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Hi! I’m Peter, CEO of Kickresume, and these career-related stories caught my attention this month — and might catch yours too.

Have you ever found yourself deep-diving into a rabbit hole of self-improvement videos that promise to turn your life around and help you find wealth, love, and eternal happiness?

Turns out, many people have. People are drawn to the idea of finding that magic switch to flip their lives around.

I know I’m not. I’ve always been suspicious of people who act like they’ve got all the life’s answers (blame my inborn Eastern European skepticism). 

It just doesn't sit right with me — the fact that there’s an entire industry built around the idea of self-improvement. 

And get this: it can actually do more harm than good. 

With self-improvement comes a lot of money. Just not for you.

Believe it or not, the self-improvement industry is booming, currently valued at an astonishing $41.2 billion and on track to double by 2032.

Here's a snapshot of where that money's going, according to Market Research:

• Self-help book industry is projected to reach $14 billion by 2025.

• Self-improvement apps are projected to grow to nearly $1 billion by 2027 (Calm app alone made an estimated $355 million in 2022).

• Motivational speakers make $1 billion per year combined.

• Personal coaching services are expected to reach around $6.25 billion this year.

That's a lot of money if you ask me. 

Of course, that by itself isn’t a problem, as long as it helps people become their better selves. But does it?

The advice is crap, but at least it comes with a price tag

Now that we've scoped out the industry as a whole, let’s zoom in on one of its most fascinating (for the lack of better words) players: life coaches.

I guess their job is to… teach us how to live our best lives? 

The thing is: the life coaching 'accreditation' is made up by the coaching industry. It's unregulated and requires no formal education, training or licensing. 

This allows virtually anyone to call themselves a life coach. 

Just the other day I saw this 26 year old influencer who built herself an audience of admirers on YouTube by documenting everything from relationships to health. 

Cue a lightbulb moment: she transforms into a life coach, offering 12-week group seminars that cost $3,000 per person. Yet, she holds no credentials or education in the life coach 'profession'.

(Maybe I've missed my calling?)

On a more serious note, what I find especially concerning is that many people turn to life coaches in moments of crisis. Often, what they really need is professional therapy, not just advice from someone who's decided they're good at giving life tips. 

How self-help turns into self-harm

But it's not just life coaches that are the problem.

Psychologists of the University of Montreal found that consumers of self-help books are more sensitive to stress and show more depressive symptoms than those who don't read such literature. 

Another study highlights a key issue with self-help: it's often laymen helping laymen. 

Because of that, the solutions described in self-help books may not take into account an individual’s complex symptoms, which a psychotherapist is trained to interpret. 

Another problem is, self-help content can be very addicting.

After consuming such content, you get a burst of motivation to transform your life for the better. You feel like you have accomplished something great. It gives a sense of superiority over others who aren't on the same journey of self-improvement. 

This feeling, actually fueled by a dopamine release, soon wears off, leading to a cycle where you seek out even more self-improvement content in search of that high.

Moreover, self-improvement often revolves around sets of habits/routines we need to adopt. Like waking up early, eating right, and sleeping on time as the key to success. 

But when these routines fail for some reason, suddenly, it's not just the routine that has failed, it feels like we've failed too. 

The thing is, the industry is reliant on you not being content in order for it to sustain itself. 

If self-improvement content truly led to us becoming the best versions of ourselves, we'd likely be tripping over enlightened individuals everywhere we turn.

But how many have you met lately? (I met zero, FYI)

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Random piece of career advice

Now, I can't promise this advice will turn your life around or help your love life, it can potentially help you boost your skills and get hired quicker. 

What am I talking about? Online courses, of course! 

Specifically, the top 5 online courses that offer exceptional value to employers. And most of them won’t even cost you a dime.

Let's have a look:

1.  Computer Science 101 (Stanford University via edX)

• Price: free (you can add graded exams and a shareable certificate for 200 USD)

• About: CS101 is a self-paced course that teaches the essential ideas of Computer Science for a zero-prior-experience audience. 

2.  Data, Models and Decisions in Business Analytics (Columbia University via edX) 

• Price: Free (optional upgrade for $249 if you want a certificate)

• About: This course will teach you how data scientists exercise statistical thinking in a variety of ways. You’ll learn more about designing data collection and deriving insights from visualizing data.

3.  Business Communications (The University of British Columbia via edX)

• Price: Free (optional upgrade for $150 if you want a certificate)

• About: This course will sharpen your writing, presentation, and interpersonal communication skills. 

4.  Fundamentals of Graphic Design (California Institute of the Arts via Coursera)

• Price: Free (you can also get a certificate with Coursera Plus 7-day free trial)

• About: This course will teach you the fundamental principles of graphic design. 

5.  Foundations of Project Management (Google via Coursera)

• Price: Free (you can also get a shareable certificate)

• About: You’ll discover foundational project management terminology and gain a deeper understanding of  the role and responsibilities of a project manager. 

You can also check 30+ more best online courses to take in 2024.

Thanks for sticking with me to the end. 

Since no great scroller should go unrewarded, here’s a 20% discount code for Kickresume Premium. 

Catch you later!

Peter