Why personal development doesn’t work (at least not long-term) is the question I keep coming back to—because I’m inside this industry too. This is my personal view of the personal development space, written to trigger critical thinking whenever you come into contact with coaching, mentoring, books, seminars, workshops, memberships and masterminds, online self-help courses, business and New Age gurus, and their promises.

Of course, there are original approaches, mentors, and programs that operate from truth — not from lack. But here we’re talking about the mainstream approach that dominates the space and that most people encounter first.

Why the mainstream personal development industry doesn’t work long-term

So, why personal development doesn’t work is simple: it’s not designed to lead you back to truth—it’s designed to keep you improving the persona.

It focuses on—and strengthens—the persona: the programmed, false part of us. The words say it themselves: personal development.

The mainstream industry keeps you in the illusion that you must constantly “work on yourself,” because supposedly something is wrong with you.

That’s why nothing in it works permanently.

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The mainstream personal development industry: lack + hypnotic desires

Most people think they lack motivation, discipline, consistency, willpower, the right mindset, a better body, more money… whatever.

In the mainstream space, the message stays the same: something is missing in you. The industry keeps you in “one more step.” And that’s exactly why nothing sticks long-term:

• Something is missing in you.
• You’re not there yet.
• You need one more step, one more method, strategy, one more program.

And that’s the first trap: it speaks to your inner sense of lack. Where there is a sense of lack, that’s fertile ground for hypnotic desires — desires meant to fill a void that can never be filled by illusion. You’ve probably heard personal development gurus encouraging you to “surrender to your desires,” without anyone questioning where those desires are even coming from.

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Why personal development doesn’t work long-term (symptoms of the loop)

Maybe this feels familiar:

• You get “charged up” for a short time after a video/book/seminar/mastermind — then you go back to the old you.
• You start strong, then stop abruptly and conclude “something is wrong with me.”
• You keep searching for the next solution because “there must be something else — I’m so close.”
• You feel confused, scattered, tired; constantly needing to fix yourself.
• At some point you even feel worse than before, because now you also carry guilt that nothing works.

This is exactly why personal development doesn’t work long-term: it gives you a temporary high, then sends you back to the same loop—now with more guilt.

So you’re left with one option: push “harder,” which leads you straight into burnout.

If you constantly have to push harder and fix yourself, the question isn’t what’s wrong with you — it’s what illusion you’re living in.

Limiting beliefs: the programs that keep you stuck

The mainstream industry counts on your limiting beliefs and loves to amplify them — but in a way you don’t notice — while it supposedly showers you with empowering words.

I believe most people who transmit that message aren’t even aware of what they’re actually transmitting. But what your subconscious hears between the lines — while your conscious mind doesn’t register it — sounds like this:

• “You’re not good enough.”
• “You lack discipline.”
• “You lack the right mindset.”
• “You’re not doing enough.”
• “Once you fix yourself, then you can go out into the world.”
• “If it’s not working, the problem is you.”

The premise of the whole game is: something is wrong with you.

That’s the second trap. They sell you solutions in an endless chain…

Why personal development doesn’t work: persona goals vs truth

The mainstream personal development industry is designed to focus on the persona — the programmed part of us, the mask, the role we play to “succeed.” Nothing works permanently because everything boils down to:

• Goals the persona wants (not your original being)
• Actions that are forced (not your natural flow)
• Standards and values that are someone else’s — not yours

That’s why the most successful offers are the ones promising fulfillment of hypnotic desires, usually related to:

• Appearance
• Money
• Status

These are the cornerstones of the illusion — and that’s why they’re also the cornerstones of the mainstream personal development industry.

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Social media + comparison: how the loop of mainstream personal development industry stays alive

Do you believe that not having what you want says something bad about you?

 Social media trains you to compare yourself compare yourself to millionaire gurus who generously share advice on how you can become one too. Algorithms bombard you from all sides, you don’t get to choose what shows up in your feed.

At first it might feel exciting to admire successful people living some glittery lifestyle… but under the surface, a feeling appears: I’m not good enough.

The illusion isn’t maintained by force — it’s maintained by hope that you’re “so close.”

One night when I almost bought the carrot again

I remember one evening two years ago (I got stuck deep into the night), when I was — yet again — tempted by another business education program. The offer was perfectly packaged. Seductive. It practically whispered: “This is exactly what you’re missing… the missing piece… this will solve the mystery.”

I’m scrolling in a trance, reading, imagining a “new me,” my hand moving toward purchase. And then I heard a voice — calm and clear:

“Do you really think you need one more program on the same topic? When will you finally understand that everything you need, you already have — inside you?”

In a second, the seductive loop burst like a soap bubble. Not because education has no value. But because in that moment I saw clearly: I wasn’t led by truth — I was led by hypnotic desires.

What does exiting the loop of mainstream personal development industry— the trance — look like?

Your mind gets clear. You stop buying other people’s dreams. Instead of feeding the illusion with your attention, you keep your energy—and use it to create.

You have energy that stays with you — so you can create with it. You have standards when you invest your money; you don’t fall for the facade and the noise. When someone sells you a story, you hear it — and you immediately know whether it’s truth or a well-packaged illusion.

Why personal development doesn’t work—and how to exit the loop?

I’m not saying you shouldn’t grow and live expansion. But instead of spinning in persona development, try shifting your focus to:

• Activating and cultivating the Zen mind — the neutral position of consciousness; without it, you can’t see you’re in an illusion.
• Restoring your life force energy and grounding
• Emotional development — the capacity to feel, understand, and integrate emotions instead of bypassing them with mindset
• Reprogramming inherited patterns, beliefs, and identities

You are not a problem to fix (you’re truth under layers)

You are not a “problem” that needs fixing.

Your truth that has been covered by layers of other people’s ideas about what you must be.

And when you stop feeding the illusion, you stop being an easy target.

Not because you’re “above it all,” but because you no longer negotiate with yourself and your Soul.

If you want to exit the hypnotic trance — practice and consistency are the answer, not empty promises

I’m not offering you hope, nor a “better version” of you.

I’m offering you a practice that brings you back to the only original you — without glitter, without hype, without promises that it will be easy.

Because exiting the illusion isn’t glamorous — it’s sobering, and it can be painful.

• Soul Athlete Method — the first gentle step — to start removing the false veils.

• Wuji Experience 1:1 — for the decisive ones who want tectonic change — when you know you’re at a turning point and you want guidance, a safe space for growth and depth.

Quantum hug,

Maja