“The Spirit of self-help is the root of all genuine growth in an individual” — Samuel Smiles.
The avid desire to improve yourself is what makes humans, human. From time immemorial, men have strived hard to improve themselves and their surroundings and this very inherent desire to improve led to human evolution.
In this age of technological advancements and fierce competition, if you cannot help yourself you may be left far behind. So, whether it is climbing the career graph, finding your personal peace, or developing soulful intimate relationships, the motivation to help yourself grow and prosper is incredibly significant.
The latest cult of self-improvement
In the last few years, the self-help industry has seen multifold growth. Earlier people used to rely on religious gurus and successful elders in the family for sane advice on personal development. But with the surge in self-help books and the adaptation of these books into audiobooks, podcasts, and audio dramas the reliance of improvement has shifted to self-help.
There are more than 4.5 million posts with self-help or personal development hashtags and TikTok alone has more than 8 billion views on self-help content. These figures provide enough evidence of the trend and cult of the self-help genre. Even after 80 years of its publishing Dale Carneige’s ‘How to Win Friends and Influence People’ is topping the bestseller charts. The book is available as a popular audio drama also. More and more youngsters are looking for ways to help themselves excel in all walks of their lives.
The Self-Help Market
The global Self Help sector is presently a multi-billion-dollar sector and is amongst the fastest-growing sectors. The 2020 pandemic gave a much needed thrust to the industry. During the lockdown, the world was looking for ways to find control over things around, and suddenly self-help was the new mantra. The internet was booming with content that would motivate people and give profound advice on developing life skills, personal development, work-life balance, the secret to success, and everything and anything under the sun that you seek for your personal growth.
As per a recent study, self-help books are the most sold books globally, there is a surge in self-help audio books also. From Robin Sharma’s ‘The Monk who sold his Ferrari’, to Rhonda Byrn’s ‘The Secret’, every book has an audiobook to it.
Here is a breakdown of the Global Self Help market:
According to a Forbes report, ₹1,200 crore worth of English Self-improvement books are sold every year in India, and the overall market size of the self-help genre is ₹180 crores, which includes books, audiobooks, podcasts, and audio dramas.
The report also suggests that on average around 95 lakh self-books are sold annually in India. The market is expected to be doubled by 2027.
Why people enjoy Self Help literature
1. The Idea of Self-awareness
The self-help industry thrives on the basic concept that you should be aware of yourself, know where you want to reach in life, and what the real purpose is in your life. They market the thought that if you are aware of yourself, and identify your strengths and weaknesses, then you would be able to lead a truthful and fulfilling life. You would be able to achieve success early in your career.
Since more and more people are hunting for quick fixes to everyday life problems, self-help content is their solace. People enjoy reading these books because they are not just motivating and inspiring people but provide a great time pass and work as a mode of entertainment for them.
2. Entertainment Clubbed with Learning
The advent of TikTok or the reel culture has made this even more engaging and entertaining. But in case you are looking for a screen-free entertainment clubbed with knowledge and learning then audiobooks, podcasts, or audio dramas based on self-help books could be your mode of regalement.
3. Increased Focus on Personal Development
Personal development is a glimmer of hope in these highly competitive times and in this era of hustle culture. Where it is not enough to just have a degree for professional success. You need to possess exceptional leadership qualities and excellent communication skills. As a team player, you should be a master of all from sales to marketing and from copywriting to data analytics.
This increased focus on personal development is the reason behind the inclination toward the self-help genre. Gen Y doesn’t mind talking about mental and emotional well-being publicly and they find self-help content to be more useful than reading fiction-based books on Netflix fantasies. There is a surge in the number of people who want to harness the potential of soft skill development in their personal and professional lives.
Hence Lifestyle expenses aren’t just limited to shopping, dining, and traveling, there is this recent trend of personality development and self-awareness where the millennial does not mind spending.
Going beyond Self-Help Books
Social media and OTT platforms have a reach beyond our measure, the potential reach of a single recorded video could be millions of views. Considering the endless potential of these platforms, more and more self- gurus are moving to these platforms and converting self-improvement books into podcasts, reels, audiobooks, and recently into audio dramas.
Now this content has unparalleled access to billions of users, irrespective of their demography, and there is something for everyone over the internet. Not only internationally acclaimed podcasts but vernacular audio drama on the same topic will also resonate with you.
The easy access to self-help content has led to its popularity and the popularity in turn has led to several versions of the content. So, if you are too busy to read Atomic Habits by James Clear then you can go for a podcast of the same book or maybe listen to an audio rendition of the book or if you want to add some entertainment to your knowledge you can subscribe to Habits an audio drama based on the same book.
The latest self-help gurus aren’t just limited to self-help books, but there are retreats, seminars, workshops, etc. that they use to promote the idea of self-help.
Corporates are also focusing on employee well-being and employee engagement and hence they have specialized corporate training to boost the morale of their employees and motivate them to give their best in their professions.
Self-Help with Audio Dramas
The latest addition to the self-help genre is Audio Dramas, they are highly popular with people in tier 2 and tier 3 cities. Audio Dramas are screen-free entertainment on the go and hence loved by professionals who have long commuting hours.
Headfone, an audio drama platform, has several wonderful dramas in the self-help genre. The ease of use of the Headfone app and the versatility of these self-help audio dramas have made them widely popular. In a very short span of time, this genre has acquired more than 30k subscribers for Audio dramas like
❖ Mindset — The importance of a growth mindset over a fixed mindset.
❖ Habits — How small changes in your habits can help you bring measurable positive changes in life.
❖ How to Become Rich — Simple tips and tricks to become rich.
❖ Introvert & Extrovert — The dynamics and personality of various people and how the social conditions around us affect the behaviors of introverts and extroverts.
❖ How to Influence — The art of influencing people and making friends.
❖ How to lose weight — Practical strategies and a fresh perspective on achieving sustainable, long-term weight loss.
❖ How to be smart at Work — Practical strategies to cultivate deep work and achieve higher productivity and fulfilment.
All these audio dramas have combined core concepts of self-help with practical day-to-day examples to give a complete infotainment package to their audience.
So next time when you do not have enough time to read a book on personal improvement just log in to Headfone and enjoy a self-help drama. That is what we call learning clubbed with 100% entertainment.
