I’m currently in a battle for the impressionable young minds of my little brothers. One is 15, the other is 18. The fifteen year old is obese. He’s also incredibly talented as an artist, except that he never practices. He’s finally going to the gym though, which is good. We were hanging out the other day and following dinner he went for the ice cream. I said, “What the fuck are you doing?”

“Ice cream?” he said.

“Drink water.”

“Ok.”

Our father died 15 years ago, and my stepmother has pampered and spoiled them.

The 18 year old is in great shape because he works out, but he has no ambition other than getting an “easy” job. Currently he works on an assembly line for $14 an hour.

I’ve been “consulting” them on game, self-development, entrepreneurialism, and self-education. By consulting it’s mostly me saying, “that’s cool, have you considered that playing DOTA all day is turning you into a boring and stupid slug?” And even though they “agree” with me, they both have a monkey on their back which is keeping them from happiness and success…

They are both addicted to video games.

I’ve always been intrigued by video games, and I’ve spent far too many hours playing the Battlefield series (COD is for chumps.) Understand, to this day, I still play video games. But I also manage to work out, read a book every few weeks, write blog posts, books, date multiple women and run a small business. So take a guess what I feel is my own biggest weakness? I’d say it’s escapism. Instead of writing a new post, or going out, sometimes I smoke a joint and play video games. Sometimes I waste an entire day playing video games. But I always manage to wake up and turn the thing off, sometimes for a month at a time.

Now my brothers…they play video games. But they play it ALL FUCKING DAY AND NIGHT. I think they read books because one day I brought a backpack full of books and dumped it on their table.

“These are called books. If you don’t read books, you will be a stupid schmuck. You will die a pathetic beta male, working like a slave for peanuts under some wise entrepreneur. You will wonder why you’re always depressed, never laid, usually fat, and quite ignorant to the ways of the world. Throughout history intelligent men and women have foregone escapism to sit down and spend several years of their life writing these epic tomes of knowledge. So please, please pick one up and open it. Just read for ten minutes. That’s all I ask.”

I also made them watch The Matrix. I made them watch Tyson. I made them read David Deangelo. And I’m afraid I come off as preachy, as if my life is so good and perfect (my life is pretty awesome actually.)

I’m afraid for them. I’m afraid for humanity. But if I can start with my little brothers, maybe I can help the world. Maybe I can help myself.

If you’re a video game addict (more than 4 hours per day of video games) then the next time you’re playing that game you’ve already played for 200 hours, ask yourself, “Is this making me happy, or am I just repeating a pattern, inside a program, like a fucking hamster sucking on a nicotine infused water bottle?”

Are you having regular sex with hot girls?

Are you growing your own business, or achieving regular respect and promotions at work?

Are you producing art at regular intervals?

Are you working out?

Are you travelling abroad?

Are you creating an interesting life worth writing or making a movie about?

Chances are, if you play more than 4 hours of video games a day, you are not that pleased or stimulated by life. That’s a broad assumption. But what if you don’t play video games? Let’s look at other addictive time wasters like:

Network Television

Netflix

Porn

Celebrity Gossip

Sports television

I’m all for consuming culture, even video games, in SMALL DOSES. However, when you feel like working in a factory for $14 an hour is a good deal because “it’s easy” I want smash your computer. I want to burn your Xbox. I want you all to wake the fuck up, and get out of the fucking matrix!

Because if you can’t even try, why should I? I don’t want to be alone at the top. I want my family and friends up there with me. Turn it off and do something that matters. Don’t waste the physical human experience. It’s short. It will be over soon. And you WILL regret not living, taking chances, and creating a life worth living.

Make real life your game, and play it well – with ambition, intent and skill. See you at the peak.

***Follow me on Facebook and Twitter***