The secret I stole from video games to succeed in life | By Kenton Arts | October 2025

Have you ever found yourself in conflict with yourself? When you know you need to do something, but you don’t do it?

When we know there will be consequences for not doing said thing, our minds are elsewhere. It’s happened to all of us.

I don’t claim to have a miracle solution to procrastination, far from it, but a valuable tool has become apparent to this problem.

During my career as a teacher of primary school children, I found myself in front of 32 students, all from very different social and cultural backgrounds.

Some had parents who supported education, others not at all. How can I make sure that these children, without a shadow of discipline, do their homework?

Well, the famous tool that I’m going to introduce you to is the key. Since I have Attention Deficit Disorder (ADHD), I know procrastination very well.

I was my first guinea pig, experiencing this method in which I learned to play the guitar, go to the gym four times a week, maintain a stable body fat percentage for the past 24 months, and pass my chemistry, math, astrophysics, French, and philosophy classes with excellent grades.

I’ve also used this tool to help my 9-year-old little sister, who has severe learning disabilities, complete the vast majority of her schoolwork during the 2024-2025 school session, without hiring an expensive tutor, or even personally investing in her learning.

This method is widely used in video games by developers to keep players active and loyal. It is also used by companies to keep their employees attached to their jobs.

You ask me what is this famous method?
Well, I’ve been building suspense long enough, so here goes.
The tool that will allow you to overcome your procrastination once and for all: paper.

Often, it’s the little things that make the big differences, as mentioned in the book 80% rule. 80% of our results come from 20% of our efforts.*
Just think about doing your homework.

If you go to the library, take out your notebook, and open it to the study page, you’ve definitely accomplished 20% of the effort. But without this 20%, the remaining 80% the study itself would not have been possible.

I say the method is to use a sheet of paper, and then I talk about the 80/20 rule, but how will all this help us overcome procrastination?

This is not just a sheet of paper: it is a sheet that we will name together Consistency Council.

This is the end of this article. Consistency Council I had a smile on my face just writing this note, it was so precious to me.
So let me give you what a Consistency CouncilHow to build a good one Consistency Council And what advantages are there to adopting one.

and Consistency Council It is an array that takes the form of a list. The list can be as long or short as you want.
In this paper, we will write down all the actions that we know well and that we should perform.
For example :

Consistency Council
– Shower with cold water in the morning when you wake up:
– I brush my teeth in the evening:
– Reading a page from a book:
– Drink 2 liters of water during the day:

At the end of each day, before going to bed, we will take 30 seconds to look at this piece of paper that we will tape to the wall.
Then, with the pencil which we will leave behind, we will come, like a prisoner who counts the days on the wall of his cell, to put a check on every work done.
If the action is not completed, nothing will be added. So the only person who enhances your discipline is you.

This small action, which takes less than 30 seconds to complete, will prime your brain to take into account the actions you need to complete the next day.

Now that we know what a Consistency Council How to use it Here are some foundational principles:

It is necessary to act Consistency Council We are:
– basic ;
-Can be done in less than two minutes;
– With a clearly defined beginning and end.

Practicing the Am, Em, and Dm guitar chords for two minutes is a good procedure for writing.
“Playing guitar” is not good writing.
Opening and reading one page of my math notes is a good act of writing.
“Studying” is not a good job of writing.

As you can see, you have to start very small.

According to a study mentioned in the book Atomic habitsThe human mind does not so much take into account the duration of our actions in order to automate them, but rather takes into account their repetition.* (Sources at the end of the article)

Studying for 4 hours will exhaust your mind and avoid systematic study.

Studying for 5 minutes a day will lead your mind to want to extend sessions beyond 5 minutes to deepen your knowledge.

It is therefore necessary to identify the smallest step we can take to get to where we want to be.

I know very well that my goal is not to go to the gym to train for 5 minutes. I want to be muscular and do one- or two-hour sessions.

Yes, but you have to take it one step at a time.

An obese American man challenged himself to go to the gym for 5 minutes every day.

After a month, his brain had provided enough evidence that he could get there, quite easily.

He said to himself: As long as I come here for 5 minutes every day, I can walk a little.
Two years later, he lost 130 pounds.*

Without a doubt, there will be days when it will be impossible for you to complete your duties. Sometimes, life goes on without considering our feelings, and it happens that we do not live up to our expectations. Me first.

It is necessary, in these moments, not to let go of control. Everyone misses a day sometimes; The rule is to always wake up the next day.

Life has given me a break, and I have been able to take advantage of the break, and I am grateful that I have it. Tomorrow I will do what I have to do.

You build a fortress brick by brick, brick by brick you build a body you can be proud of, brick by brick you build your career, and brick by brick you build the person you want to become.

Thanks to this method I was able to automate my little sister’s studies and help her regain confidence in her mathematical and grammar skills.
Thanks to this method, these 32 children were forced to compete with each other to finish their homework and be first Consistency Council.

So yes, it’s just a simple piece of paper that will change your life.
It was this simple piece of paper that changed me.