Twelve Steps for Personal Development Addicts

Written by Lyman Reed
Posted: August 29, 2007

Here’s a little bit of humor for today. :)

Twelve Steps for Personal Development Addicts

1. We admitted that we were powerless over the latest program offered by Tony Robbins – that our lives had become unmanageable (but maybe GTD will help!).

2. Came to believe that if the book we read last week wasn’t working, maybe if I buy another one, it will!

3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of Dr. Phil.

4. Made a searching and fearless inventory of our local or virtual bookstore’s self-help section.

5. Humbly admitted to no one, especially not ourselves, that we weren’t really working on any of this stuff, just thinking about it and not taking any action.

6. Were entirely ready to have the latest guru remove all of our defects of character.

7. Humbly asked a different guru to remove our shortcomings (because that last one we tried didn’t help much).

8. Made a list of all of the books, CDs, and online courses that we don’t yet own, and became willing to purchase them all.

9. Made direct purchases of all of those books, CDs, and online courses, except when to do so would… naw, never mind, we’ll just buy ‘em no matter what.

10. Continued to be on the lookout for the latest books, CDs, and online courses, and pre-ordered them whenever possible.

11. Sought through Google and Yahoo to stay up to date with the latest personal development blogs, looking only for quick and easy solutions, and rejecting anything that seems like it might take work.

12. [I've already moved on to something else.]

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{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }

Mike August 29, 2007 at 2:14 pm

Lyman,

An instant classic! I had to link to it!

Mike

Lyman Reed August 29, 2007 at 2:37 pm

Thanks, Mike :) .

Aaron M. Potts August 29, 2007 at 4:14 pm

HAHAHA! Good stuff, Lyman!

I mean, not that I resemble any of these remarks or anything… ;) ~

Priscilla Palmer August 29, 2007 at 5:21 pm

Yep! That sounds like me. Thanks for making me laugh.

RIck Cockrum August 29, 2007 at 6:07 pm

LOL! :)

Excellent, Lyman.

#4 is my downfall. Fortunately, I usually come away empty handed. “How many books are you reading?” “Three.” “Put down the book, Rick.”

Lorraine Cohen August 29, 2007 at 6:45 pm

Thanks for the chuckle Lyman,

While the original twelve steps have made a huge difference in many people’s live, introducing humor really helps to take some of the seriouness out of our day. We really do need to lighten up. Perhaps if we did, we might not be such addicts! haha

Excuse me, gotta order another book.

Cheers,
Lorraine

Lyman Reed August 29, 2007 at 7:04 pm

Wow, thanks for all of the positive feedback, gals and guys.

Aaron and Priscilla: Of course, I don’t resemble any of these either… not that these came from experience or anything… ;)

Rick: Double LOL! I just mentioned in a comment over on Spooky Action that I felt like I grew more the first time that I walked out of a Barnes and Noble without a book under my arm than any of the times that I actually bought something. I love it: “Put down the book, Rick.” :)

Lorraine: Yep, lightening up can really be key, no matter what the subject. From Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions:

Rule #62: “Don’t take yourself too damn seriously.”

Lorraine Cohen August 29, 2007 at 7:09 pm

Yup, great rule Lyman

What would we do without all the drama?

Donna Cutting August 30, 2007 at 12:49 pm

Hilarious!! And so, so true. Very creative…a terrific post.

Warmly,
Donna Cutting
aka Gal Morale

Lyman Reed August 30, 2007 at 12:55 pm

Thanks, Donna! And welcome! :)

Nneka | Spirituality Blog September 4, 2007 at 7:13 pm

Thunderous applause! That was hilarious :-)

Lyman Reed September 5, 2007 at 3:58 am

Thanks, Nneka! :)

Alvin September 9, 2007 at 8:42 pm

So funny because it’s spot-on true!

Lyman Reed September 10, 2007 at 10:02 pm

I’m glad you liked it, Alvin!

Patricia - Spiritual Journey Of A Lightworker September 15, 2007 at 1:35 pm

Lyman, I will definitely have to subscribe to your site when I get back from my India trip. This was hilarious and so right on. I see myself and lots of my friends doing most of those things. My last trip to India in 1999, my lesson was to turn away from the outer gurus and go inward to my own inner teacher. Still don’t like doing that. Why are we so willing to trust the insights of ours rather than listening to our own inner teacher? I am learning to trust myself and my own inner voice. Have a glorious day.

Lyman Reed September 15, 2007 at 6:12 pm

Thanks, Patricia… I see myself doing this stuff constantly :) . My guess is that it comes from our upbringing, where we learn to never trust ourselves, and to always look to an authority figure for guidance. But the where it came from doesn’t matter as much as the knowledge that we now know that we can look within for the answers.

I hope you have a fantastic time in India!

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