Self-improvement might be making you miserable (here’s how).
I mentioned these two videos:🔗 If you don’t know what you want in 2026, start here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYLk8u8e_UA🔗 Video on “the self-criticism cycle”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCxuFdIPqJk💿 *Get my best practical ideas in your inbox (free)⇢*→ Sign up: https://www.muchelleb.com.au/newsletter-signup⛳️ Red Flags of Self-Improvement→ Encourages isolating yourself (e.g. go ghost for 6 months, cut off everyone, etc.)→ Over-focuses on “having discipline” and “taking action”, while ignoring emotional regulation, difficult days, different brains, flexibility, and letting go of self-criticism→ Creates an “us vs them” dynamic that breeds division or superiority (e.g. “people like us vs people like them”)→ Pushes rigid formulas, steps, or “right ways” of doing things without encouraging self-reflection or a personalised approach→ Turns relationships into hierarchies (e.g. “high-value vs low-value people”)→ Encourages self-rejection instead of self-acceptance→ Feeds your ego or makes you feel “better than” others (e.g. “when you start healing, you won’t relate to people anymore”)→ Encourages shame-based growth rather than curiosity-led growth→ Promotes constant optimisation without emphasising space for fun, rest, and relationships→ Pushes “more, more, more” instead of focusing on what’s actually effective (which is often less)→ Over-identifies you with your problems in an unhelpful way (leans heavily on labels instead of helping you understand and change what’s actually going on)☁️ *Join the Intention Community (it's replaced the Intention app)! ⇢*→ _Every month, two brand-new tools (meditations, worksheets, videos, etc) drop, usually built around a recent video - so that you can take what you’ve learned and do something with it._→ Join: https://intentioncommunity.circle.so/🪞 *Organise your Life with the Calm Productivity Notion Pack. ⇢*→ _"This notion pack is amazing!! I feel like it’s changing my life already and I’ve never been so impressed by a product." Alice Joyce_→ Get the pack: https://shop.muchelleb.com.au/products/the-calm-productivity-notion-pack💛 *If you liked this video, you'll probably like... ⇢*→ The Behaviour Change Playlist _(when you want to start a new habit or change)_ : https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLW3yd6NHmEVqXsWO6qv2AytfUtVeVf6f7🍧 *I post more of this kind of thing on Instagram ⇢*→ Follow me: http://instagram.com/muchelleb🎧 *Prefer chattier deep-dives on productivity and behaviour change? ⇢*→ I drop weekly chatty episodes on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2HqznNA2v9McYirvqmUVvO?si=024ac78820b24443💭 *Video timeline ⇢*00:00 Everyone is quitting self-improvement00:33 The first self-improvement trap02:08 The next trap03:40 Trap #304:56 Self-improvement trap #406:50 SOooo... What then?!07:20 Firstly, definitely stop doing this 08:22 And start doing this08:54 Please! do this 09:19 How I can be a better creator10:23 Creating responsibly12:40 How I want to create going forward🔗 Anything I mentioned ⇢🔗 If you don’t know what you want in 2026, start here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYLk8u8e_UA🔗 Video on “the self-criticism cycle”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCxuFdIPqJk🔗 Tim Ferris Blog Post on The Self Help Trap: https://tim.blog/2026/03/04/the-self-help-trap/
