Self help books?

I do have one or two self help books that I bought in the past. The contains do not entirely help me but there are many points written that do make me realize about something.

One of the book is talking about time management and I do actually find it interesting as I'm one of those who like to waste time sometimes then regret it

 

I think some of them might genuinely be trying to help, but in my opinion, most of them are the same old general concepts packaged in different ways. That's not to say that they are useless or irrelevant, but I think it's best to be as skeptical as possible whenever allowing an author a chance to change your perspective, in that you should be sure of how much you trust the person in giving you new ideas and whether or not he or she is qualified enough to speak on the topic. For example, I would not trust a politician's book if it were about morals because from past experience, I've found that a good amount of them don't really practice what they preach nor do they even believe in the laws they sometimes pass.

 

When I read a book titled Think and Grow rich I thought that by the time I had completed reading the book, I would have enough information to help me become rich. I was wrong in my assumption. Yeah I have to admit, the book had some interesting stories about people who took action and succeeded in their ventures but nowhere in the book will it tell you that some of these individuals were just lucky.

If you want inspiration then read a Self-Help book but if you really want something the only way to get it is by taking action. NOW.

 

It depends what you put in the self help book category. Do teach yourself language books count? They certainly help with self improvement but I'm not sure if they fall in the same category. Most self help books seem to be geared towards motivation etc, rather than specific topics.

 

Most people read the self help books that interest them most at the moment - like discipline, finance, saving tips etc - and written in a tone or by an author they are comfortable with. So it's easy to see why different people praise different books even when you see nothing of help in them. Anyway, in my opinion, most self help books are a call to action and contain the same old pieces of advice we get over and over since we are born

 

We get a lot of help through books basically most of the times its about if we get the right thing for us and that is what helps us the most because in a way stuff like

Log In

is a right source of going smoothly on it all.

 

I prefer the self help books that talk about law of attraction in a positive, every day way. That's why I prefer to be empowered by the connection with my inner being and like that connection with Source, such as the way Abraham-Hicks talks about.

 

I honestly think it's still up to the person who's reading the book. Like all things, you are in control of your life. I think self help book are just guides on self improvements and not exactly the life-changer itself. Self help books just gives you an idea of how to deal with hardships in life or gives you a perspective on whatever issues you're dealing with. If you're really determine to make a change in your life then you will follow what's written in the book religiously and not hold the book responsible for your improvement or lack thereof because you still are the one responsible for your own life.

 

I think there's a misconception of what a self-help book is...
People immediately think of something like "How to stop feeling depressed", and many time it can be much simpler things like time management, oral communication, etc...

Would you take tips on public speaking from an accomplished speaker, if he were to give them to you in person? Most likely yes.
Why would you not, if those tips were in a book?

And, most important, how smart is it to have the expection that just receiving these tips, either in person or through a book, is going to make you a good speaker? Not that smart, right?
It still takes practice, and actually applying whatever you read in the book...

I love them.

 

I used to hate reading self-help books. I would say, "Who is this person to advice such things?" Or, "It will be the same old advice, just re-worded to sound new." But this year, I found myself reading a lot of self-help books simply because I have found them helpful. I was surprised, too. It all depends on how you look at things.

 

I have seen tangible benefits from reading, and APPLYING the methods I have learned in them. The biggest misconception, as others have said, is that just reading the book will help...it takes determined, concerted action, implementing the ideas in the book to get results. I know this isn't a recommendation thread, but I still wanted to say, I had an incredible shift in my focus and life after reading the book "Leadership and Self-Deception. So much so, that I read it once per year and have for 6 years.

 

I like to read self help books on all kinds of topics. They are almost a guilty pleasure of mine. I think that, just like with anything else, you get out of self help books what you put into them. If you follow their advice and take action, you will see positive results.

 

I love reading fiction and I'm not that great a fan of self-help books. Acutally I dislike them. I read some and found them disgusting and hence could not even finish reading the books.

 

Yeah I've read one before, although it's not really a book it's more a guideline or article, it was really short, took me an hour to finish. It was about self discipline and when I first read it did help me improve although the charm fade away after just a few weeks and when I tried to re-read the book it doesn't work anymore, the energy and motivation it once had all disappeared. I tried reading real best sellers like Think and Grow Rich and some Brian Tracy materials but it just doesn't work for me anymore, maybe because I'm too much of a negative person to begin with or I'm just too rational.

 

I think that it depends on the self-help book that you read. If you read the ones that are supposed to be subjective and the results are dependent on the person's traits and will to succeed and their abilities, then of course it's not a guaranteed success, because they also have to have a natural aptitude for it and the determination to succeed, like a money making self help book. But the ones that are practical books, like how-to-build-something books then I guess if you follow the directions carefully then you will be successful with it.

 

I have a lot of self help books in my library and I've read every single one of them from the classics like Think and Grow Rich to Psycho cybernetics. Most of these self help books are just one time wonders, especially the motivational ones. They work only once and when the magic is gone it will never work again. Even if you reread the whole book the charm is gone which avalanches down to other motivational books that you will buy since most of them are wired the same as the other books. Although I would recommend Think and Grow Rich a lot.

As for other self help books like quitting addictions or being physically fit, I still haven't found one that really pushed me into doing what the book advices I do. I guess it's because I'm too lazy or I just don't have faith that it will work or maybe I wanted fast results either way self help books don't work for everyone or if they do it would just be a onetime wonder.

 

No they don't work. Not for me at least. I've read a lot of self help books, motivational books and all that stuff and somehow they only work for a certain period of time. If you lost that touch of motivation when you first read it and you try to revive it by rereading the book, it's not going to work. But these books do offer some solid advice so I still highly suggest you check them out.

 

I have read a few and many seem to be from the writer's experience and how they coped. Some is just plain old fashioned common sense, but for some people they can provide some sort of plan to follow.
The books aren't going to change your life, but can give you ideas on how to deal with things.
It really depends on your state of mind at the time. Motivational speakers attract people who want change and someone to guide and direct them and these books do the same.
Many of them are free online as the writers like to show how many downloads they have had.

 

I think self-help books can be helpful if you really put the effort into really doing what's being advised in them which can be difficult for me lol. I have several self-help books mostly related to business like how to start one ect... and I'm still having a hard time getting that off the ground. Relationship books are another story lol...