The Politics of Well-Being

Hi Petr Yes, I thought about mentioning Napoleon ...

2012-02-16T02:32:42.168-08:00

Hi Petr

Yes, I thought about mentioning Napoleon Hill etc. Its a bit arbitrary to start a history with Dale Carnegie - there were 19th century self-help authors too, and 18th century (Benjamin Franklin). But I started with Carnegie because he shows a clear influence from ancient philosophy.

I haven't seen Robbins talk, but I think clearly hes a good speaker who can control a crowd well. Personally, I think he may be a bit of a phony, and I think he overhypes himself massively - his Wikipedia page tells me he's appeared in 15 films. So what! And the firewalking stunt, that's just a gimmick - anyone can walk over hot coals and not get burnt, as long as the walk is short enough. Anyway, I'd say he is a master of spectacle. Id like to interview him, to be honest, and see him close up, get a sense of his personality.

all best

Jules

Cheers. I'm also an Adam Curtis fan. Will chec...

2012-02-16T02:01:33.408-08:00

Cheers. I'm also an Adam Curtis fan. Will check this out.

Hallo Jules, thank you for this interesting post...

2012-02-16T00:38:04.184-08:00

Hallo Jules,

thank you for this interesting post. I have been thinking a lot about this topic in past months. Your analysis of self-help movement is quite accurate.
For me, self-help movement is mostly a dumbed-down hybrid of practical wisdom, philosophy of antiquity and rennaisanc and primitive christianity. It certainly has a strong religious aspect and its full of magical and wishful thinking. But apart from its traps and fallings, there are a lot of useful ideas. I just wish that people would turn to more sophisticated life guides, e.g. to hellenistic philosophy, or maybe to philosophy in general.

A few more unsorted ideas:
- I think it started even before D. Carnegie with Napoleon Hill´s The Law of Success (1925)

- I would like to hear your personal opinion on A. Robbins - I don´t know why, but I don´t like him, he seems to me hypocritical

- the main problem of the self-help field is money. I believe that this kind of thing shouldn´t be sold. Actually, theravada buddhism meditation retreats here (in the Czech Rep.) are free, you only pay for accomodation and food, but the teaching is free of charge and that is IMHO the right model. (the same we saw in philosophy vs. sophistry debate in ancient greece - and I am with the philosophers!)

Hi there Yes, time management, procrastination et...

2012-02-15T02:51:51.437-08:00

Hi there

Yes, time management, procrastination etc seems to be a big theme in self-help / coaching.

I haven't read it, but does Tim Ferriss' Four Hour Week emphasise freeing up time just to enjoy life?

A good book on that subject is Tom Hodgkinson's How to be Free.

All best

Jules

Hi, I do not know if my comment will be 100% relat...

2012-02-15T02:37:08.812-08:00

Hi,
I do not know if my comment will be 100% related to the post, but in any case it was triggered by it.
Time-management seems to be a favourite in self-help, either nested in a wider “package” or independently promoted. Well most of the “tricks” and mental reformulations that have to do with it, promise that you will have the time to do more business, more sales, therefore to ask for more money and promotion. There is seldom any reference about having time with your loved ones, doing your hobbies, developing yourself etc.

Thanks Techno-Mysic. I hadn't heard of Tony La...

2012-02-15T01:49:07.635-08:00

Thanks Techno-Mysic. I hadn't heard of Tony Lake, I will seek his books out.
All best
Jules

I gained an awful lot from self-help books when I ...

2012-02-14T09:58:03.382-08:00

I gained an awful lot from self-help books when I was young. I finally realised that books might actually be useful. I also started to realise how lucky I was that I lived in a society where people were free to write them. But I was also sad that I had to learn wisdom from a book rather than being taught it in person.

I was particularly influenced by a book written by Tony Lake for Sheldon Press. Unfortuately Lake died in 1994. His obituary in the Independent (can be found online) said he was working on a new type of people management when he died. I found out recently that Sheldon Press is a Christian imprint. There is no mention of religious things in any of the books I read by them.

I would stay away from the charlatans though. I agree that Hubbard never really expected to be taken seriously but Scientology has a dubious reputation. Can I say that without being sued by them?!?!

Great blog, Jules! Don't forget the Invisible...

2012-02-13T13:24:31.189-08:00

Great blog, Jules!

Don't forget the Invisible War:

http://invisiblewarmovie.com/

I've been trying to find a way to get out of m...

2012-02-12T16:29:41.899-08:00

I've been trying to find a way to get out of my sandstone tower and into the street with philosophy...
I was thinking of organising some performances of platonic dialogues at my university or on the street...
I really enjoyed your articles because they confronted some of the dangers/concerns that crop up...first of all, the insecurities that come with something like this (i.e. will anyone be interested? will it actually be accessible to anyone? or will it just be a bunch of philosophy eclectics entertaining themselves?) and secondly, am i trying to preach to people, or will I be interpreted as doing so? will the passers by think I'm just another 'ranting lunatic' from the socialist collective?
I've been studying philosophy for four years now and I am about to enter into post-graduate work...however, I am becoming increasingly frustrated with my inability to communicate my work to anyone outside of 'the club.' I'm studying at a (quite conservative) Australian university and we don't have anything like a speaker's corner...but I'd really like to set one up...
One of my other concerns is that the philosophy I am passionate about (namely, post-structuralism, feminism etc.) is difficult to communicate to the general public. First of all, because it conflicts with most people's expectations about what philosophy is..secondly, because the forms in which it is communicated (jargony, difficult language, avant-garde literatures etc.) are difficult to turn into immediately engaging street acts..
Have you kept up with your street philosophy? If so, I would love to hear more about it and maybe glean some advice?
Cheers, Emma.

Either get off the drug or use an over the counter...

2012-02-10T23:23:33.809-08:00

Either get off the drug or use an over the counter supplement like piracetam. Piracetam doesn't carry any adverse effects, addiction, or withdrawls like modafinil. To me it is a scam if it is going to hurt people and take their money. Disagree? Theres a lot more descriptive information about piracetam and it's uses @ www.smartdrugsforthought.com/what-is-piracetam or piracetam wikipedia. There is also information at erowid that tells you more about "Provigil" (modafinil) on wikipidea or erowid.org. Just don't over do the suggested amount if you are taking it and don't think it is some limitless drug because it isn't!

You're right, I wrote this a few years back, b...

2012-02-10T14:15:07.856-08:00

You're right, I wrote this a few years back, but she wasn't tortured, she was sexually assaulted. I've changed the content.

Thanks for reading the blog Chris, you have a charming manner. Do please come back.

You write: " Brigadier-General Cornum is hers...

2012-02-10T13:05:26.131-08:00

You write: "
Brigadier-General Cornum is herself an example of emotional resilience. She was captured and tortured during the first Iraq War, but seemed to have come through the experience..." However, there is no evidence of torture (do the research yourself!) so I suggest you don't spread lies. Not very good for well-being! chris1958@ntlworld.com

This idea that psychotherapy or analysis can't...

2012-02-10T09:59:45.290-08:00

This idea that psychotherapy or analysis can't actually help the patient is pervasive in the theory and, from what I can see, the practice of Lacanian analysis. It's terribly puritanical - a bit like the stern conceptual art injunction against beauty, with which it often seems to be kissing cousins - as Leader's dismissal of wellbeing shows. But while he rejects the idea as consumerist, he is, one assumes, still happy to accept a fee from the patients he refuses to help feel better.

I've been the patient of a Lacanian and it did me no good and I've known others who were similarly left high and dry. I've also experienced other disciplines and know how they can maieutically bring about epiphanies. Leader seems to be rubbishing this kind of thing as a result of a sort of arrogant category error, as if a philosophical deconstruction of absolute truth also invalidates little contingent truths, the kind where, for instance, you realise you were only driving yourself nuts about one thing because you didn't think you could deal with another. I think he's got a serious and important point regarding CBT, but he does that point no favours by countering with his own fanaticism.

This is a unique intra perspective. In the enterpr...

2012-02-08T18:54:43.294-08:00

This is a unique intra perspective. In the enterprise scene, companies make a ground edit to find out what does not work. It can be applied to the person on the said philosophy.

I am really thankful to the author of this post fo...

2012-02-08T18:52:41.103-08:00

I am really thankful to the author of this post for making this lovely and informative article live here for us. We really appreciate your effort. Keep up the good work.

Jules, I really enjoyed this post and threatened ...

2012-02-07T16:08:28.275-08:00

Jules,
I really enjoyed this post and threatened my wife that I was going to shit in the front yard to de-sensitize myself to public opinion. I look forward to more of your post, especially ones that involve the Cynics. Take care Michael

my blog, buster, my rules. i declare it the offici...

2012-02-06T07:20:32.541-08:00

my blog, buster, my rules. i declare it the official anthem!

no. it shouldn't.

2012-02-06T06:58:55.965-08:00

no. it shouldn't.

HAAAAhaaha... every one seems to be right in one;s...

2012-02-06T03:04:48.603-08:00

HAAAAhaaha... every one seems to be right in one;s own reason of believe and attachment... and obviously ego....

Things like, being drunk, eating meat, or having sex might be true.... but the way of writing has some dislike to some religions...... looks like the blogger has his/her individual agenda or an agenda of a group.....

be it right, keep it true, do not judge because you do not know....

I don`t speak on many sites that I come across but...

2012-02-05T22:31:40.324-08:00

I don`t speak on many sites that I come across but I felt I couldn’t pass up the opportunity with this one. Excellent post. I can only imagine what you will be writing in the future.

Love it! Keep the Good Work.

Thanks.

To really see beyond the economics of well-being y...

2012-02-05T20:11:36.515-08:00

To really see beyond the economics of well-being you really need to value human life. Some valuation can't be measured by numbers alone.

I think the mistake they are making is assuming th...

2012-02-05T00:52:29.577-08:00

I think the mistake they are making is assuming that somebody's happiness is any business of the government. Can the government make somebody happy? Becoming happy is a personal commitment and responsibility.

But then if bad mental health becomes a drain on society's resources I suppose they have to take an interest.

Anyway, nice blog. It turned up in my searches and I have subscribed to it.

Thick skinned as they are, politicians may have a ...

2012-02-04T03:42:47.462-08:00

Thick skinned as they are, politicians may have a thing or two to teach us about resilience.

I've been to a couple of events at The Idler a...

2012-02-03T07:46:53.960-08:00

I've been to a couple of events at The Idler and have a couple more lined up (and am taking advantage of the free sessions at Words Words Words @ Selfridge's). I just love The Idler - the idea of it, the venue itself, etc. It's also great that Tom always seems to be around at events and eager to talk to people. I'm keen to try an event at The School of Life as well - although disappointed to hear AdB is never there. Would be interesting to meet him!

So you're saying I should lower my dosage?

2012-02-03T07:45:22.353-08:00

So you're saying I should lower my dosage?