Self-help can be a great thing and lately, it has been my genre of choice. What could be better than attempting to better yourself and improving your lot in life, right?
But I have to admit, I feel like I am turning into a self-proclaimed SELF HELP JUNKIE. A junkie is someone that does something because it feels good, but that action doesn’t provide any benefit. Self-help junkies fool themselves into thinking that they’re helping themselves, but in reality, they’re just absorbing new information. They never actually put any of it into practice. And so I am a junkie.
See if these 6 clues peg you as a self-help junkie:
1. You have a library of self-help materials that would amaze your friends.
Many people enjoy reading self-help books, blogs and attending seminars, but have you applied what you’ve learned? Me? Kinda? Maybe? Maybe some. I own these books and I know there a more. Somewhere.
I heard a useful tactic is to spend 8 hours applying for every 1 hour you gather new information.
2. You’re constantly improving the little things but avoiding the larger issues.
Me toooooo!!!! Are you obsessed with improving some smaller facet of your life, but avoiding working on the areas that could really make a difference? For example, are you obsessed with increasing your reading speed, yet you consistently find that you can’t pay your bills on time? Me toooo!
I read somewhere, dealing with bigger items in your life can make a huge difference. The smaller things are really just distractions to avoid those bigger items.
3. Any self-help topic will do – even topics that aren’t relevant to your life.
See above list. Do you sleep great, but read about how to sleep even better? Would you read an article about how to have more self-confidence if you were already brimming with that quality?
4. Are you always certain that you just need one more book or program to put you over the top?
Many self-help junkies are convinced that they’re just inches from incredible success, and they only lack that final piece of the puzzle. But I do need one more book. Or two more…
As we both already know enough to get started. It’s time to begin putting your knowledge into practice.
5. Self-help is a pastime for you.
Using leisure time to digest self-help materials is certainly acceptable, but do you use it just as a filler activity? Do you really intend to implement the information in a useful way? Maybe?
6. You like to talk about self-help without acting on it.
This is just happening to me. But I talk about all the books. Do you enjoy discussing self-help with friends? Maybe you even interact with some self-help authors from time to time. This is the same issue as reading but not applying by the way.
So I (we) won’t let my information gathering fool me anymore into thinking that I’m doing something to improve my life. The gathering of information is just the first step. I’m going to apply the information so I can get something out it.
I read in one of the many self-help books, a great tip is to ask yourself at the end of each day, “If I lived this same day over and over, where would I end up in 5 years?” That’s the best way to know if you really had a productive day. So we will see.
Am I the only Self Help Junkie? Are you one too?
Mocha Girl Alysia