Most of the people who read self help book never succeed ?

I agree with you Sumit, and I believe that self help is booming because it tends to make people feel better while reading, meanwhile the challenge is to apply!! Thx for sharing.

Hi,

I read a lot of self help books.. you clarify for me real important point..

Thank you very much,
David

very few ever really design their own vision of success .. they collect images of things that are symbolic of success .while never really identifying what they really want .

and most people don't really fail ..we all live in jails of our own making most of us wish only a slightly more comfortable cell while a few mannage to surround themselves with the trappings of success.

no one can give you freedom ..when given the option most people opt to stay in their cells and dream about freedom .. and ask permission to do this..justify why they do that..explain what they should do but never get around to doing ..then they look for applause or approval..

most people want to be safe ..but to be safe you have to give up an amount of freedom or all of it . they are looking for jobs to work with a much taken care of for them as possible ..

i am in a harsh mood right now because the AC is broken and it is hot and muggy ..

i read Dan Kennedy a lot ..and one of the things he said where the people who really need this information would never either seek it out or digest it .. while people already on the path .. may read one chapter in the middle of the book and get huge results ..

in todays world there is no real reason to read self help books ..self improvement is as easy as learning new skills watching videos on you tube ..

i have had to regain my health through learning to cook food that tastes good and is good for me .. how do i make stuffing without the boxxed stuff mash potatoe.. mant kinds of soups sauces ..salad dressing.. there is a you tube for that ..

and with 10$ in ingredients and an hour of time i can cook a meal for 4 people that would cost 70 bucks if you went out to eat the same quality ..

If everybody who bought a self help book implemented it then self help market may dry up...lol I have heard that a lot of the people who buy books never get past the second chapter......wow o.0

i am guilty of reading a lot of self-help book. thanks for the reminder though!

Personal development has been vital in my life and I would not even be here if it was not for it...

True, the majority of people that read personal development books never succeed BUT the people that succeed ARE readers.

Ever heard the expression "leaders are readers"?

Of course, reading and not doing gets you nowhere but the way I see it, reading (particularly in the morning and before going to bed) has provided me with the "fuel" to keep me focused on my goals (and doing the work).

Funny enough, one of the top earners in the industry claims that 80% of his daily "work" is actually personal development and 20% is actual focused work (and no, I did not get the numbers mixed up...)

As Jim rohn said: "work harder on you than in your job"

My biggest problem with learning anything in general is thinking ok I know this "new" book is repeating something I already know but there is that little tid bit of information that's not covered in my library. Now I need to learn that.

Sumit, everyone is into the next best shiny thing. Even with self help. The grass is greener on the other side type thing. I think it is finding something to believe in and you think may work for you. It is definitely doing the work that will make you go forward that is the hardest part. Most people want simple and easy

Really good advice , I was doing the same ...
Thanks , nice post

It is not that those who read these books don't act on it. People do try but face many obstacles like bad past programming, negative influence from media, friends, bills to pay and so on. So they need to read more and more books to "crowd out" the negative influences, nothing wrong with that at all.

It takes time to re-program one's mindset and meanwhile, reading more self help books can help keep us positive.

All valid points and the very reason I have been trying to go back to 'psycho cybernetics'. Here is a parable that may be relevant:

A boy asks the master as to why he is made to read the very many great books, even though he doesn't remember (or use) most of it. Master points the bamboo basket that was used to carry coal for a long time and says 'take that basket and fetch water back here'. The boy tries to fetch the water and walk up the hill but before few steps all the water is drained out. After repeating this few times, boy gives up and comes back with an empty basket.

Master says "just like this basket, your mind may not retain all the information just like this basket did not hold water, but see what that passing water has done to the otherwise coal ridden basket'".

With an awe in his eyes, student notices that the thick coal layered basket is now clean and glistening in the Sun. He thanks the master.

Reading and not applying will not get you anywhere, but reading only that you can implement may make you gather unnecessary layers of coal. So segregate your books into two - one for regular bath (as Zig Ziglar said) and one for drinking (that is applying).

Yes, drinking is more important but isn't bathing important too?

I have already told you I have no problem with people reading books ,I have to advice them to implement that stuff ,

I agree Sumit... at some point you've got to take action or nothing happens... it's really as simple as that.

I agree and disagree at the same time. The biggest question is how are you measuring success? Money, calmer person, inner peace?
However you are right that many just keep reading rather than implement. It's the subconscious measuring current state of comfort to be better than change as change may involve discomfort.
My current course I am working on to release in the near future is about just this problem. Putting all this information into action. Whether the action is making money, more success, happiness.
I came across this the other day as I finally stopped listening to my audio books and spent a few hours in the car thinking through action rather than more learning and it popped into my mind.
Remember knowledge is only potential power until used

Have a great day

Many don't see success right away because they aren't ready to receive it.

All of the knowledge they are gaining from reading self help books will benefit them at some future time once they set a defined goal and work toward its achievement.

We all read a self-help book, take a course or practice a self-help system/technique with the full intention of taking action and reap the benefits it offers in the form of more wealth, health, happiness and inner peace.

Why only a few people take action and benefit and others don't?

Because everything we seek in the form of wealth, health, happiness and inner peace, we already have within us in our belief system. Whatever we do in seeking help to rediscover it such as reading a book or taking a course or practicing a system/technique is only a tool. There is no magic in the tools, the real magic is within us in our belief system.

If our belief system is in line with our tool we are using, we take necessary action and succeed. If not we don't take action and fail.

So, if you are reading a lot of books, practicing a technique and still not making any progress, stop whatever you are doing and start to look within yourself and see if your crrent belief system is in line with whatever you want in your life.

I have spent years reading books and taking courses and practicing different systems and techniques but could not find success until I learned IST and leaned to look into my inner self that could transform our belief system. If you are in the same boat, I understand your pain, struggle and frustrations. Anyone who is interested in trying something different and unconventional can PM me for a free one on one session.

I am read a lot of about success books.but i am poor!

I think that a lot of self help books are going at it the wrong way...

They are trying to "teach" you how to better yourself instead of explaining what you are feeling and why you are feeling it.

Secret Entourage came out with a killer book on this. You should check it out if you want.
Secret Entourage Third Circle Theory | Secret Entourage

I have to admit to being a fan of self help style books but you have to actually implement the stuff you read not just read the book feel better for a bit then forget about it

Reading book can make a good mindset and make our mind creative .But Implementing the teachings of the books will give you results .

Sumit, I personally was guilty of that a really long time ago when I picked up my first self-help book in a bookstore. The biggest turning point for me in my life came when I started to find places for all these little tidbits to actually be applied.

In other words, theory is theory. But putting it into practical use is really a completely different thing.

Analogy wise, you could think about a soccer player and the average soccer fan who doesn't play it.

The soccer fan can read all about the soccer players, know the different types of kicks... But what separates the player from the fan is that the player knows the practical use.

Likewise, in my businesses, the biggest turning point was when I was able to place these self-help principles into work.

For example, Richard Koch had a very brilliant book - the 80/20 Principle. Knowing all of that is excellent, but it's just the theory. What I did was plug it into my efforts... I used the 80/20 in everything I did. I accelerated my growth much faster than I would have expected.

My advice to people who were like me, is to think of how to apply it into practical use. I don't like the phrase 'taking action', because it doesn't tell you to think of fitting theory into practical use.

Find out how it can be used. If it can't be used, the information is simply just not right for you at the current time. You can save it somewhere else, and review it later.

100% agreed. More and more, I keep catching myself falling into the trap of collecting and reading books, but not actually applying the principles and absorbing information in a way that is conducive towards my success and my goals.

HOWEVER, I have a plan that will allow me to overcome this. Anybody else can feel free to do what I'm doing, IMO this is what people should be doing first before diving into the self-help literature.



#1: Read the following books:

• How To Mark A Book, How To Be A Demanding Reader (essays by Mortimer Adler)
• How To Read A Book
• The Little Guide To Your Well-Read Life
• Evelyn Wood 7-Day Speed Reading Program OR Breakthrough Rapid Reading

If you want to break it down to the bare essentials, read the two underlined book. If you want to go really minimalist, read "How To Read A Book".

So why these ones? They will help you master the skill of intelligent reading, teaching you how to read various genres, how to determine if a book is worth reading or not, and how to adjust your reading speed depending on the material you are reading. The speed reading programs are included not only because of their comprehensive methods for practicing faster reading, but will also help you skim through things that don't require much more than a minute or two of your time.

Think about it: What's the point of reading all those success/finance/health/etc. books if you don't even know how to properly approach them in a manner that allows you to extract valuable information and put it into practice? It's all about taking one step backwards and two steps forward by working on the foundational skills of intelligent reading.


#2: Watch this video

I can't remember who posted this video, I saw it somewhere in the forums where people were discussing their top personal development books in an older thread. Either way, this 40-minute discussion is an amazing wake-up call as to why people will buy products but then refrain from fully utilizing them to their advantage. This is a more broader video that can apply to products in general (DVDs/software/books), but it is a great glimpse on the key factor that separates the achievers from the non-achievers.


#3: Pick a maximum of FIVE personal development books (or whatever your interest is, whether it's finance/health/time management/etc.), and have an exact order in which you will go through them, intelligently read them, take notes, and apply the insights on a daily basis.


Here's the step where you may have to do a lot of snooping around and do some meta work, unless you already clear about the few books that you are sure will improve your circumstances if the principles are correctly and consistently applied. If you really want, block out an entire day and go through as many blogs/reviews/forums as you can to get a good idea of what the 'best/timeless/most recommended' books are. If you really want to get a head start, I would say that one week is the absolute MAXIMUM you should be spending on this step. As an example, here are my 5 personal development books that I want to integrate into my life (in the following reading order):

• The Slight Edge
• The 10X Rule
• The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People
• How To Win Friends And Influence People
• Born To Win

My ground rule is that I cannot touch either of these books until I have fully absorbed the knowledge from the books in Step #1 and integrated the philosophy from Step #2 into my belief system. I also CANNOT skip between books, and must approach them one at a time until I have thoroughly read them and absorbed the necessary knowledge that is applicable to my current life situation.

I should note that I'm only a university student who's interested in better developing himself for the future regardless of where it will take me. While my interests are not in internet marketing, I still believe that personal development is an essential aspect of anybody's life and career. So for that reason I'm a subscriber and frequent reader to this specific fofurm.

Hell, you may even find that one or two books is all you really need. But the whole point of my post is to emphasize the benefits of developing the very basic foundations first, and then building the fortress from there.



**I hope this post will serve to help people currently struggling with this issue. I know that I have for a very long time and I am working right now to rid myself of information overload and analysis paralysis. I'm no success 'guru' and I haven't accomplished nearly as much as I should have in my life just yet, but I can do my best to offer my insights and share mistakes that I've made along my journey thus far. I look forward to discussing my opinions and ideas further with you guys! **

cjagodka is dead on the money here. Imperfect action is always better than perfect inaction.

yes, reading self help books is only the first step in achieving wealth. However, the people who read the self help books are definitely on the right track to achieving their dreams, i think it's about keeping on that track that is very important and no doubt that a person must APPLY the knowledge in the books that is also very important.

they say knowledge is power, but that's only half right, knowledge is not power, application of knowledge is power, maybe that's what the saying should be, maybe the stuff that is out there is really not helping at all.

One book that really does address this is think and grow rich by napoleon hill, although written the 40s, it's more than relevant, a lot of the stuff nowadays does not address action, because maybe if people actually take action to solve their problems, then there is no money to be made off people who need assistance.

I've heard a number of people use the statement, knowledge is not power, application of knowledge is power. And this is something that I agree with.

However, I think we should expand on this view. In order to bring the knowledge into our lives, we have to train it into our thinking and action. I think the reason we fail to apply what we learn is because books are about education, not training. We need both, education and training. If you could read a Zig Ziglar or Anthony Robbins book and then have that person follow you around, reminding you of the lesson and making you aware when you have failed to apply it. Then you are much more likely to succeed. And the book would succeed in helping you.

The key is that after we learn something, figure out where in our lives we most fail to apply this knowledge, and then practice applying it. Create a means to train these lessons into our lives.

This brings forward another problem with self help books. After reading them you may now be aware of 100 different lessons. Trying to train 100 different lessons into your life is a big ask for anyone.

We seem to gauge the value of a self help book on the quantity of new knowledge and awareness that it is able to offer us. But maybe that is precisely the problem. Maybe what would really help us, is if these books only offered us a little knowledge and then trained us to bring that little bit of knowledge into our life. But then maybe that wouldn't sell because we are all about quantity.

Final point. Learning something new, tends to be easy and it feels good. Whereas training, tends to be hard work and and uncomfortble.

It's because the secrets to success can't be found in reading self-help books. It's to be found in the quality of the actions we take each and every day based on what we read in those books.

This is very true, one should be implementing what they learn instead learning more and more without taking actions.

You make some great points. I think it is important to read but I that yes part of the problem is not applying the knowledge they are learning but really the bigger problem is what is going on on the inside. You can apply the work and do a lot of work for that matter and still get no results. Its not until you get to work on the inside well you start seeing changes and is why I feel people who read a lot of books don't succeed.

I've read a mountain of self-help books over the years. I don't read them any more. My opinion, based on long experience and observation, is that you don't find self confidence in the pages of a book.

There is one and only one way to gain confidence and that's to have successful experiences. I can't tell you how to do that because I haven't figured it out myself but it doesn't come from books.