Have You Heard It All Before?
Self help has been packaged and repackaged as self improvement, personal development, life improvement and many more incarnations.
The fact is self help is really about using the help of others to improve and help yourself, but does it work or is it just a "sounds good" crock?
The problem is that many so called "guru's" in the self help community peddle nothing but easy answers and positive thinking hocus pocus, without being honest or in some cases being downright unscrupulous.
These representatives of self help ultimately let everyone down, because in the end hard work beats all others inputs, but that's very rarely what people want to hear and you have to give people what they want to hear...don't you?
Truth, Improvement And A Dose Of Reality
The truth is that everyone can change to some degree, I doubt anyone would argue with that, but there is a veritable myriad of misinformation out there, with thousands of people who know nothing about serious personal development, who write their blogs with information that is little more than guessing what "works" - Even worse they very rarely ever practice what they preach.
There are certain truths about the improvement of ones' self that are set in stone. Effort is the cornerstone of change and if you believe that you can achieve anything of value and consequence without the application of some degree of serious input then you will not only fail but you will learn the biggest reality about accomplishment in the process.
Reality is that winners put in the hard yards - Losers look for easy answers. That's it.
You simply can't escape this truth, but once you come to terms with it...things can become exciting.
The Secret Did Many People An Injustice
The secret or the "law of attraction" confused many people. Everyone now knows someone who implicitly believes that if you focus and want something hard enough - You will get it as the universe heeds your deepest desires.
Unfortunately, these people we know that live by the secret are some of the poorest, unhealthiest underachievers around, so why is that so? - Effort is scary
The secret made millions of people think that if you close your eyes and wish - You get it. It just doesn't work like that. There is nothing inherently wrong with concentrating on the things you want, but not taking the physical step to make success a reality is just...well, it's a little naive to say the least.
I'm not saying that the law of attraction doesn't have a place in this world, because focusing on what you want is an essential spark in the machination of success, but to think that no effort will be required is to miss the point completely.
Positivity Is Essential, But Negative Hard Workers Still Win
Smile - It's contagious. Being happy and positive is wonderful and self help gurus everywhere inform you it is essential (which it is to a degree), but the fact remains that there are many negative people who succeed despite the fact that they are not a beacon of positivity, but because they work hard and understand the value of effort.
The lesson to be learned here is that if you really want to improve yourself, you must have the complete understanding that effort is the ultimate prerequisite for success.
Effort + Good Advice + Positive Mindset = 2 Thumbs Up
So, you know that nothing comes easy and you're o.k with that, but the problem you have is - Where can I find the right tools and information to assist my personal efforts?
There are many decent resources that can give you advice on various changes you wish to make. Many people want to increase their self confidence and feel better about themselves, this is one of the main things that self help deals with, but there is one website that focuses on the 4 fundamental areas of improvement, including Intelligence, Wealth, Happiness and Health.
Many people forget the IQ part, but this is an excellent way to boost your confidence and overall happiness as you learn to remember things with greater ease and take on new information with hunger and excitement.
The Solution Website offers honest advice and while it may at time not always be what you want to hear, it is offered in integrity which is trustworthy and reliable.
In Conclusion - Is Self Help Garbage?
No, not all of it and whilst the idea of helping yourself by using the knowledge of others may seem contradictory, the fact remains that the work to improve yourself must be done by you.
There is some really great advice out there and the truth is many people just don't have the tools to improve their situation, so good, solid information is a welcome addition to their personal development efforts.
Learn to spot the garbage from the good stuff and you'll set yourself in good stead to change your life in an honest and meaningful way, without hype or easy answers.