⏱ TIMESTAMPS 0:00 - Intro “Ordinary people seek entertainment. Extraordinary people seek education and learning.” -Benjamin Hardy 1:18 - The Quality of Your Learning Determines the Quality of Your Success “Your level of success will rarely exceed your level of personal development, because success is something you attract by the person you become.” -Hal Elrod 2:59 - We Attract the Things That Reflect Who We Are “Every next level of your life will demand a different you.” -Leonardo DiCaprio 4:59 - Step Forward Into Growth or Backwards Into Security “It’s absurd that we would prioritize the hottest new device, the cool car, or trendy toy over owning that which makes us feel the most engaged and most alive.” -Neil Patel 6:43 - Most People Won’t Ever Experience True Success “The mediocre have a very narrow perception of reality, and in turn, their lives. They see things as they are, not how they can be.” -Ryan Holiday 8:32 - If You Want to Live an Extraordinary Life, You Need to Give Up a Normal One “If you want to live an extraordinary life, you have to give up many of the things that are part of a normal one.” -Srinivas Rao 10:35 - In Conclusion “Who you are is a result of who you were, but where you end up depends entirely on who you choose to be from this moment forward.” -Hal Elrod

The day I learned to focus was the day my life changed. I wrote and illustrated three kids books since June to just now (end of December) published them on amazon and they are doing surprisingly well. Now I’m learning Java Scrip and R coding so I can make a career change by summer 2021. I’m tired of wasting time and not being who. Dreamt of being when I was in my teens. I’m now 41and pursuing my dreams and not chasing entertainment and gimmicks.

"Formal education makes a living, but self education makes a fortune."

Learning is my distraction, Creating is my entertainment

Learned this lesson 20 years ago. There were no opportunities, no direction, no future. Started to learn, fell in love with it, never stopped. Everything I have was earned through self learning.

It's easy to consume in today's society where instant gratification is everywhere. But most of the time, it's meaningless. To take the time and effort to create, you feel a sense of accomplishment and pride, and that means something.

Money is an illusion. Theres more to success than becoming a millionaire. Health is wealth. Self love is important.

I was single years ago. I remember getting into the schedule of working out at the gym to try to look good, nd later at home after then watching TV, did this Sun thru Thursday, then out partying every Thursday night, every Friday night and every Saturday night big party time. Then, seeing I was going no where, I said, you know what, just cut down on TV, cut down on partying and just take a few classes at night after work. Well, that lead to a college degree, doing it that way. And, that degree Did, in Fact - as I went forward, got me interviews and chances, some of which I was able to capitalize on and get a good job from, and build on it. So - Yeah - this summary makes very good life sense, if you're goal focused - Don't prioritize Entertainment although it's very tempting - simply prioritize learning and growth, and you will see benefits from this simple act of the will.

As with most things in life, surely it's about finding a healthy balance? Success is a means to an end, money is a means to an end. The idea is create the best version of yourself, have fun and leave the world a little better for you being in it.

I am literally in the middle of this transition, I have stopped all social media (except educational vids) for more than 2 weeks now and I'm revisiting two important skills. It feels good!

I love to read books on technology, leadership, & design skills. Reading has helped me to grow my business by implementing new ideas and thoughts.

I'm sure there is good advice in this video, but it seems a bit obsessed with success. True happiness does not need to be the result of being a multi millionaire or one on the top of my field. A well-balanced life with a fulfilling job, meaningful relationships and good health - is that really mediocre?

Billions of people have access to the internet and videos like these are sitting here for free waiting to be watched, I am so grateful when I come along videos like this. I am still a student and during these times I am at home and spend a lot of time in front of a computer ,although I do make sure to go to my back yard and meditate and connect with nature. But the point is that almost all the time I spend on my computer I spend learning about spirituality, philosophy and all types of things. Every time I find a good video like this, I watch it then take notes on it and incorporate into my large amount of documents I have saved on my google documents so I can look back and review when needed and also make sure to apply what I have learned into my life. In the past 3 months I have completely turned my life around when I gave up everything that did not serve me and watched what I gave my energy too. I feel so blessed to have started learning all this knowledge while I am still very young and have not made any big choices on my future yet. I really do feel and know that I can conquer any of my desires if I apply myself to it, and will make sure I do. I have already begun to complete some of them. Thank you to channels like The Art of Improvement for videos like these, for giving out knowledge like this to the world, For every hundred thousand of views there is a big chunk of people that have learned something and have changed their lives because of it.

Me: - play video - immediately switch to my social media browser - hear "most people are distracted right now" Oh f...

This video preaches fear of failure, the belief that you are fundamentally inadequate as you are, and fear of the experience of existence.

I just quit my toxic office job yesterday to learn how to teach English as a foreign language and this was exactly what I needed. Thank you!!

one takeaway i got from this was that it's better to create a life you don't feel the need to be distracted from. so you can be happy enough to just exist and enjoy your life, not to constantly try to find ways to numb yourself from it/forget about it

Key Takeaways: 1. Self-education over entertainment. 2. You determine the things that show up in your life. 3. You are an egg that either hatches or goes bad. 4. Focus on things that are most important to experience true success. 5. If you want to live extraordinarily, you must give up normal activities.

Eating bad food that slows you down is a real thing! I used to call out from work and skip opportunities because I was fatigued all the time and ever since I started eating healthy I get so much done in just a short period of time.

I love when I come along things that validates what I’m doing is right. Makes so much sense.

Glad I pivoted from hard menial work to IT a few years before the pandemic 2020! Not only I love what I do, but kept me from going broke since I was able to work from home.

Hi, I get that distraction can sometimes... well... distract us from our objectives, but sane and fruitful distraction can also reduce our level of stress, enhance our creativity and help us connect with people (with all the benefits included) and develop some soft skills.

I am the first person ever on both sides of my family to set foot in a college. I am now over 60 and have gone through the PhD program in biology. It has taken me to a new level using super foods to repair the body and develop the immune system. Especially during this CV thing

Wow this was a good one! “Formal education makes a living, self-education makes a fortune.” - Jim Rohn

I just bought a Nintendo Switch. My heart just sank when I saw he drew it at 1:34 😂

Unfortunately, we've got to the time when formal education does not make a living anymore (specially if you happen to be a programmer). It's a must to keep studying, or you will get fired. And this time will get to the other jobs too. That idea of getting a degree and having a stable career until you retire is not the reality anymore.

the first time to start something was yesterday,the second best is now

Distraction is something that's hitting everyone of us harder than normal right now because of the quarantine, I think now we have the opportunity to show how disciplined we can be :)

Since i started watching these videos, my life changed. i want to live the best version of my life every day.

"Entertainment and distraction is the enemy of CREATION and LEARNING. They will keep you in mediocrity"

Grateful for this video. Been uneasy with myself lately as I notice I so easily give in to self-destructive habits that stop me from learning and creating. The pandemic became an easy excuse to be passive and mediocre but I refuse to go down this route any longer. We attract what we are and I need to start living the best version of me! 💕

Thank you for taking the time to share this with us. As you know, when these pieces of advice are put into practice, they have a vast positive impact.

It took me a long time to go back to my childhood self where I read tons of books because I was so happy to know a lot about the world. As the years go by, I got sidetracked by my peers whose pleasures are shoved into parties and petty social hierarchy in high school. I stayed away because I watched as these habits impacted their lives and went back to reading books. But this time, I did not liked reading books anymore. It was as if I was just scared that I might end up like them. It took me such a long time to figure it all out. That we should open a book because we love knowing new things and stimulate ourselves with wonder instead of opening a book because we’re driven out of fear.

Too many things to change in my own life, many things to fix, to get rid off... I feel blessed after watched this video. Just wanna say thanks to the creators of this valuable content. Now just getting ready to focus on Learning and Creating. 🙏🏽😊🙌🏽

I'm currently in the trenches on the battlefield of my distracted mind. This video helped so much. I've had a lifelong struggle with ADHD and have always sought out entertainment instead of learning or creating. I do actually spend a decent amount of time creating these days but I find myself "giving myself a break" by playing hours of video games and watching tv every night because my day job is so draining. I feel stuck but this video has given me the push I needed.

Thank you for this message. This is the way I have always truly lived. Once I left my toxic narcissistic family and toxic employers, my long held blessings for many decades came pouring in like a huge waterfall. All of those many years of my hard work is finally paying off.

While I find many of your videos entertaining and instructive, I have to disagree a bit with you on this one. Focusing on learning and creating is healthy - regardless if it leads to capital grow or not! An artist or musician doesn't simply stop practising and improving. Even though there's no big money or fame in learning Beethoven's 32 sonatas by heart. Some of us are lucky to have enough capital to lead a modest middle-class life, and in this case, creative learning is of the greatest importance to add value to one's life. Immaterial value instead of money. In other words, just because daily practise doesn't make me a ton of fans or millions of $$$ in the bank, I refuse to stop learning. With that tiny correction, we can both agree, that it is better to focus on learning and creating rather than entertaining and distraction.

Judging by the title this is exactly what I need to see!

I definitely do not want to have regrets at the end of my lifetime. I had lost my MOJO for learning and creating as I gave in to this December "all fun, all play" notion. But I've decided to put small steps in my every day life and work my way to an extraordinary life. Key takeaway: For an extraordinary life, give up the normal life

thank you for making this video reminding me that I must not buy too much entertainment equipment but more learning and creating equipment. thank you . I almost forget to says this "if you love what you doing success & money will come eventually "

School is my biggest distraction but I still self educate myself

Absolutely amazing! Every day is an opportunity for self development. Learn as much as you can and don’t settle for anything less than what you want in life! Get the TV out of your room and delete social media! I did this and feel so much better now. THANK YOU for this video.

This is why KZfaq is so great, because it can be a creative learning experience producing videos & also just fun to watch & chill out. Great video! 👍😉

I used to be all about work hard, but nowadays I still work but I never work too hard. Focusing on learning everyday has been a game-changer. Now i get better results while working less hours and now i just have more time to chill and live my life. everyday learning is one of the best things you can ever do for yourself.

As an aspiring artist I can agree that entertainment is a distraction. It's just that every time I develop a plan to stay focused and practice my art. My plan only works for a few days and I'm right back to playing videogames and browsing reddit again. I don't know why this happens, its seems like my focus is temporary. I tried timing myself and taking breaks but eventually it all falls apart because I have to go to work at my part time/Full time job the next day and it breaks my "schedule flow".

Putting attention toward what's most important eventually becomes addicting. That becomes the new urge.

Working towards productivity and taking time for my hobbies even if I’m forcing it recently. Feels amazing. Our attention spans have gone so short

This video was a punch in the gut... I literally clicked it by accident. I really needed to hear this right now. You were speaking directly to me.

This video really got to me man. I am starting afresh now. Thanks for explaining in depth of what we are subconsciously go through without realising our true potential

Thank you from the bottom of my heart...the lonely road part hit me hard.

Great message here for me! Thank you. Constant learning and striving to be the best version of myself, got it.

Thank You 😊 Over the last 13 year's I have gone from $250/ week to $2,500/week. Looking to continue this trend.

I think I needed this video, and it came at the right time. I am currently being offered two jobs: one that is relatively easy and stable, and another that might be beyond my skillset, and would push me to expand my abilities. Pay for both jobs is the same, and I've struggled in the past with similar duties on the second job. I've been drawn to choosing the easier path, knowing I would succeed more easily if I did, but not grow in my skillset. If I want to move on to the next level of my career, I need to strengthen my deficiencies, and I realize I need to engage in self-study throughout this next career move. I can do the second job, and I know I could do it well. But it WILL require me to go the extra mile, and improve along the way. I must choose the second job offer. Even if I fail, I will gain valuable knowledge and experience that will ultimately make me stronger and get me closer to where I want to be. Security IS an illusion! I'm never going to improve, unless I push myself! Greatness doesn't come without sacrifice, and I'm being called to challenge because I've had it too easy up until now.

I'm pretty sure I would never want to eliminate my entire game time but I guess decreasing it would be better for me to increase my learning. (For dating, not everyone wants a model looking man/woman and many are fine with average and that's just as healthy if the person genuinely wants it that way)

"You are defined by what you're willing to struggle for". Why's that so deep?

Can’t agree with this author enough. Brilliant message!

Thank you for taking your time to make these videos. They are very inspiring and I’m sure they will change many people’s lives like how your work has changed mine. Amazing work! Sending love from Singapore 🤍🤍

In general I completely agree. The main focus for success should be learning. But entertainment is also needed by people to relax and wind down. You'll burn out otherwise. But great video! I'm really enjoying the channel.

This video just switched the lightbulb on in my mind. Love it. Keep learning and creating

I made a decision to do this at a fairly young age; although it was partially because I was not permitted access to the typical, popular forms of entertainment. I learned to be entertained by learning & creating. I talk about this and try to impress this concept upon others. But modern entertainment has had a tremendous amount of cash & resources invested into maximizing its power and addictive nature and has evolved tremendously even in the last 2-3 decades. Meaning: my chances at success with altering others' perspective and behavior are less than ideal! But I won't let that deter me! Thank you for posting this!

"The mob of the Majority, doesn't like deserters"... Sounds about right to me. Experienced this every week of my life. Solo.

I like to do 50% both, entertainment is a good source of inspiration

This is the single most educational vid ive seen on youtube. ty

"Success is something you attract by the person you become" Jim Rohn's influence in me started from that statement. It is amazing to hear it again from your perspective

Life is my game Levels are my life stages Failures are my experience Fighting is my struggle Shedding blood is my passion Spilling blood is my wrong doing Treasures are my knowledge Rewards are my lessons Training is my discipline And Death is my daily restart Then the cycle begins again until I complete the game and get to rest at the end. Keep fighting y'all I believe in you even if some of you dont believe in yourselves. There's always someone out there who's day is better because you're around in body and memory. Keep fighting the good fight and win the race! 👍

There’s a Reason why Entertainment exists. As Long as you don’t spend too much of your life on it then you should be fine. Balancing entertainment and work isn’t easy. The reason why we have it is to either. A. Reward ourselves B. Because without it we’d be stressed out more C. To Learn more about the Media D. Because were bored. E. To not miss out on certain series or trends. We really shouldn’t entirely abandon it because then life would be even more dull but not entirely be addicted to it. Even Educational things To me like school became an addiction to me to the point were It did become Overwhelming and stressful. I guess It’s better to also focus on personal skills you love to do, when schoolwork is taking over.

I just can't stress the importance of this video... thank you, this should be the most viewed video in this platform

This puts it altogether. Thank you.

I needed this. Thank you.

It's not all about money, but I'm taking note of much of these quotes because there is wisdom in them. I would say self-improvement is a victory in itself and learning for learnings sake is too.

Thanks!!!! .... riders on the storm. Pops in my head when the music plays.

Appreciate your videos! Being able to return and recalibrate is a blessing. ❤ Love and health to all 🙏

One of the biggest failings I see in a majority of people is a serious lack of critical thinking. This cannot even be suggested to them because they don't know what it is. I have had to start using the term analytical thinking instead. Am constantly amazed at the sheer nonsense people will believe just because they won't even ask themselves if what they are being told is even possible. Once had a woman grab me by the hair and drag me across the floor because she had been falsely told I was wearing a wig. It hurt. A lot. So please do a video about stuff like that.

Just taking the advice from the title will get you far in life. Its the simple stuff thats difficult to apply

Thank you for making me feel better on this lonely road.

I love to watch this entertainment content instead of learning or creating. Such comfort. Such wow.

I hope more people will be taking the brilliant advice from this video and reverse the tendency of entertainment addiction in our Brave New World

"Mediocrity" is underrated. Being mediocre is not always bad. Of course being more than mediocre can be good. It's you yourself who determines what is best for you. I'm not against anybody. I'm just putting it out there.

Just what I need to jumpstart doing things and not dwell in consuming! I think if we got the intention to learn,sure can convert the entertainment part into learning too! Only with intention!

Learning to live “in the moment”, being able to be happy, sitting all alone, doing nothing, is the true measure of inner peace, fulfillment and true happiness. That does not mean you must be alone, or poor, or anything else like that, but when a person learns to be truly happy just being, no matter the state of their being, wow, that is a HUGE personal accomplishment. IMAGINE, JUST BEING HAPPY, EXACTLY AS YOU ARE, RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW, not wanting or needing anything or anyone else in your life. You can do exactly this, if only you truly want. You ARE good enough exactly as you are IF you believe so. Be at peace and know inner peace as a goal for yourself. It is it’s own reward. Be happy and enjoy. You CAN just decide to live this way, happy no matter what. This what I have chosen to do, how I live my life (albeit not perfectly at all times). Enjoy your life, it is short and truly, it is all you have. ENJOY!

This video is banging!!! Great job. Its spot on! Cheers!

How do you have 13 distracting ads in this vid

Self education over entertainment, the results will shock you.

Omg! Finally, someone has chronicled my life in a video! Thank you! Thank you! And thank you again! ❤👏🏽

This video came at the right time💜thanks yt for recommending me this❤️

Being wealthy extraordinary and successful is completely overrated

"Peace is the new wealth" Tony Gaskins

Thank you for the inspiring video, it is an eye-opener for my self. I will not complain again about why I have to study while others are having fun.

Public K-12 school and college creates excellent employees. The secrets in this video are spot on and have provided me great success - watching it to remind me (and my kids) of what's important.

My problem is I don't even know what my goals should be or what I should be doing with my life. I don't have any major hopes or dreams so I can't work towards them.

"You're defined by what you're willing to struggle for" I want to use it as a motto in my classroom, if you don't mind. Whom can I write as an author of it?

One of the best videos ever... very motivating! Thanks so much for sharing.

This video speaks volumes of truth. I've learned the lesson of knowledge; thankfully earlier than later in life. (I consider myself about 25yrs old). I've had a passion to soak up knowledge. All kinds, automotive, electrical, plumbing, hvac.. i'm by far no professional as that takes years. However, while I see other celebrating holidays and going on adventures ect.. that just doesn't appeal to me. I'd rather soak up knowledge knowing my future self will benefit from todays sacrifices. To be realistic for a moment.. noone wants a friend who's broke AF.. srsly. No woman wants that, and no dude wants a friend who's constantly asking for $. Much of the knowledge I've been soaking in.. is also like chess.. it won't benefit me now, but later.. maybe 1-5-10 yrs down the road everything will come together. I'm ok with that. I'm patient, I do not need success.. tomorrow. This video hit it dead on. hence why i stopped gaming months ago.. i realized.. if i spend 6hrs trying to complete a hard level on a game.. what was the benefit? (assuming said level was complete). Did i gain anything? No. Just took my time. I turned off my XBOX1X and haven't looked back. Canceled my live subscription. I must say.. i feel so much better since I'm not playing a mindless game. For those who play games online with others. How many toxic players do you run into? From my experience... it was like 80%. I did find a FEW good players over time. But the time and amount of play it took to FIND the good decent players. (skill is learnable, I'm looking for GOOD personalities that add to the great potential conversations). (I WAS playing Black Ops 2 (zombies), aswell as hitman 2, and Sniper Elite 5. (all free with xbox live). Anyway thanks for reading my long comment. Great video. Great animations. Thank you for putting in the effort to create video. This video completely resonated with me. The only down side to the growth mentality.. it's lonely sometimes. So few ppl understand. It's like raising your vibration to 5D. So few ppl undestand where your views are. They only see the "3D" society with pain, poverty, sickness, corruption..ect. They don't see the big picture. :( I could go out to a bar, a club, any social gathering.. what are the chances i'd find an actual good conversation? Since most of the public is literally stupid. LOOK at where you time goes. What do you spend your time doing?

Deep focus died when the smart phone was born.

I love to try and improve myself progressively, without any obsession about it, however, what about hobbies? the passions that you don't want to turn into a job to keep their charms. I can't really visualize where to put them, while they remain necessary for the rest of the soul on a daily basis.

I love it. Around 6:12 if you stay in the middle for too long, it’s synonymous w stepping backwards. 😉. Something I needed to be reiterated. Such a sensitive time in my life from the influences around me. Tysm 🙏🏼!

AMEN! Entertainment is very low on my list of priorities. Great video with fabulous advice

Thank you for the insightfull video. Perhaps there isnt a 100% 1-1 causation between learning/creativness to the how happy or stable your relationships are. There's so many factors and perspectives that one can not conseive on their own. One huge factor is more about the condition of your heart, soul and internal world. You can't change the world for the positive is your heart is gross.

It's like somebody fetched the most popular quotes on instagram and put it all in one single video. Don't waste time, be creative, you only have one life - choose your deeds wisely. These kind of videos definitely will get liked, because they have reasoning, but are they really that good?

I am on the right track. I have been critical of myself lately. This video gave me a confidence boost