--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Perhaps you don’t need telling that…" description: "\"“Perhaps you don’t need telling that self-help books, the modern-day apotheosis of the quest for happiness, are among the things that fail to make us h..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/854/oliver-burkeman-14344_books_perhaps-you-don-t-need-telling-that-self_424773.png" --- # Perhaps you don’t need telling that self-help books, the… ![“Perhaps you don’t need telling that self-help books, the modern-day apotheosis of the quest for happiness, are among the things that fail to make us happy. But, for the record, research strongly suggests that they rarely much help. This is why, among themselves, some self-help publishers refer to…” quote by Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/854/oliver-burkeman-14344_books_perhaps-you-don-t-need-telling-that-self_424773.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/854/oliver-burkeman-14344_books_perhaps-you-don-t-need-telling-that-self_424773.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/854/oliver-burkeman-14344_books_perhaps-you-don-t-need-telling-that-self_424773.png) > ““Perhaps you don’t need telling that self-help books, the modern-day apotheosis of the quest for happiness, are among the things that fail to make us happy. But, for the record, research strongly suggests that they rarely much help. This is why, among themselves, some self-help publishers refer to the ‘eighteen-month rule’, which states that the person most likely to purchase any given self-help book is someone who, within the previous eighteen months, purchased a self-help book – one that evidently didn’t solve all their problems.”” [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Self-help books often promise happiness but rarely deliver; research shows they have limited effectiveness and may reinforce a cycle of seeking quick fixes. **In simple terms:** Self-help books seldom help achieve happiness. Key Takeaway Seek evidence‑based strategies over quick‑fix books. Themes happiness self‑help research expectations psychology Mood skeptical critical Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - personal development - mental health - reading habits Key Concepts Behavioral economics motivation cognitive bias Questions to Reflect On - Why do we keep buying self‑help books? - What alternative methods could replace them? A Different Perspective The promise of happiness can become a trap, leading to more consumption without real change. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Help Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/help-books-236665/) [Help Publishers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/help-publishers-3758456/) [Help Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/help-self-1489912/) [Months Purchased](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/months-purchased-3758457/) [Self help](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-help/) ## Related quotes > [The only real help is self-help. Anything else is just designed to get you to the point where you can help yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth/the-only-real-help-is-self-help-anything-else-is-just-designed-to-get/) [Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth/) > [The best way to help someone is to help them realize how they can help them self, because sometimes you might not always be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaze-olamiday/the-best-way-to-help-someone-is-to-help-them-realize-how-they-can/) [Blaze Olamiday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaze-olamiday/) > [Self help books are pointless. Here's something for you... Men are from Mars, women are from Venus, and self help books are from Uranus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-ferguson/self-help-books-are-pointless-here-s-something-for-you-men-are-from/) [Craig Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-ferguson/) > [I'm not a fan of self-help books - how can something be 'self-help' if the book itself is purportedly helping you?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/i-m-not-a-fan-of-self-help-books-how-can-something-be-self-help-if/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [Self-help and self-control are the essence of the American tradition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-d-roosevelt/self-help-and-self-control-are-the-essence-of-the-american-tradition/) [Franklin D. Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-d-roosevelt/) > [Ultimately the greatest help is self-help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-lee/ultimately-the-greatest-help-is-self-help/) [Bruce Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-lee/) > [Please help someone or your self not to kill themselves its not worth it everyone is worth living for and killing your self is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordan-brown/please-help-someone-or-your-self-not-to-kill-themselves-its-not-worth/) [Jordan Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordan-brown/) > [“Helping others, you will find that you help your-self. Ana Maria Frith, from: Limitless Change Your Life”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-m-frith/helping-others-you-will-find-that-you-help-your-self-ana-maria-frith/) [Ana M Frith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-m-frith/) > [You must accept the fact that there is no help but self-help. I cannot tell you how to gain freedom since freedom exists within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-lee/you-must-accept-the-fact-that-there-is-no-help-but-self-help-i-cannot/) [Bruce Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-lee/) > [Books simply help you to see what is already within your self. That's what enlightenment is all about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/books-simply-help-you-to-see-what-is-already-within-your-self-that-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I spended my entire time helping people but I can't help my self.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simphiwe-scientist-dumi/i-spended-my-entire-time-helping-people-but-i-can-t-help-my-self/) [Simphiwe Scientist Dumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simphiwe-scientist-dumi/) > [Let ask God to help us to self-control for one who lacks it, lacks his grace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-ask-god-to-help-us-to-self-control-for-one-who-lacks-it-lacks-his/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“There are millions of self-help books. They have different names, different catch-phrases, and different sounding strategies. In reality, though, self-help books are like different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-masi/there-are-millions-of-self-help-books-they-have-different-names/) [Chris Masi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-masi/) > [You need help, and that's what books are for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kami-garcia/you-need-help-and-that-s-what-books-are-for/) [Kami Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kami-garcia/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) ## More by Oliver Burkeman > [Ceaseless optimism about the future only makes for a greater shock when things go wrong; by fighting to maintain only positive beliefs about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/ceaseless-optimism-about-the-future-only-makes-for-a-greater-shock/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [“And here lies the essential between Stoicism and the modern-day 'cult of optimism.' For the Stoics, the ideal state of mind was tranquility, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/and-here-lies-the-essential-between-stoicism-and-the-modern-day-cult/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [“By the second day, the song lyrics had faded, but in their place came darker irritations. 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It wasn't reading books or watching YouTube talks about How To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/what-made-leonardo-da-vinci-thomas-edison-and-albert-einstein-such/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [Who says you need to wait until you 'feel like' doing something in order to start doing it? The problem, from this perspective, isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/who-says-you-need-to-wait-until-you-feel-like-doing-something-in/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [“Incremental theory’ people are different. Because they think of abilities as emerging through tackling challenges, the experience of failure has a completely different meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/incremental-theory-people-are-different-because-they-think-of/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [It is illuminating to note, here, how the daily rituals and working routines of prolific authors and artists - people who really do get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/it-is-illuminating-to-note-here-how-the-daily-rituals-and-working/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [“Pilots were not excused all these rigorous new checks, and when Woodie Menear’s turn came, the security screener expressed concern about the presence of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/pilots-were-not-excused-all-these-rigorous-new-checks-and-when-woodie/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [“...no matter how much success you may experience in life, your eventual story - no offence intended - will be one of failure. Your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/no-matter-how-much-success-you-may-experience-in-life-your-eventual/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [The routines of almost all famous writers, from Charles Darwin to John Grisham, similarly emphasise specific starting times, or number of hours worked, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/the-routines-of-almost-all-famous-writers-from-charles-darwin-to-john/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [“I was going to buy a copy of The Power of Positive Thinking, and then I thought, ‘What the hell good would that do?’…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/i-was-going-to-buy-a-copy-of-the-power-of-positive-thinking-and-then-2/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) [Explore all 47 Oliver Burkeman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) [Christopher K. Krebs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-k-krebs/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) [Markus Herz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-herz/) > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Perhaps you don’t need telling that self-help books, the modern-day apotheosis of the quest for happiness, are among the things that fail to make us happy. But, for the record, research strongly suggests that they rarely much help. 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