Surely there are enough books that people have already gotten all the self-improvement they can use.  But if that is so, the market for these books should have dried up log ago.   So what’s missing?

The Alice (in Wonderland) principle: “I give myself such very good advice, but I very seldom follow it.”  Missing: Not good advice, but a way to get good use out of it.

The tube sock principle: Not only does one size fit all, but there’s no wrong way to put them on.  When you try to wear them, you find there’s no right way to put them on either.  Missing: A way for people to make the advice fit well enough to wear it.

The secret of the instruction manual:  If you want to keep a secret, put it in an instruction manual.  Missing: Something to help people turn abstract instruction into concrete actions.

The famous NIH rule (Not Invented Here).  We all know that nothing invented in the Elsewhere company can be as good as something invented in Our company. (Dogs and cats know this as the My Very Own Dead Mouse rule.)  Missing: A way for people to take ownership of plans. 

The YAP principle.  You Are the Problem; that’s why you need self-improvement.  No wonder we need another set of books on building self-esteem.  Missing: Something for people who don’t consider themselves walking bundles of inadequacy, something that encourages people to forget about fixing themselves and focus on fixing the real problem that’s out there. (An ounce of success is worth a pound of positive thinking.)