The Self-Improvement Lie: Uncovering the Hidden Motivations

Watch Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swOqwhcEtDc

The obsession with self-improvement isn’t just a personal journey — it’s a consequence of the economic system we live under: Neoliberalism.

From hustle culture to self-help podcasts — I break down how market-fundamentalist thinking has infiltrated not only our institutions, but our minds. This mindset shift hasn’t just shaped our economy and our sense of self — it has helped today’s billionaires build their empires, while the rest of us compete just to keep up. Along the way, I’ll introduce key figures behind this ideology, like Margaret Thatcher, Ronald Reagan, and economist Milton Friedman.

Sources: https://docs.google.com/document/d/181elh6tOgYXiXRrACKlXjs3xB8SpVkuVjwmT8x6j_HI/edit?tab=t.0

Make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss Part 2 of this series, where we’ll look at how neoliberal think tanks rose to power — and how their propaganda reshaped society.

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Timestamps:

00:00 Intro
02:26 The political and economic theory behind Neoliberalism
04:00 Milton Friedman: Human motivation is based on greed
06:35 Neoliberal Ideology & the Nobel Prize
08:16 Wealth Inequality as a consequence of Neoliberalism
09:26 The political landscape that gave rise to Neoliberalism: Thatcher and Reagan
12:30 Neoliberalism & Self-Improvement: The economisation of life
15:47 Neoliberalism & Loneliness
17:14 The Entrepreneur of the Self & Self-Commodification
19:35 Conclusion