[Trumpet63]

Pfff, not even gonna read past the OP -- dude, I feel you. I get a lot of A's in college, I have a 3.85 right now, but I always do the least work possible to get that A, and more than once a professor has had to make an exception for me to give me time to find motivation.

I think the scary thing is, there's no way anything is getting done unless YOU do it. And this kind of thing always happens to smart people. We think that we are entitled to an easier path in life because we have more skill, more talent, more potential... the truth is, all of that won't do a thing for you unless you can act like a regular adult and deal with the responsibilities that YOU have set upon YOURSELF.

It's all about discipline, and part of me wishes I was born into a culture where that was important, and taught from a young age, but that was not the case. Most of the time I don't even brush my teeth every day.

If I had to suggest a cause to this behavior, which I'm sure is more common than you think, I'd say it's lack of self identity. In which case, a good job helps with that, along with a group of supportive friends, and people who accept you for who you are, and are more than willing to call you on your bullshit when the time comes around. No one has to get through life alone after all... in fact, any successful person will tell you that they had a mentor at critical point in their life, so there's no shame in it. You just gotta believe it will get better, stay diligent, and take it one step at a time.