Success Predates the Steps to Success
To me, much of the self-help material and life changing formulas appear as a product of one who found success through the usual trial and error, then looked back on his life and recalled the events in a most orderly, idealistic fashion. The guru’s product then walks the subscriber through a series of logical steps not likely taken by the author himself. Imagine Columbus, after landing in America, claimed that to have been his plan all along. After his return, he could indeed provide useful information on how to get there, but a step-by-step guide would not accurately detail his initial journey.
One may argue, “But we can learn from another’s experience. Self-help materials are available so others can avoid the same pitfalls the writer had to face.” To this I agree. Still, those who follow such formulas will run into their own pitfalls, snags that even the author had not considered. It doesn’t mean the adherent necessarily followed the formula incorrectly, but met his own set of stumbling blocks–as all do. Here, the point is simply that the success itself generally predates the steps that allegedly lead to it.