Dopamine Method: 3 Steps to Find Your Passion (Science-Backed)

The Hidden Cost of Being Fake and How to Stop October 29, 2025 | Episode 5213 Host: Scott Smith Episode Description Ever feel like you're not being yourself? Like you're putting on a show for everyone around you? Scott gets it. He gets in trouble for being himself all the time. But here's the thing—being fake costs you way more than being real ever will. In this episode, Scott breaks down the hidden price you pay when you're not authentic. He introduces motivational awareness—understanding what actually fires you up instead of forcing yourself to do things that drain you. You'll discover why everything in your life comes down to just two things: people and money. And Scott shares his daily awareness filter that helps you catch yourself before you veer off course. Stop pretending. Start paying attention. Here's how. Featured Story You know when you say you're going to do something and then... you don't? Scott does this all the time. He'll get an idea, tell everyone about it, then just sits on his butt. Doesn't start. Doesn't move forward. For years, he thought something was wrong with him. Then he figured it out. He won't start anything unless he's actually motivated to do it. If he's not moving toward what he said he wanted, that tells him something. Either he doesn't really want to do it, or something about the process feels wrong. Now it's a rule. If the idea doesn't fire him up enough to get him moving, he scratches it. Simple as that. The problem? He sometimes opens his mouth and tells people first. Then they ask, "Why didn't you do it?" Because I didn't want to. Motivational awareness. Important Points Why forcing yourself to do things you're not motivated to do keeps you stuck in a cycle of starting and stopping. The reality that everything in your life—good and bad—comes from just two sources: people and money. Including you. How building a daily awareness filter catches those moments when you're being fake before they derail your entire week. Why saying yes to things you're not fired up about is the fastest way to lose touch with who you actually are. Memorable Quotes "I get in so much trouble for being myself. I really freaking do." "If I can't get myself moving, it's just not firing me up." "Everything, good, everything bad, everything comes from people and money." "Nobody else is responsible for your health. You are." Scott's Three-Step Approach 1. Build motivational awareness by noticing what drives you. Pay attention to what fires you up naturally. If you're not moving toward something you said you wanted, that's data. You either don't really want it or something about the process is wrong. Stop forcing it. 2. Accept that people and money control everything in your life. Every opportunity, every obstacle, every win, every loss—it all comes from people (including you) and money (including yours). When you're stuck or unhappy, look at these two things first. 3. Activate your daily awareness filter to catch yourself being fake. Ask yourself the same questions every day. Track what you're actually doing versus what you said you'd do. Notice the gaps. That's where the truth lives about who you really are. Chapters 00:15 The Hidden Cost of Being Fake 03:45 What Motivational Awareness Actually Means 06:27 Why Everything Comes Down to People and Money 08:53 The Daily Awareness Filter That Changes Everything 10:50 What's Next and Tomorrow's Show Connect With Me Search for The Daily Boost on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Email: [email protected] Main Website: https://motivationtomove.com YouTube: https://youtube.com/dailyboostpodcast Facebook Page: https://facebook.com/motivationtomove Facebook Group: https://dailyboostpodcast.com/facebook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One Project Rule: Why You Never Have Enough Time October 28, 2025 | Episode 5212 Host: Scott Smith Episode Description Ever wonder why you've got ten things going and none of them are getting done? Yeah, me too. This week I'm sitting here with about 10 browser tabs open working on the YouTube channel. My wife walks in and goes, "Are you making it simple?" I just 10x'd my work, man. But here's the thing about the one project rule. Your brain can only focus on one thing at a time. Not four. Not seven. One. And when you're bouncing between multiple projects, you're delaying the completion of ALL of them. What if you could finish one thing today and actually have more time tomorrow? What if getting more done meant doing less at once? That's what I figured out this week. And it changed everything. Featured Story You know when you look at everything on your plate and think, "How am I ever going to get this done?" That was me. Ten browser tabs. New YouTube channel. Big workflow changes. A ton of moving parts. My Australian shepherd is literally trying to break into the room because he can open doors now. Life's happening. And I'm sitting there thinking I need to make this simpler. But I just made it ten times more complicated. Then it hit me. I'm still working on one thing. Just one. The YouTube channel. All those tabs? They're part of one project. And while it seems like it's never going to get done, there's actually peace in that focus. Because I'm not also trying to finish nine other things at the same time. And that's when the whole thing clicked for me about why we never have enough time. Important Points When you work on multiple projects at once, you're delaying completion of every single one because your brain keeps bouncing back and forth. If you have 10 items that could make you money and you're working on all of them, none of them are making money yet—finish one and tomorrow it starts working while you tackle the rest. Your brain fundamentally can only focus on one thing at a time, and that's not a weakness—it's how you get actual results when you stop fighting it. Memorable Quotes "When you work on multiple projects at a time, you are delaying the completion to all the projects because your brain is bouncing back and forth." "If you could create more time in your day and you didn't have to give anything up, wouldn't that be a cool thing to do?" "I operate on the one project rule so that I can get more time. But one thing I've learned is a phrase I coined a long time ago called holding space." Scott's Three-Step Approach 1. Pick one project that needs to get done and commit to finishing it today—not making progress on ten things, finishing one thing completely so tomorrow you're free to move on. 2. Recognize the difference between absolute focus tasks and long-term memory habits—you can't multitask focused work, but you can run through your daily repeating patterns without thinking about them. 3. Hold the space once you clear it—fight to keep that free time open for yourself instead of immediately filling it with more stuff, so you actually create breathing room in your life. Chapters 00:00 Why You Never Have Enough Time 00:50 The One Project Rule Explained 02:39 How Multitasking Kills Your Progress 03:22 What Your Brain Can Actually Handle 05:58 Why Multiple Projects Delay Everything 07:37 Getting More Done By Doing Less 08:14 Holding Space For Yourself Connect With Me Search for The Daily Boost on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Email: [email protected] Main Website: https://motivationtomove.com YouTube: https://youtube.com/dailyboostpodcast Facebook Page: https://facebook.com/motivationtomove Facebook Group: https://dailyboostpodcast.com/facebook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Daily Boost is where WANT meets WAY—every day. I'm Scott Smith, and for 20 years, I've helped people like you turn what you want into what you do, even when life gets messy. Every Monday through Friday (under 10 minutes), you get actionable frameworks, real stories from two decades of navigating life's complications, and Stoic philosophy that actually works in the real world. This isn't another podcast telling you to dream bigger or hustle harder. It's practical coaching for people who know what they want but need the how—the daily direction that turns wanting into momentum, obstacles into strategies, and confusion into clarity. Whether you're rebuilding after a setback, leveling up your career, or just trying to keep what matters while reaching for what's next—this is your starting line. Short. Real. Daily. Get your Daily Boost on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠, ⁠⁠Apple Podcast⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠ every weekday. When you're ready to go beyond the boost and build your personalized roadmap, visit ⁠⁠MotivationToMove.com⁠⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dopamine Method: 3 Steps to Find Your Passion (Science-Backed) October 27, 2025 | Episode 5211 Host: Scott Smith Episode Description Still collecting productivity frameworks that don't actually work? Smart goals. Atomic habits. All those little tactics sitting in your notebook while you're still off track. Here's the thing. They're too tactical. You need something that's wired into how your brain actually works. Three simple steps that change how you feel about your world starting today. Not next month. Today. Scott breaks down the science-backed approach that makes motivation stick. No frameworks to memorize. Just three strategic shifts that light you up from the inside. And what he discovered about your anticipation engine might surprise you. Featured Story Ever notice how excited you got about Christmas as a kid? Scott did too. Then he became an adult. Boring. Just work. One day he said screw that. Started putting concerts on the calendar. Ski trips. Anything that got him genuinely excited. And his whole life shifted. He realized something most people miss. When you schedule experiences that fire you up, your mood changes. Your motivation increases. You can handle anything at the office when you've got something coming up this weekend. Most people lacking motivation are just lacking hope. That puts them in doubt and fear. The trick? You need to know you're growing toward something. Important Points Why looking at the past to solve present problems keeps you stuck in the same patterns you're trying to escape. The anticipation engine discovery that makes kids excited about holidays works just as powerfully for adults who remember to use it. How connecting with 5-10 truly like-minded people creates more momentum than 5,000 Facebook friends ever will. Exploring future possibilities lights up your brain differently than trying to fix your current situation. Memorable Quotes "The present doesn't stick around. The only thing that guides you is the future." "If you're not exploring and looking forward, most people look at the past. That's not going to work for you." "We were not designed to do things alone, but make no mistake, we're also not designed to do things with 10,000 people." "Two or more people actively engaged in the pursuit of a definite purpose with a positive mental attitude constitute an unbeatable force." Scott's Three-Step Approach 1. Explore future possibilities instead of past solutions. Stop asking what worked 20 years ago and start asking where your interest guides you next. 2. Fire up your anticipation engine by scheduling one experience that genuinely excites you. Concert tickets. Weekend trip. New dress. Anything that makes you eager. 3. Connect with like-minded people in smaller groups of 5-10 who actually vibe with you naturally. No forcing it. No proving how smart you are. Chapters 00:00 Why Your Goal-Setting Frameworks Keep Failing 00:50 The Daily Boost Moves to YouTube (Big Announcement) 02:39 Stop Collecting Ideas That Don't Work 03:37 Step One: Explore Future Possibilities 05:27 The Anticipation Engine That Changes Everything 07:13 Step Three: Connect With Like-Minded People 09:24 What Messes People Up (It's Always One of These Three) 10:11 Tomorrow's Show: One Project at a Time Connect With Me Search for The Daily Boost on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Email: [email protected] Main Website: https://motivationtomove.com YouTube: https://youtube.com/dailyboostpodcast Facebook Page: https://facebook.com/motivationtomove Facebook Group: https://dailyboostpodcast.com/facebook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Why Winners Quit More Than Losers October 24, 2025 | Episode 5210 Host: Scott Smith Episode Description Scott's been hammered over the years for quitting. He's a good quitter. Really good at it. When he decides something's over, it's over. Even if everybody around him thinks he's crazy. Some of the worst things he's seen? People who stick with things way too long. It's Biketoberfest in Daytona and his phone's blowing up with buddies wanting to meet up. All code for beer. But Scott's going to enjoy all the crazy people sober this time. And yes, he said "hammered" and "sober" in the same sentence. That's not right. Featured Story Scott's phone is exploding with messages during Biketoberfest. His motorcycle's polished up and ready. His buddies are in town asking when he's going to ride, where they'll meet, what they're doing. Basically it's all code for drinking. Scott hasn't been drinking for a while. He quit that too. When he decides something's over, it's over. One client described him like this: "Scott, you just kind of always have hope. You just kind of know it's going to work out. How do you know that?" Scott's response? "I don't know. I just know that." That optimism serves him well. But too much positivity doesn't pay the bills or make you happy. Sometimes things don't work and you need to quit and find another way. Being a strategic quitter is how winners operate. Losers stick with terrible situations way too long. Important Points Being a good quitter is not an excuse to avoid hard things—sometimes you have to stick with it, but strategically quitting when things aren't right is smart. Your inner voice sounds an alarm based on wisdom from experience, and when it says maybe it's time, trust your gut instead of driving toward a cliff. Sometimes goals become "what was I thinking" goals when the world changes, and reasonable people will understand if you give them a good reason for quitting. Memorable Quotes "When I decide something's over, it's over. Even if everybody around me thinks, what are you doing?" "There is no need to wait for the inevitable. Trust your gut. Trust your inner voice." "Sometimes it's a 'what was I thinking' goal. Sometimes the winds have shifted." Scott's Three-Step Approach Recognize when you're going around in circles or stuck in a cul-de-sac—that's when being a good quitter becomes essential for moving forward. Listen to your inner voice when it sounds the alarm because it's your wisdom trying to protect you from inevitable disaster. Change direction fast once you've determined you're not going the right way—don't pump it up to 85 mph toward a closed bridge just because you committed. Connect With Me Search for The Daily Boost on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Email: [email protected] Main Website: https://motivationtomove.com YouTube: https://youtube.com/dailyboostpodcast Facebook Page: https://facebook.com/motivationtomove Facebook Group: https://dailyboostpodcast.com/facebook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How to Stop Burnout Now October 23, 2025 | Episode 5209 Host: Scott Smith Episode Description One word will cure your burnout instantly. Scott gives it to you upfront because if that gets you, you'll be fine. Otherwise, he's got a five-step framework because that's what the internet wants these days. This isn't your standard motivational podcast. Scott motivates real people in the real world who are tired of toxic positivity but don't want to be negative either. The world's kind of wonky. It's not very nice. But we got to deal with it. So how do we do it? Featured Story Scott's wife catches him doing it again. He'll be bone tired, working hard, cranking all the time. Then his buddies call about a five-day motorcycle ride to the Tail of the Dragon. "Honey, I'm going." "You got stuff to do." "I'm sorry." "You said you were so tired and burnout." "Yeah, not anymore. I'm good now." That's the one word that instantly cures burnout. Inspiration. When it goes click in your mind, you're like "I'm good. Let's do this thing." If it's happened to you before, just go find a way to get inspired instead of grinding through a framework. But for those who don't believe him, Scott's got his five R's: Ritual, Rest, Rejuvenate, Reactivate, Repeat. Important Points If you get inspired, you're no longer tired—something happens psychologically when your mind goes click and suddenly you're ready to go. Success comes from performing ritual actions every day because business and life should be boring, not something that challenges you every single day. Your body and mind need to rejuvenate just like deep sleep repairs your body—take breaks before your body forces you to stop the other way. Memorable Quotes "If you get inspired, you're no longer tired." "Business should be boring. Life should be boring. The basics of how you roll should be pretty darn boring." "You will change when you wear yourself out. You'll be comfortably miserable to the end of time, and one day you'll say, I've had it." Scott's Three-Step Approach Find inspiration first because it's the fastest cure—when your mind clicks, burnout disappears and you're ready to go do the thing. Build daily rituals that work and repeat them because figuring out what works takes effort, but once you know, just do it boring and consistently. Cycle through rest and rejuvenation until you feel ready to reactivate, then repeat the process when you start getting tired again. Connect With Me Search for The Daily Boost on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Email: [email protected] Main Website: https://motivationtomove.com YouTube: https://youtube.com/dailyboostpodcast Facebook Page: https://facebook.com/motivationtomove Facebook Group: https://dailyboostpodcast.com/facebook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If You Know Your Purpose But Can't Act October 22, 2025 | Episode 5208 Host: Scott Smith Episode Description You already know your purpose. You just haven't admitted it yet. Scott's betting all your friends know exactly what you're passionate about too. They're just waiting for you to finally go do it. But what if you know your purpose and still can't get yourself to take action? That's a different problem with a different solution. Plus, Scott's 93-year-old mom might make a podcast appearance. You'll see where he comes from if you hear his mom. He promises you that. Featured Story Scott's mom is almost 94 and coming to visit from his sister's place up north. On the phone, she asked if she could watch him record his podcast. "I can't believe you're still doing that. I've never seen you record it." Maybe she'll make an appearance. Maybe she won't. That's her right at 93 years old to do whatever the hell she wants to do. But here's the thing about purpose that connects to this story. Scott's been doing this podcast for almost 20 years now. He coined a phrase two decades ago that still holds up: if you don't know your purpose, your purpose is to find your purpose. Simple thinking. Disc jockey logic from years of pizza and free t-shirts. The twist? Most people already found their purpose. They're just too scared to admit it and go after it. Important Points Passion comes from you experiencing life and finding what fires you up—it's not out there waiting or assigned to you at birth. Most procrastination happens because you got yourself into something you shouldn't be doing or you're just busy with minute-by-minute life distractions. If something's in your mind, it's real and it's all about you—stop asking the internet if other people think like this for confirmation. Memorable Quotes "If you don't know your purpose, your purpose is to find your purpose." "I'm betting you already have found it. You just haven't admitted it yet." "Running faster will only distract you from your purpose even further." Scott's Three-Step Approach Slow down and get real about what you actually want—become aware of what's working and what's not instead of running faster. Forget the limitations floating around in your mind because they're just beliefs stopping you, and toss out the fear of consequences. Accept where you are today with your peaceful base, then put one foot in front of the other pointing toward your dreams—it doesn't have to take forever. Connect With Me Search for The Daily Boost on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Email: [email protected] Main Website: https://motivationtomove.com YouTube: https://youtube.com/dailyboostpodcast Facebook Page: https://facebook.com/motivationtomove Facebook Group: https://dailyboostpodcast.com/facebook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You're Building Your Life Backwards October 21, 2025 | Episode 5207 Host: Scott Smith Episode Description Smart people are doing it backwards right now. Even people who studied this exact thing in college are forgetting the basics. They're chasing respect before they can pay rent. They're demanding acceptance while their life's falling apart. Scott breaks down why 2025 has been so damn hard and what Abraham Maslow figured out in 1954 that still works today. No shortcuts. No hacks. Just the sequential steps you actually need to climb. Spoiler: You can't skip steps just because you're 21 and think the world is different now. Featured Story Scott's been having the same conversation over and over the past few weeks with successful people who've somehow forgotten what they learned in college. They're college-educated. They know Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. But when Scott reminds them what they studied at university, they go, "Oh yeah, I forgot about it." Here's the thing that keeps coming up: people are trying to build the top floors before they've laid the foundation. They want self-actualization and respect while they can't feed themselves or feel safe. Scott calls it building without a peaceful base. And in a year as hard as 2025 has been—politically, financially, with AI throwing monkey wrenches everywhere—more people are doing this than ever. Even his son-in-law thinks he has to fix his entire hurricane-damaged house by himself when he's surrounded by a church community ready to help. Sometimes the basics are right in front of you. Important Points Your best life is built sequentially, one level at a time—forget the elevator, you've got to climb the steps to the top. If you can't feed yourself, feel safe, or maintain good relationships, you're not ready to help others or reach your full potential yet. Humans figured out how to build this whole world without AI, and things that have worked forever still work today—don't get distracted. Memorable Quotes "What a man can be, he must be. You feel it inside your bones." "I don't think you have to wait to become the person you're meant to be. I think you were put on this planet as that person." "If you can't feed yourself, if you don't have good relationships, if you're not happy, how could you possibly go out and help other people?" Scott's Three-Step Approach Take inventory of where you are in Maslow's five levels—physiological needs, safety, love and belonging, esteem, and self-actualization. Build your peaceful base first by handling the basics like shelter, money, relationships, and feeling safe before chasing bigger goals. Stop demanding respect and acceptance from others until you've mastered the previous levels—what you can be, you must be, but in the right order. Connect With Me Search for The Daily Boost on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Email: [email protected] Main Website: https://motivationtomove.com YouTube: https://youtube.com/dailyboostpodcast Facebook Page: https://facebook.com/motivationtomove Facebook Group: https://dailyboostpodcast.com/facebook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Your Secret to Setting Powerful Goals October 21, 2025 | Episode 5206 Host: Scott Smith Episode Description Forget goal-setting frameworks and Reddit productivity lists. Scott's got a better approach, and it starts with his daughter's flooded house, $15,000 in ruined flooring, and a couple stuck in purgatory for two and a half years. This isn't your typical goal-setting episode. It's about making decisions when you're sitting on the fence getting splinters in your ass. And yes, Scott sneaks in a bagel sandwich story while his wife babysits grandchild number five. Three simple steps. One powerful mindset shift. Zero excuses. Featured Story Scott's daughter and son-in-law have been living in a construction zone for two and a half years after hurricane damage wrecked their home. Water leaking. Mold growing. Fifteen grand down the drain on flooring that failed. But here's the kicker: they each thought the other wanted to stay. She thought he'd never move. He thought she wanted to fix it up and keep it forever. Both miserable. Neither talking about it. Scott walks into this mess, has separate conversations with each of them, and realizes they're both stuck in the same hell for completely different reasons. The solution? A conversation that night and three decision-making steps that work for any goal you're avoiding. Important Points Big goals should scare you a little, but if you think you can do them, that's exactly what you need to go after. Being stuck on the fence trying to figure stuff out is more disabling than making the wrong decision and adjusting later. The "how" will always take care of itself once you commit to the "what"—you'll figure it out, you always do. Memorable Quotes "Have you been in a position before where you're on the fence, getting splinters in your ass? Cause you can't figure stuff out." "First comes the what. The what's always there. I don't go with why first. I always go with what first." "About 90% of your goals are not really goals anyway. They're just kind of fixing up life." Scott's Three-Step Approach Decide exactly what you want and when you want to get it—if you can't do that, you won't even get off the starting line. Decide when you're going to start and when you're actually going to finish, and finish means finished, not "a few more things to tie up." Decide how you'll begin and maintain momentum, then trust that the how will take care of itself once you commit to the what. Connect With Me Search for The Daily Boost on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Email: [email protected] Main Website: https://motivationtomove.com YouTube: https://youtube.com/dailyboostpodcast Facebook Page: https://facebook.com/motivationtomove Facebook Group: https://dailyboostpodcast.com/facebook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This Is How Happy People Think October 17, 2025 | Episode 5205 Host: Scott Smith Episode Description Ever wonder why some people seem happy no matter what life throws at them? It's not rose-colored glasses. It's not pretending problems don't exist. Happy people have a completely different way of looking at the world, and you can learn it in about seven minutes. Scott breaks down the five ways happy people think differently, starting with one truth that'll change everything: if you're alive, you have problems. The real question is what you do with them. Featured Story Scott gets real about his own happiness journey, including the day he quit drinking because it was "making me fat and stupid." He also admits his biggest frustration as a podcast host. Spoiler: it involves you not listening to episodes he worked hard on. But here's the twist. Even that frustration doesn't make him unhappy. Because he's figured out the secret happy people know about problems, action, and what it really means to shake things up. This isn't your typical motivation talk. It's coffee shop wisdom that actually works. Important Points Happy people don't pretend problems don't exist—they accept that being alive means dealing with challenges every single day. Getting frustrated is normal, but happy people know frustration means they're actually living and shaking things up instead of staying stuck. You don't have to solve every problem out there, just the important ones, then get a great night's sleep and do it all over again. Memorable Quotes "I promise you this. When you die, you will have no problems." "Dealing with problems is a privilege of being alive." "Nothing will make you happier than moving. And you can start that right now." Scott's Three-Step Approach Accept that you're alive and problems come with the territory—stop fighting reality and start working with it. Stand up and shake things up even when you're unhappy, because movement creates happiness, not the other way around. Take responsibility for solving your important problems, let the rest go, and repeat tomorrow because that's the real reward. Connect With Me Search for The Daily Boost on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Email: [email protected] Main Website: https://motivationtomove.com YouTube: https://youtube.com/dailyboostpodcast Facebook Page: https://facebook.com/motivationtomove Facebook Group: https://dailyboostpodcast.com/facebook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices