly to meet my family's expectations, been a consistent honor student but I felt like i was working hard just because I need to get high grades otherwise,I'll disappoint my parents

This is so true. People saying I was talented made me lazy and arrogant. Need to try getting things in control again. P.S. I know the people who praised me are not at fault.

My school needs to know this. I have no motivation for scripting, but I KNOW I would love it.

This applies well to jiujitsu. “Hard work beats talent when talent refuses to work hard.” Nothing comes easy to me in jiujitsu, so when I achieve something, I know that I earned it. Sometimes being a “prodigy” (or being called one) can be a curse. I’ve seen a lot of naturally gifted athletes quit when they realize that their gifts can only take them so far.

Being called smart all the time has taken a toll on me, people expect too much from me but I have no motivation to do anything

“Work smarter, not harder” Me: ima just throw these darts til something hits

My mantra is “I am the captain of my ship and I control my destiny”. these words I say to myself all the time and it motivation me work harder and want to be successful.

Part of the reason why we procrastinate is because we find the work too overwhelming for us. Break it down into little parts, then focus on one part at a time. If you still procrastinate on the task after breaking it down, then break it down even further. Soon, your task will be so simple that you’ll be thinking “Gee, this is so easy that I might as well just do it now!”

This is the reason why every time my relatives would say that the reason why I got into a top university is because of the "smart genes" I got from them, I'd always argue that it was my effort that got me where I am now.

It seems to me, then, that teaching children that they're "smart" and "talented" and "gifted", instead of hardworking, is actually a form of child abuse. It deeply harms them in the long term. I was told all my life, by everyone around me growing up, that I was TALENTED. Talented at this, talented at that, genius at this, smart at that. Now I've done practically nothing with my life. Never finished what I started. Luckily with therapy I've dug myself out of the hole of depression and daily suicidal thoughts, and I'm going to have to teach myself everything that my parents failed to teach me. I will use affirmations every single day that I'm hard working, determined, and persistent.

I was told I was both a hard worker and a “gifted child”…explains why I would experience being on both sides of the academy scale 😅

My whole life my parents told me i was very smart and talented when i started loosing all of my motivation two or three years ago and it kept getting worse. Just after seeing this i already feel better, can't wait until i completely aknowledge this :D Have a nice day, please take care !💖

How in all my procrastination did I think this would help

I have never seen such a Intelligent comment section ever in my life

Did you notice how this started off nice enough and then it turned into "you can manipulate people with an internal locus of control more easily into sunk cost fallacies because they fail to realize when a problem is truly outside of their ability to mitigate and will continue to pour fruitless effort into a given task." This is how they groom people into mlms.

My mother used to tell my sister that she's very smart. When I asked her about me, she'd always use a different adjective: I was told my entire life that I wasn't smart but I was a hard worker. I felt bad as a child (feared math and economics all my life because my father told me I couldn't do it). I But after seeing this video, I know how it helped me be better than her today. Today, I'm in my final year of university, getting my degree in economics with a minor in math next year.

This thinking also increases the chances of depression because when something doesn't go right the person starts to feel depressed thinking that he is the only one to blame for his situation but this isn't fully right, there are external factors too.

i was diagnosed with ADHD and Dyslexia in 2nd grade. I was in the special ed program all throughout grade school and I was always told “it’s not your fault you’re doing poorly in school, other kids don’t have to deal with the same hurtles” Now i’m failing in college because I have no motivation to do my work and I just realized it’s because i’ve always been told that my failure is never my fault. Obviously nothings going to change overnight but thank you for changing my perspective, I hope this helps me stay motivated in the future.

I had always felt like being told I was smart all the time in school was extremely damaging for me and hindered me throughout my adult life thus far. This gives me the actual reason why. Thanks for making this video.

What you are saying is true but there comes times when even after doing all the hard work, things just don't go your way. And then you start criticising yourself and feeling depressed that it was all your fault. So for those moments you, need to remember that not everything in your life is in your control. 🙂

Saved it to watch later but never got motivated to watch the video

As someone who’s been told I’m ‘smart and talented’ my whole life I’m so thankful to see this video. I’ve been struggling so much.

I was a gifted kid at school. None of the classwork was challenging for me and I did all of the tests in less than half the time as the other students and scored very high. I never felt the need to study and still don't, but I've been doing other things like art and making a suit of armor. Armor making actually is pretty challenging, especially because I've chosen to do a custom design that's way more complicated than everyone else and it's very hard. I've spent more than 20 hours on the pattern and still, it's not perfect yet

basically get someone to tell me “i worked hard” whenever i’m not motivated

Basically take responsibility for everything and dont ever blame your circumstances.

This is how an ego is developed, believing someone other than yourself and trusting talent more than hard work.

I haven't always been told that I'm really smart, I struggled a fair bit as a young kid, but as I got closer to my pre-teens and teens I started doing better and told I was smart. When I was doing my A-Levels, I really struggled, things weren't adding up, I was smart, but I couldn't do it effortlessly. Luckily we were in a position to hire a tutor but it felt humiliating, like working hard was a last resort. Here I am now, post watching this video having failed my degree on my final year because I figured I'd be smart enough to do it. I didn't put in the time or effort despite knowing that I had to, I didn't feel equipped to do that.

1:42 "ETERNAL locus of control", infinite, everlasting, relentless. Truly a place of power mere mortals could only dream of besting. xD

**WARNING** The first half of the video literally is the first 5 pages of the “mindset” by Dr. Carol Dweck, who was in the experiment. RU-vidr doesn’t link to Professor and research sources.

How did RU-vid know this is what I needed?

The concept of Hidden Time Wealth blew my mind. It’s like finding a cheat code for productivity and defeating procrastination.

I've been rewiring my brain to get an internal locus of control and I never realized it. I've been saying, "I'm not talented, it's been hard work and practice." when someone compliments me with "You're so talented!"

The "correct" locus is 50/50 not "100 percent internal". The idea that a human can have 100 percent control over the outcome of a situation seems, dangerous, if not untruthful. It seems as unbalanced as a 100% external locus human.

You can do this "by simply solving the problems in your own life, and then..." Lost me there.

This was really eye opening. My dad use to tell me that he had to work twice as hard as his "gifted" classmates in order to keep up, that he really wish things came as easy to him as it did to his peers. Fast forward, my dad built a very successful company, worked for himself, became a multimillionaire, and told me some of his "gifted" classmates didn't do much with their lives.

Since psychology is always a neat subject, I'll throw some thoughts out on the board Not saying I'm right or wrong, but- Maybe lack of motivation comes from the constant stream of society telling you to study and work hard all the time if you want to succeed. At what point is success? And what does an individual really want? What if one's own enjoyments give them more happiness than studying and working hard, and they wish to spend more time doing what they enjoy instead of working towards something that they're not sure they'll be happy with in the future? I was looking at a grave, and this man had died in his middle life. His moto was sweet and simple, about waking up, going fishing, tell a story around the campfire, laugh with friends, etc etc, and repeat. But then, his life had ended, but atleast he had been doing what he wanted to. That got me thinking, what if I put aside what I enjoyed to stress myself out while working and working towards a goal I'm uncertain about, because how can I be certain about something I've never experienced before? What if I happen to pass away amidst that working, always working towards success and putting aside the things that make me happy? That's a scary thought for me, to end up dying because I was caught up in the work hard, study hard, play on Saturdays and Sundays and repeat. I find myself happiest when I'm enjoying the little things in life. Not getting those big bucks or making phenomenal achievements, but when my mind is quiet and not thinking ahead about anything, just staying in the moment and enjoying what I'm doing. I'd rather pass away in the midst of that lifestyle. If I can't do something, then oh well, I'll keep trying until they kick me out, and then find a different thing I enjoy. And if I can't find anything and end up in a box under a bridge, atleast I'll appreciate the universe and existence there. But that's just something I pieced together from listening to others. I'm tired of seeing people who work and study hard all their life like they are told to, but yet their miserable attitude is unparalleled and they rely on outside substances like alcohol and drugs to ease their mind. Is that really the ideal life? The American Culture has always been work hard, study hard, and you'll achieve success. Yet America also has an incredibly high rate of suicide, drug-usage, alcoholics, etc etc. Seeing someone who fits the perfect outcome of the working and studying hard complex is like finding a jem in the rough, but even they seem to be detached from their own emotions and exchange basic emotions like love, happiness, sadness, and anger, for reaching towards more and more success. Success really seems to be a negative, when it is held at such a high pedastool. In fact, success in one area can mean failure in another. The success of fossil fuels meant the downfall of our atmosphere, the success of technology meant the decrease in face to face interaction, the success of finding the perfect formula for a perfect human meant the downfall of people's mental healths, because we are not perfect, and when we do not fit the perfect formula, we are punished by our own thoughts for not being perfect. Maybe we should stop living for society, and start living for ourselves. Basically, I would recommend to people seeking advice to do what you enjoy more than what you work for. We don't 'HAVE' to do anything in life, the only thing we have to do is breathe.

Video: Only use your bed for sleeping Me: *leaves my bed and moves to my desk* Edit: This is the most likes I have ever gotten on a comment thank you

I’ve always been told I was smart, but I had no confidence and never thought I was actually smart. Because of this, I worked hard at trying to fit the role society told me I should be. It’s always hard work that pays off in the end not just “being smart”.

Wow. This was eye opening. I was also told I was smart. And, when things went south, that that was just the way I was. Also, I've started to notice that I don't give myself credit for working hard, especially if I don't get the result I want. I will focus on working hard and celebrating that and getting better at motivation. ✨

My parents have literally told me all my life that I'm smart and gifted, never that I'm a hard worker. Now I'm a senior in high school dealing with extremely low motivation, depression, and laziness. I'm going to start rewarding myself anytime I work hard rather than when I'm praised for being smart.

“It’s not your fault” = don’t do anything “It’s all your fault” = don’t do anything

Your videos honestly motivate to get on my grind. Not a lot of videos on RU-vid have that same effect. Keep it up

I've actually had the opposite experience of most people here, as well as the video. I've done well in school, but people have always told me that's just because I worked extremely hard, and to be truly smart you should just know things. It would always discourage me to work as hard.

Get the "LOCUS" and you will get "FOCUS"

Yes, an internal locus of control is very important. I believe it to be necessary for success. But it is not sufficient. It's a lie people tell themselves, that you can achieve absolutely anything with just enough motivation. You also need discipline, consistency over a long time, and bravery to get over the many obstacles and failures laid before you. You will also come across moral dilemmas, that many people overlook or find rationales for. This requires different strategies than just getting motivated.

Shoot I was always told I was smart as a kid and now that I'm older I'm too smart to fall for the hard work thing and I've become lazy for it.

The success behind my profit earning in bitcoin Investment is not solely on my skills but by the help of Investing with an expert.