The Ethical Self-Help Author, #2
In yesterday’s post, I talked about the concrete impacts that self-help and spirituality authors have on their reader’s lives, including impacts to those readers’ physical and mental health.
Readers pick up self-help and spirituality books because they want to change their lives. As a self-help or spirituality author, you’re offering them a path to follow, and giving them hope that if they follow it, they will experience the benefits you describe.
The path you lay out for your readers might include:
-changing their diet
-changing their exercise routine
-trying a new treatment for a health condition, or stopping an existing one
-establishing a meditation practice
-trying out some other spiritual practice
-changing how they speak to others
-changing how they speak to themselves
-setting new boundaries
-changing how they spend their time
-ending a relationship or set of relationships
-starting a relationship or set of relationships
-adopting certain “rules” of life
Highly ethical self-help and spirituality authors take care to ensure that the path they lay out for readers is safe, helpful, and scientifically sound.
Is It Backed by Science?
In 2024, high quality research is easier to access than it’s ever been in all of human history. With a little training, every self-help and spirituality author can learn to read and understand the scientific literature surrounding their topic.
Whether you’re recommending jogging as an antidote to depression, or meditation as a way to develop focus, you’ll gain credibility with your readers if your claims are based on solid data rather than hunches.
Is it Nuanced?
Will the path you’re laying out work for anyone, under any circumstances? Or can you acknowledge the various ways in which a reader’s mileage may vary? Can you get out ahead of any potential problems the reader may encounter when they try to implement your suggestions, and help them troubleshoot?
Is it Harmless?
What’s the worst that could happen if a reader followed all the advice in your book? Could it potentially lead to a worsening of their problem? If so, can you build safeguards into your teachings, warning readers to slow down or even stop if they encounter certain pitfalls?
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By carefully considering the impact that your book will have on reader’s lives, you can extend true care for them—the hallmark of a highly ethical self-help and spirituality author.
Are you writing a self-help, psychology or spirituality book? Schedule a free 30-minute consultation with me, and we'll chat about ways to maximize your book's potential to change readers' lives.
