I've been a bit disappointed in the responses to be honest. They're almost memes in and of themselves: therapy, drugs, tricks, maybe you're born with it (most aren't).

The good news is that you're normal. The bad news is that you're normal. And that really strikes at the heart of the situation. A fish is worst at explaining the concept "wet" because they're born and live in water. HN appears bad explaining lack of focus and self drive because most of us have been brought up in a culture that is almost specifically dominated with instilling such aspects in people. I don't know if it is by design, but it is incredibly effective as a social glue and at showing that culture.

Cultural reprogramming is, to put it mildly, difficult at best once you've spent 30 years in one, so I'm largely posting this on the chance that it introduces a new perspective and raises curiosity, not because I think you should necessarily do it, since most people are not interested in such extremes and quite rightly: try separating from your dominant and acculturated environment and you'll likely find a while host of other (arguably bigger) problems.

You've been born into and live in a culture that, almost from birth, teaches you to turn to quick wins, entertainment, external direction and external authority. You have now subsequently internalised that culture.

To start to fight it, you need to remove yourself from those cultural aspects that reinforce such, and put yourself in a culture/situation that reinforces the opposite.

About the clearest thing that reinforces the opposite is isolation and survival: learn to be comfortable in your own company, try spending some time away from others, learn about hiking and camping. If you can spend a few weeks almost without human contact and your cultures distractions, you're forced to start to find that locus of control within yourself and not others. Of course, the downside is that done poorly, this may also be a quick path to mental illness and isolation.

Also be aware that if it works, you'll no longer be a member of your current culture as well, this has downsides as well as upsides. But I can't pretend they're not there or downplay them. Talk to others who have experienced integration and then movement or rejection between cultures to understand these: you will no longer have a cultural home, and you cannot ever fully go back, even though part of you may always have a foot in both camps.

The other side of the coin, is recognizing and thinking those influences in your dominant culture that reinforce distraction, short term, and locus of control. Obviously, if you try the rather radical route of isolation/cultural reprogramming, these also can't be present or you'll just spend your entire time on them. So:

- no TV
- no computer games
- no news
- no HN
- no podcasts
- no classes or programs where someone else ticks you off or tells you what to do: schools/university
- no status

Many of your current techniques are bound to failure because you're essentially trying to use your cultures dominant phenomenon to overcome the very cultural phenomenon you're struggling with.

Lastly, only the most radical...borderline insane, would actually seriously try to do the whole thing. You can take positive little steps, by recognizing small steps at first. Aside from removing the negative, there are also positive things that or culture doesn't reinforce that you can introduce:

- sign up at a library and start reading long books

- take up meditation, walking, hiking, long distance and endurance sports

- listen to classical, not pop music. Attend some concerts :p

- try some status/authority busting exercises: sign up at a soup kitchen and learn that people you might otherwise have hidden from aren't bad: volunteer to help ex criminals. Expose yourself to different cultures and classes, travel. Find someone your culture and yourself hold in high regard and look to learn all the reasons that it's bullshit.

Hopefully I've given you some ideas and insight beings the normal HN feedback.