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Transcript

The Curse of 4.0 · The Daily Writer

• 0:06
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to the Daily Rider Podcast, where we bring you tips and inspiration each day to help you build habits for writing success.
• 0:14
  SPEAKER_00: For more resources, including your free Daily Rider Starter Kit, visit DailyRiderLife.com.
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_00: Think back to your high school or college years.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_00: Back then, your main academic goal was to get a GPA of 4.0.
• 0:29
  SPEAKER_00: Now, having a 4.0 is a great strategy for getting good grades and achieving academically, but the skills that help you become a 4.0 student in school actually work against you in real life.
• 0:41
  SPEAKER_00: Here are three reasons why.
• 0:43
  SPEAKER_00: First, 4.0 students are great at following rules.
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_00: You can only get perfect grades when you do exactly what the teacher says.
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_00: But this is only valuable if the teacher knows what they're doing or if they're teaching you something that's actually relevant in the real world.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_00: Second, 4.0 students have picked up the unfortunate habit of living for the validation and applause of others.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_00: They feel like losers unless they can get recognition from teachers, peers, academic deans, or a scholarship committee.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_00: And third, 4.0 students love competition.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_00: The whole idea of a GPA and deans list is to rank people based on their performance.
• 1:21
  SPEAKER_00: This tends to inflate the egos of the students who have obsessed over their grades and unfairly punishes students who aren't wired to learn in a traditional classroom setting.
• 1:31
  SPEAKER_00: Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not out to just punish school and talk bad about it.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_00: I enjoyed my years as a college professor, but I also saw firsthand the shortcomings of the traditional school and academic system.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: And let's just be really honest here.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: The academic system is designed to reward students who enjoy school.
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_00: It's designed to reward students who are naturally good at school, and it's also designed to punish students who are not naturally wired to learn that way.
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_00: 4.0 students may get all the scholarships, awards, and academic recognition from their teachers, but those skills are not so valuable in the real world.
• 2:05
  SPEAKER_00: To become a successful writer and business person, you've got to learn to think for yourself.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_00: You've got to learn to be willing to break the rules when you need, or just create your own rules.
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_00: You've got to be willing to validate your own success and seek out collaboration opportunities with great people.
• 2:21
  SPEAKER_00: Those skills might lead to failure in the classroom, but they're exactly what you need to become a 4.0 student in the School of Life.
• 2:30
  SPEAKER_00: Here's today's challenge.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_00: Let's put what you learned here into practice.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: Think about another author you respect who's in your social circle.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_00: Shoot them a text or an email today asking if you can have a quick chat about some ways you can collaborate.
• 2:44
  SPEAKER_00: In other words, what we're doing here is we're doing anti-school.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_00: We want you to collaborate, not compete with other authors.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_00: And this is one simple way to put today's episode into practice.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_00: Today's episode is sponsored by Indie Author University, featuring the book marketing mastery course.
• 3:00
  SPEAKER_00: If you're tired of being disappointed by your book sales and want to sell more books faster, easier, and with more fun than ever, sign up today.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_00: Book Marketing Mastery is created by my friend and business coach Honore Corter, who has sold over 4 million books.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_00: To sign up for Book Marketing Mastery, visit DailyWriterLife.comslash Book Marketing Mastery and use the code DAILYRIDER to get 10% off.
• 3:25
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks for listening, and I'll see you tomorrow.