Boredom is such a great motivator. The problem is kids are never bored anymore (for real; I'm sure they still say they are...)
I'm bored everyday at work and it never motivates me. Boredom drives me towards the easy things just to kill time. The outcome is usually waiting for the cause of boredom to end. (Work)
I myself do a bad job of being bored, even when freedom is provided. My reaction is reinforced due to how often I am compelled to deal with boredom without freedom.
I'd submit that it's boredom plus constraints that equal creativity. You're forced to think around your obstacles.
It's why bands and authors suck once they make it big. Once they have tons of time and money, output suffers and they stop delivering. The threat of starvation no longer forces them to make something that works on their broken keyboard.