Are self-help books a waste of time?

Quick answer

The claim: self-improvement books are a huge waste of time. Same advice, padded out, read for the feeling of progress. We think the problem is usually how they're read.

What 125x is: 125x is a web app at 125x.app. You connect your YouTube subscriptions, and it gives you a feed of the latest videos from the channels you follow, each with a summary: a verdict, the 5 key takeaways, and the spoiler, plus Actionable and Lessons tabs with more tips. You read that and decide what's actually worth opening.

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Where the claim is right

Many repeat the same few ideas. See padded nonfiction books.
Reading one after another can stand in for changing anything.
Big promises often outrun the evidence.

Where it goes too far

One good idea, applied, can be worth the whole book.
Some are written by researchers and cite their work.
A book can come at the right moment.

Read them better

Pick a book for a specific problem you have now.
Pull out one idea and try it for a few weeks.
Don't start the next one until you've tried something.
See book takeaways into action.

FAQ: questions people ask

Are self-help books worth reading?

They can be when you pick one for a specific problem and apply an idea from it.

Why do self-help books repeat themselves?

Many stretch one core idea to book length.

How do I get more from self-help books?

Choose one idea, practice it for a few weeks, then move on.