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Why The Self-Help Articles Aren’t Working & Why We Are Addicted To Them
I don’t need another blog post telling me how to make it big
My book shelves are filled with self-help books and my inbox with how to succeed articles. I read them for years on end and once in a while I take a few steps toward achieving some new goal. I’ll even get on a six-month kick and work on things consistently. This gives me the opportunity to brag about how I am following the steps I am supposed to and on the way to becoming the successful person they say I can be.
I don’t become that person. I don’t stay consistent in following their advice. I start and stop and change direction multiple times. The only thing I am consistent at is reading and listening to the self-help movement. Eventually I wonder if there is something more to this. Am I looking for something that has nothing to do with achieving success? I begin to look outside my inbox and discover there is something deeper going on than a 500 word blog post can touch.
What if our manic obsession over achievement has roots in dysfunction we were impacted by as a child or as a result of current anxiety. What if we are trying to earn something from someone and our consistent pursuit to do more is an attempt to please them? I wonder this as I work on my blog and brainstorm a…