The self-help culture was once prominent. Those who you admired and looked up to relayed to you their secrets, and with that, the appropriate background motivational music lifted you, making you believe that, at that moment, there was nothing that would come your way. I was a subject (slightly skeptical) to this medium of motivation. But my slight skepticism was proven right eventually.

I was failing or lapsing; maybe crashing would be the best-suited word. I always looked to blame myself because I believed I had been given all the tools necessary to be who I wanted to be, but I couldn't make the best use of them.

That was a major reason why it was hard to see beyond the surface-level hype that was provided in such mediums. 

Once the fault is placed on the subject, he or she may not recognize that there might as well be faults in the systems.

We do have faults in ourselves, but that doesn't mean every solution put on the table is optimal or even sufficient.

One prominent issue with claims that emanate from motivational mediums is the subjectivity of various factors in play that made the hero reach the heights that they did. How much of it is biological—luck, network, money, friends, inherent wealth—and how much is the compilation of that? We can go on about how the subjectivity of one's experiences doesn't warrant an objective model of success.

I want to identify two forms of thought that you have probably come across. The first is against doing unfulfilled work, and the other is against the hedonistic nature we may find ourselves in.

It's commonly advised to either not swallow up an unfulfilling life or not be consumed by the cheap pleasures that can be unhealthy for one. I do understand the POV of both sides, but one without the other is like an unhealthy balance.

I believe these two principles, together, provide the key to a healthy life.

Most motivational content speaks to the immediate disposal of pleasure for your goals to be achieved, but in doing so, you ignore the hole the pleasure left behind.

Rather than complete eradication, we should focus more on replacing the pleasure that comes from superficial spikes with endeavors that are more genuine and in line with our nature.

For me, I have replaced early morning social media with reading, not because some entrepreneurs said so, but because I genuinely find joy in it. This has provided me with a high degree of satisfaction, causing me to feel more in touch with myself in a whole different space, away from cheap pleasures.

So, when you let go of dooming activities that seem to drag your soul, it doesn't mean that you leave that space empty; you should properly replace it with something that fulfills you. Engage in a life that replenishes you from day to day.

Here is an alternative to contemporary media. Replace your unfulfilling dreads and unnecessary pleasures with things that fulfill you, and you'll be in a better place for it.