How did dreams, insecurities and the pursuit of meaning become part of a billion dollar industry?

How did dreams, insecurities and the pursuit of meaning become part of a billion dollar industry?

“Brain rot”, literally translated as “brain rot”, is the Oxford word for the year 2024. This expression, as stated, represents the deterioration of the mental state due to excessive consumption of low-quality content, especially online, that is, on socialm networks.

As explained by this prestigious university, the choice of the word of the year is a reflection of the collective mood and key themes that marked the past year. These very words become symbols of the years behind us, recording how we felt, talked and what happened to usblikovalo.

Is “brain rot” then, in an era where social networks and the digital world have become an indispensable part of everyday life, accurate reflection of the contemporary collective sget one?

Some 140 kilometers away, another, equally prestigious university – Cambridge, despite similar selection criteria, declared “manifesto” as its word of the year. This term refers to the use of techniques such as visualization and affirmations to imagine the realization of your desires, believing that this increases the chances of their andthreading.

The word “manifesto” became popular outside of self-help communities and social media, spreading into the mainstream media, especially after celebrities talked about how they “manifested” their success. This concept, which originates from a spiritual movement that is over 100 years old, gained particular momentum during the pandemic, and its popularity has continued to grow, especially nand Tiktok.

Thus, while some tell us that our mind is dying, on the other hand we get suggestions that the key to everything is to open it. Do these two terms, at first glance unrelated, actually depict the contrast of the contemporary moment? While endless amounts of shallow content are dumbing down and numbing us, at the same time there is a flourishing industry of self-help, motivational speeches and online programs that promise that with “the right technique” to take control of their ownm life.

From prophet to influencer: How to monetize the search for zand meaning?

Traditionally, the end of the year has always been a time of introspection and goal setting. However, this once personal and intimate process – today is part of a billion-dollar industry, one that promises success, progress and a “better version of yourself” through products and services that fuel our need for meaning and control. From goal planners to progress tracking apps and personalized coaching programs, ithe self-help industry relies on human need zand meaning.

The marketing of these products and services is carefully focused on the human need for control. In times of global uncertainty, brands sell not only tools, but also emotion – the hope that we can take the reins ofof life.

However, this is not a modern phenomenon. Back in ancient Greece, philosophers charged for their teachings on happiness and the meaning of life, while prophets and sorcerers offered “insight” into the future in exchange for valuable gifts. In the Middle Ages, the church sold indulgences—the forgiveness of sins in exchange for money—promising eternal peace for the soul. This principle of monetizing the human aspiration for a better tomorrow has persisted through the ages, changing withmo shapes.

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The same archetypal messages, only adapted to the age of algorithms, are still used today. Instead of healing elixirs, we now have courses, podcasts and apps. Instead of prophets, we have influencers and life coaches. The message is the same – you can do more, you are better than you think, but only with the right guide or the right one product.

The power of faith or the power of marchetinga?

Is there any truth to the fact that there is no such thing as a bad product, just bad marketing? This is exactly where the power of marketing lies – in the ability to recognize and articulate a need before we realize it ourselves. Good marketing doesn’t just sell a product, it sells a story, an identity and a promise. Even an average product can become desirable if it is presented as a solution to a deeper problem or a way to achieve something greater than ourselves. But where is the line between inspiration and manipulation?

When we buy a planner, we’re not just buying sheets of paper—we’re buying organization, productivity, and control over our time. When we choose a meditation app, we choose not only functionality, but peace, focus and the promise of better faithhe lives for himself.

Every affirmation, every planner and every course sells us a promise – that the solution to our problems is just one step away, just one click or just one payment away. But after that one step – there will always be another, then another and we will always be “almost there”, but will we stillwill you arrive?

Does the market profit from our desire for control and hope or perhaps rather from our fear and insecurity? Will we ever be good enough, or will we go to the “next level”, but only for a moment, before we are suggested that there is an even better version – a version that requires a new tool, a new service, a new guide? Is it a state of eternal striving upraWhat is the goal?

It’s no secret that a well-told story can sell almost anything – from an idea to a simple piece of lined paper. But where do I draw?about the border?

This is not necessarily a bad thing. Marketing that inspires, moves or helps solve real problems can be an extremely powerful tool. But when it turns into manipulation – when insecurities are deliberately deepened, and solutions are priced – then it ceases to be useful and becomesis harmful.

Creating the Illusion of Control: Our Selfnot even prison?

At its core, self-help industry marketing relies on a deep-rooted human need for a better life and meaning. This is both her strength and weakness. While it inspires us to be more ambitious, organized and persevering, it can also help us to be trapped in the endless pursuit of perfection, which, paradoxically, can never be achievedwill reach.

Why do we run away from imperfection so much? Why do we feel the need to have every aspect of our lives under control, planned to the smallest detail? Perhaps this is where the root of the problem lies – in the illusion that perfection and total control can bring peace. And perhaps the solution lies in the opposite approach: in accepting imperfection and vulnerability as an integral part of being human experiences.

Maybe this time we shouldn’t step into the new year with an endless list of goals and plans that will overwhelm usthe table overflows before we begin to realize them. What if we focused on living each day to the best of our ability, using what we have do we already have?

Real change rarely comes from big upheavals – it is built gradually, through small but consistent steps. If we improve even one small segment of our life every day, even by one percent, those small improvements can turn into significant results over time. We don’t have to become the best version of ourselves right away; it is enough to be just a little better than we are were yesterday.

In the end, meaning is not found at the bottom of some distant list of accomplished goals, but in the way we live each day. Perhaps the secret is to give ourselves permission to be both ambitious and vulnerable, both productive and spontaneous – to work on ourselves, but also to enjoy what we already are. If we take small steps forward every day, big change is just a question time.

Source: BIZLife Magazine/Marina Krak

Photo: Pixabay/Freepik/Canva/Diversifylens