Why Most People Will Remain in Mediocrity 

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If everyone was working to be above mediocre standards than the standards for mediocrity would just be higher.

'jealousy is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die' Is from Marcus Aurelius I think

Summary: 1. Don't be afraid to fail. 2. Choose learning over entertainment. 3. Know what's valuable. Don't chase the wrong things. 4. Stay in your lane. Don't be jealous of others. Choose success over mediocrity. Choose learning instead of entertainment. Choose personal growth instead of jealousy. Choose what you want, not what anyone else wants.

The fight to be above mediocrity is never ending. Striving to mediocre has improved my life tremendously.

Mediocrity doesn't just happen, it's chosen over time through the small choices we make every single day

"You need to fail more" OK *drops out of uni failing all classes*

"Is it wrong not to be special? I don't think that way. When it come to my child, it's fine if he's never great. He doesn't have to be better than anyone. He is already special, because he was born into this world." - Carla Jaeger

After being a straight A student, starting a career in the law field, learning 3 different languages, moving in 4 countries, having 2 personal bussinses and now one succesful bussiness with my husband, studing music and trying to achieve as many goals as I can, I was still feeling I didn't do anything important. I am 30 years old and sometimes I even tell myself and my husband I "wasted so much time and didn't do almost anything in my life"... We should enjoy life more in it's simplicity, because life alone is a wonderful gift. I feel tired of wanting more and more from myself.. So I am so impressed by the comments. Happy to see more people know life is beautiful with less stress.

You only start living once you leave your comfort zone.

I've just quit 20 years with a corporate to start my own business. Scared as all f*ck but i'm ready to fail and succeed. This video was just what i needed.

When I was 16 wrestling in high school I learned about this and started telling myself and everyone that I was ranked number 1 in the state and I, in fact wasn't even in the top 30. By the end of the season I was ranked number 2 and next year I pinned the number 1 kid and took his spot. This is very real.

I was mired in mediocrity when I turned 30 and realized I'd be stuck in dead end jobs forever if I didn't change something. I quit my full time job, studied my butt off for the GRE, went back to get a master's degree in business tech while working part time as tech support, and eventually went on to earn my PMI-PBA. Now I'm a certified business analyst and I'm doing a job I love.... which not coincidentally pays twice as much as the dead end job, and lets me work in a very fulfilling industry. Each step of that journey was high risk, high reward, and I do not regret taking those chances.

i don’t think you necessarily need to “be the best” or be “at the top” to be successful. you just need to be the best version of yourself you can be. and there is always room to grow. the key is to never stop learning. it’s like leveling up in a video game. bad experiences are necessary for growth & gaining wisdom. good experiences are rest periods in which you learn to appreciate how far you have come. but i’m just a hs student, what do i know

1. Embrace criticism (failure gives room from growth; tip-make it fun, be lighthearted). 2. Prioritize learning (self-education). 3. Believe you are extraordinary and that you will produce extraordinary results (act like a winner; if you believe you can you can, vice versa for can’t). 4. Chase experiences and personal transformations (not success, titles, or money-impressing others). 5. Toss jealousy out the window (being jealous and resentful is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die)-“stay in YOUR lane; focus on YOU”. - Focus. Learn. Experiment. Fail. Discover (what works)

Unfortunately we are taught that failure is a bad thing in school. Grades are the source of the fear of failure.

5:38 "Believe in your elf", thats what was holding me back. I never believed in my elf and treated him as my slave until I lost him when one day a boy made me give my elf a sock without my knowledge.

That most people stay mediocre is actually unavoidable, just because of math and the definition of "mediocre"; if everybody started to be successful, then "successful" would be mediocre.

You woke up early, while millions of others slept in, sounds so simple, but the meaning behind that simple statement or better yet, concept, can be life changing

I think this just changed my life. Exactly what I needed to hear. 2022 has been quite a personal development journey. For anyone out there struggling, KEEP GOING!! You can do it! You will achieve anything you set your mind to. Ordinary people can choose to be extraordinary.

I don't even say I failed anymore. There's no failing, only learning.

This the most down-to-earth, easy to understand, no nonsense, perfect for dummies like me guide to success I have ever seen!!!!

“Choose learning instead of entertainment.” Why not both?

Trying to be extraordinary is the height of mediocrity.

Worry about yourself not about what others believe is mediocre or not. Stop worrying about what others think. Live your own life to the best of your abilities. Don’t waste your life pursuing what others perceive to be the top. Only you can decide what’s best for you.

I just want to live a quiet life

I don't know. I live a simple life, simple job, but I'm happy and I love life. Life doesn't have to be complicated, and there's so many "successful" people with everything they could want who still aren't happy, always looking for the next big thing. Why does a simple life have to be considered mediocre. Why do we need to wake up at 5am and force ourselves to reach some goal to feel good. I mean, whatever works for you, but maybe we should start by trying to find happiness from inside, where we are now, before we torture ourselves day in day out looking for a false sense of achievement.

Mediocrity is different for different people. What risk in life means for you is where your journey lies. Anxiety is the guide to what you should do in life. The ability to face a problem, is what makes success happen. That problem is unique to you, and success is unique to the individual.

This video is one of the most life changing I've ever watched... thank you❤️ I never fit in with the groups I associated with and there were only few who thought like me but now I understand. "The pull of mediocrity is strong."

Best quote i ever heard about success is, “ I never lose; I win or learn”...

“Don’t seek praise, seek criticism” that one is for the people that are ready to step up their game!

5:33 “Believe in your elf.” -Best advice. My elf has been sitting on that shelf doing nothing for too long!

Every person has two lives. The second starts once you realize you only have one.

It’s not about being at the top of your field, making the most money, being the best, waking up early, getting everything right. That’s not what you should be aiming for at all. The truth is that anyone who is progressively realizing a worthy ideal is successful. This means that if you want a simple and calm quiet life, then you must follow that intuition and achieve that. If you want a busy successful life, then you must follow that. If you want a better family life then you must work toward that. The point is to find YOUR IDEAL and strive to reach it. Not society’s IDEA OF SUCCESS. You must find your star and aim at it. Humans feel happiest when they have their eye set on something and steadily move toward it. It does not matter what you have your eye set on as-long as it is of a creative rather than destructive nature. If you truly crave a silent and simple life where you wake up and all you feel like doing on a Saturday morning is drink a cup of coffee and chill. Then you have to aim toward living in that way. You have to fulfill the desire of living peacefully. If you crave the thrills of accomplishment then it’s your duty to yourself to fulfill that desire. People get personal growth mixed up in so many ways it sickens me. Calling it “toxic positivity” and having “negative experiences” because of personal development. The reason is that people don’t think for themselves and they listen to the wrong people. The problem is when you are doing something because someone told you “this is how you should live”. They are trying to sell you something. If you are settling for a simple life because you are scared of living the way you really want to live, then you are fooling yourself. If you are aiming at achievements because someone said you need to do this, when all you want is a simple life then you are also fooling yourself. You decide how you want to live. Think for yourself. *Shocked by the feedback on this 😯Thank you 🙂

I've watched a dozen of your videos lately and I've realized I needed to make a lot of serious changes in my life. Thank you for making these videos, you've earned yourself a new subscriber.

I think it's important to listen to your intuition. It can be hard to tell whether you are pushing yourself to achieve what you want or if you are pushing yourself to achieve something that others want. Always question yourself, and ask yourself if this is what you actually want for yourself.

I failed several times, now I'm homeless in San Francisco.

This particular quote you mentioned really resonated with me: *"Repetition can be boring or tedious, which is why so few people ever master anything" - The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod* Thanks for the upload :)

Personally, I don't think there is even a universal definition of mediocrity. I am a professional translator, interpreter, and editor. I am specialized in legal translation although I also work many many other fields. Early in my career, I chose English and Spanish as my working language pair, even though I also learned French and Italian. However, as English is basically my first language along with Spanish, and because most work for Spanish translators & interpreters comes in English, I made the decision to focus only on one language pair. I often see colleagues adding more and more language pairs and can't help but wonder how they can keep learning languages and getting the linguistic competence to the level required to be a good translator and/or interpreter. At the same time, I guess some people may think that I am mediocre because I settled with only one language pair when I could be offering more services, making more money, having a more impressive profile, etc. My response to that is that I prefer to be excellent at one thing than be half-assed at multiple things. On the other hand, a few years ago I met this guy who was a very accomplished music student, he actually got a full scholarship to study at the Royal College of Music, but ultimately declined it because he got involved in a Multi-Level Marketing company, and now he's selling nutritional supplements and forgot completely about classical music. Likewise, many people think this guy is crazy... but seriously, how can we judge the life choices of people whose personal stories we don't even know?

"I once heard being jealous and resentful is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die". wow amazing quote

“Stay in your lane and don’t compare yourself to others” but also .... do this to be better than all those lowly mediocre people? hm.

I've been "failing" a lot recently in my own projects. I needed to hear this today! It just means the path is difficult and worth pursuing.

This is honestly probably the best video I have ever seen in my entire life. I hope it impacts in the long term, I am in a situation trying to get out of mediocrity, and this video has encountered me with the absolute best timing, I WILL come back to share my results in life as a whole

I’ve been doing this since before I was aware of it. Probably 3 years ago? I stopped hanging out with junkies and drunkies….my life change to the max but I’ve become so lonely now. What a strange matrix world

"You must be willing to fail, a lot": The trick is to make sure you remain *able* to fail a lot too. You need to be careful with the risks you take and make sure that if it all goes wrong you can still get up to fight another day. You don't just jump in and try to climb Everest because if you fail you'll probably die., You do smaller mountains first because if you fail at those you can probably still be rescued.

Everyone's definition of mediocre is different. Not everyone wants to be some CEO of their own business, or have their name known throughout the world. For some people, success is working a 9 to 5 and having fun on the weekends. The thing that's really bothering me about this whole "self help" age, is that now everyone is being told that their special and that EVERYONE HAS to change the world and if they don't, they're treated as lesser than. Some people want to lead the pack and some are okay with just being part of it. There is nothing wrong with being average if that's what YOU want, cause YOUR definition of average may be MY definition of success.

It depends upon what you define as mediocrity. I contend if a person positively contributes to society, meets their financial needs, and attains happiness, tranquility, and contentment, then they have achieved greatness. If a person achieves what society considers greatness, yet they are miserable, anxious, depressed, and unsatisfied, then they are mediocre.

Look at that a year later 593k subscribers. I sooooo appreciate your channel, but, more to the point, you. A most thoughtful & inspiring person who can articulate some of the best advices & perspectives to IMPROVE themselves! Thank you for getting out of your fear & take the time to put this content out for me😊🕊

If people stayed aware of their mortality, they would think differently.

Mediocrity is derived from the Latin word medius meaning middle. Therefore by definition, the majority of people will remain in mediocrity. Mediocrity shifts with the median.

Honestly, all the quotes were very meaningful and hit super deep. I think it’s part of what made this a good video

Absolutely Phenomenal. I honestly expected a lot less valuable information from a format like this.

Tell your mind what to do: get 1 million dollars. Already robbed 2 banks and gained 2.3 million dollars in 5 days; this video is life-changing. :)

Pettiness, Small-mindedness, Zero-Sum outlooks, and Scarcity. All paths leading to failure and pain.

Incredible concept!! Thank you so much for showing us the idea of “embracing failure”! For YEARS I have been terrified to make a move right or left, but I see that really the biggest problem for me was not moving at all! Thank you ❤❤ you have liberated me :))

Your writing and creation of this video can and will stand the test of time. Truly motivational and humbling. Great work, and cheers to more!

I've always thought that being jealous is such a waste of energy and emotion. Thank you for including it here (that "jealous is a waste of time").

"There is nothing outside of yourself that can ever enable you to get better, stronger, richer, quicker, or smarter. Everything is within." - Miyamoto Musashi

Thank you for the encouraging words! They meant a lot to me.

This was honestly the best motivational video Ive ever seen and received, Thank YOU for not giving up on urself.

Is ironic how the videogames, pc, internet, these "distractions" lead me to programming, then level design, then game design and finally to my job and career.

An old sage man once said: “ I did not fail 1000 times, but I found 1000 ways that would not work”.

I don't know why I subscribed, but deep down I want more. This video is compelling.

I really appreciate this video. I have feared failure my whole life, which has ultimately resulted in not trying enough and creating the failure I always feared.

Rising at the top of some industry and "being your own boss" is overrated. Doing a mediocre job well so you can support your family and work on your own heart to purify it and be grateful for the miracle of just being alive is a great place to be. Most people don't think they can be extraordinary because they can't. But ordinary isn't bad. Ordinary is good if you learn how to be ordinary in a fruitful way. People think happiness is up on some mountain top but the world is full of things that glitter but ain't gold. True treasures are simple and can be found everywhere by those who learn how to look. And if you want to sleep in sometimes, for heaven's sake just do.

5:30 - "Believe in your elf!" I used to think my elf couldn't hack it, but then I started to believe in him. Now my elf is a shipping magnate!

These contents is a breath of fresh air.

I have no words to appreciate your effort in making this masterpiece video,may God bless you always.

As much as I agree, I wholeheartedly believe there needs to be a balance. You can't push yourself everyday to learn. Some days you need to recharge and, yes, chose the simpler things of life. Nevertheless, what you are saying is, "stay in your own lane, don't follow the crowd". The best creators are bred in this philosophy so I agree. I see that for myself, and I know I will be great.

Insert a generic motivational quote here

So insightful how he speaks on the prizes we go after. Most people compete on jobs, houses and cars, and end up in debt! The right processes can help us transcend the BS and achieve the goals that nobody else even considered.

Sometimes one wishes they had seen some YT videos sooner. This is one such master piece. Thanks for the insights.

Depression is like a voice that tells me "no point doing that . You've never succeeded in anything.And when you die,nothing will matter anyway.."

That’s why it’s so hard for people to recognize and do the things they truly love instead of doing what others want.

"Choose what you want, not what anyone else wants" EXACTLY THIS!! The moment i finally did what i wanted i became so much happier and my personal growth went out of the roof

I definitely have a problem focusing on My own Lane. I try not to look at others but it just bothers me when I see people succeeding where I want to. However I definitely think I'm improving and becoming less jealous as that is my life goal at the moment. I still expect myself to slip up but I am willing to improve my ability to grow myself

This video gave me so much confidence I’ve been thinking this way for a while now and I’ve always felt super confident in myself no matter what people said I’ll keep the grind up

"Every moment you fail to train is a moment your opponent IS training. When you meet, he will win." Horrible paraphrase but anyone point remains.

Being a "spectator" is a waste of a life.

I feel great because this gives me comfort! Thank you!

Well laid out!! Many truths in this vid. Many people drink the poison expecting others to fail ..

"Believe in your elf"!!! Well okay then!!!😂😂😂

In the end it still comes down to luck. People work hard and stay in their lane every day for decades and still become unhappy because they struggle to get by. Luck and being conscious of income are truly important, they can't be ignored in place of positive vibes. Positive vibes don't pay the rent. Balance is necessary. The vast majority of start ups fail, with serious financial consequences. That's reality, so before you jump on the entrepreneur bandwagon you need to understand how you will make a living.

This is the most inspiring video I've ever watched. Thank you so much!

Brilliant compilation of the steps to self-improvement and leaving the group of mediocrity. Well explained!

Success is cool and all, but remember, mental health before success. You want to be happy, not rich and powerful.

I almost cried because of the nuggets of wisdom in this video. It hit a spot in me and today, I will not treat pain as my enemy. Cheers!

There’s nothing wrong with being “mediocre.” There’s nothing “mediocre” about you. We are all beautiful manifestations of the totality of existence. Your existing is truly something to be amazed by in itself. Don’t let too many of these toxic self-improvement videos make you feel worse about yourself. You can live a “mediocre” and quiet life while still touching the hearts of those around you. It may not have a flashy impact, but it’s a more real and lasting impact.

Thank you for making this. I listen to this every morning, eyes shut after a morning walk to the get the gears flowing naturally. It gets me in the zone. Absolutely hame changing

"Most people will never become truly successful." WTH does this mean? What is your standard of success? Someone who owns a business? Someone with lots of money? Or what if you are just a loving person who makes a difference in the lives of people around you?

“Stay in your lane” best way to sum up this video man. Great content and I 100% agree. I notice it all

i was stuck doing something i didn't love for years and although it made me money , i felt like i was wasting my life away . Now i decided to change my life and venture into something i love and i have never been this excited. i cant wait to get started. Thanks for this video

Thanks Brother❤ your work is really a heart warmer and energizer at the same time. We often feel stressed if our good deeds are reaching out to people or not trust me brother they reach out and in multiple folds just its reciprocation to you is in unexpected way. Keep smiling and the world starts smiling with you❤

Well living simple life and truly enjoying that can’t be described as MEDIOCRITY. And I believe lot of people choose what they do how they life as they wished. Not all people want to become Bill Gates... imagine what happens if everyone pursues to become rich and travel around the world? All I wanna say is there are lot of successful people who aren’t considered successful according to stereotypes.

i just deleted my facebook and insta 2 hours before watching this video. thx bud

It’s refreshing that the narrator is including himself in the audience

Amazing video. Thank you! It arrived just in time for my thoughts this morning. I wake up at 5am to free write about whatever us in my head. While I know comparison is the the thief of joy (can’t remember who said that); it’s good to be reminded. I’m an artist returning to pursue my passion after giving up 10 years ago. It’s the reason I moved to NYC 15 years ago. I gave up on this childhood dream because it’s an expensive city and I was tried of being broke (and broken) so I pursued a career in sales and marketing-which I quickly excelled, got the money-got the title. Yet now I have so much anxiety. I’m digressing a bit but want to illustrate how I came back to making art. I felt there was so much suppressed energy and creativity in me and it had to get out-not using it creatively was creating anxiety within me. So I started painting one night after work and it felt incredible. It wasn’t extraordinary work by any means but I was expressing. I tried my best not to compare myself but just to keep going. To keep showing up for myself and painting 2-3 days a week. It took a couple months but now I feel I’m tapping into something uniquely me. While other artists are going in a different direction I am expressing whatever is in me (stating in my lane) and it feels good to be authentically me-to channel and work with whatever comes out. I know that it will eventually lead to my success. That being authentic and true to myself makes success feel more attainable. The next step is getting others outside of my bubble to see it-to subject it to criticism-and to learn to speak on and defend my work. Your video helped to remind me that this is the necessary step and while criticism is inevitable, it is only detrimental if I decide it’s so. It can enable me and give me energy to continue to create and not give up on that dream. I want to transcend beyond the mediocre. The most challenging step is just continuing despite whatever follows. Thank you again! ❤

Why is there so much self improvement content on RU-vid? You watch one video and the algorithm recommends a bunch of channels you never heard of. The self-improvement industry is so huge.

What a paradox. Sometimes I notice that, while I've been working on myself training, fasting, etc. and my friends or family is obsessing over someone else's success, it makes me feel unappreciated because I know that I'm doing the right things in life, but they're still stuck chasing illusions, and yet they completely dismiss what I'm aspiring to do, while obsessing over the success that someone else has already achieved. It makes me think "where were you before that person had their success?" People always doubt you too. I try to tell people they can do anything, we can change our lives, we can be the greatest version of ourselves. But a lot of these people, not all of them for sure but some of them, if I say I can do something, they doubt me. A lot of them can't believe in something until it happens, like their imagination has been completely destroyed by the life they've lived :(

Loved the content & presentation of this material, thanks for your great work. I also appreciate the length of the videos, easy bit sized learning to fit into each day. Thanks for the lovely work you produce & share. 💚