Selling Hope in an Age of Desperation

Mar 23 , 2025
By Ahmed T. Abdulkadir

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Visiting a bookstore, browsing an online marketplace, or walking through Addis Abeba's Abrehot Library recently, we may notice the overwhelming number of self-help books promising to fix our lives. Bookshops, street vendors, and online retailers alike offer titles urging readers to "think positively," "take control," and "unlock success." The abundance is not random. It mirrors our times, revealing shared anxieties such as poverty, insecurity, and uncertainty.

Over recent decades, the self-help industry has become a massive global business, encompassing books, seminars, online courses, and coaching. In 2008, the industry was valued at about 11 billion dollars annually. It is projected to balloon five times larger by 2027. Its popularity depends on the promise of equipping individuals with essential tools for personal growth, happiness, and success. But beneath its appealing exterior lies a darker reality.

The industry thrives by capitalising on vulnerability. Rarely do people seek self-help when their lives are going well; instead, they turn to these products in times of crisis, searching desperately for solutions. The business model depends on people's desire to change their circumstances, offering them a sense of control. In an era when personal worth is often measured by one’s ability to succeed individually, the belief that mindset alone can transform lives holds powerful appeal.

Nonetheless, while self-help provides hope, it also exploits this vulnerability.

Napoleon Hill's "Think & Grow Rich," first published in 1937, remains a bestseller, even though Hill himself had questionable business practices and lacked solid credentials. His formula promising prosperity without evidence established the template many still follow.

Research suggests that less than 20pc of self-help books rely on solid empirical evidence. Most are authored by individuals without qualifications in psychology or behavioural science. Such absence of scientific validation would trigger serious concerns in any other industry, yet the self-help sector remains unregulated, lacking quality control and accountability. Beyond questionable credentials, self-help can lead vulnerable people into other problematic industries.

Alternative medicine, fad diets, and multilevel marketing schemes (MLMs) target the same audience of those seeking transformation. Self-help primes individuals for exploitation by industries promising rapid change and wealth.

Many prominent self-help figures, from motivational speaker Tony Robbins to psychologist Jordan Peterson, have been linked to controversial products and industries. MLM companies frequently market self-help content, creating networks of cross-promotion. This pattern directs vulnerable consumers toward costly and often ineffective solutions. These offerings suggest that personal failure can be reversed simply through the next expensive seminar, book, or coaching session, establishing a financially profitable cycle for industry insiders.

At the core of widespread dissatisfaction, however, lie societal realities that cannot simply be wished away through individual "mindsets" or "paradigm shifts." Poverty, inadequate education, and limited healthcare access are fundamental causes of personal struggles for many. Self-help offers little meaningful help for these systemic problems, shifting responsibility onto individuals by suggesting personal effort alone guarantees success.

This "bootstrap mentality" implies anyone can overcome adversity through hard work, positive thinking, and discipline. Although personal responsibility is important, such a narrow mindset prevents recognising external barriers. Encouraging self-reliance alone overlooks collective social efforts needed to address deep-rooted societal issues.

When self-help strategies fail, the industry typically avoids accountability. If a recommended method does not yield results, the blame is shifted to individuals. They did not try hard enough, goes the circular reasoning. Sadly, this exacerbates feelings of inadequacy, reinforcing self-blame and encouraging further spending on self-help materials.

The industry tends to obscure the truth. Methods marketed by self-help experts most benefit those already enjoying power, privilege, and resources. For the majority, poverty and insecurity remain profound barriers that cannot simply be removed through attitude adjustments or mental strategies. By claiming universal effectiveness, self-help ignores these realities, presenting prosperity as achievable through individual effort alone, despite structural inequalities that limit genuine opportunities.

Self-help promotes a narrow definition of success, often centred around personal wealth, status, and individual happiness. Real prosperity, however, typically emerges from collective efforts and shared societal advancement. By prioritising individual achievement, the industry supports a worldview emphasising personal gain over broader social welfare. Ultimately, self-help fails to address the problems it claims to address. Rather, it reflects broader systemic issues, profiting from individuals' insecurities while lacking robust evidence to support its methods. It advances individualism at the expense of recognising broader economic and social dynamics contributing to personal struggles.

In today’s testing social landscape, self-help offers a seductive illusion of empowerment. Yet, true solutions to personal and societal challenges demand collaborative approaches and collective action. Effective change requires addressing fundamental issues such as economic inequality, educational access, and healthcare availability. Rather than placing the burden solely on the individual, progress relies on shared responsibility and community-driven solutions.

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PUBLISHED ON Mar 23, 2025 [ VOL 25 , NO 1299]

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