Some examples of questionable self-help gurus are:
John Gray
Author of the popular “Men are from Mars, women are from Venus.” He claims
to have a PhD, but it is from a school that has been identified as a diploma
mill. Gray earned himself a B.A. and M.A. in the Science of Creative Intelligence
from the Maharishi European
Research University
in Switzerland,
a now defunct school that had meditation as its primary course. He speaks of
memberships in this country’s major accrediting boards, which require a degree
from accredited institutions, which he does not have and the boards rely on the
honor system. Therefore, should someone change their life based on a person who
could not take the time to gain the proper credentials? Anyone who has
completed any level of education beyond high school has surpassed him. Good
marketing does not mean competency. It does not give credibility to a person
without character.
Barbara DeAngelis
She is the best-selling author, keynote speaker, and the queen of “How to
Make Love Work.” However, she is also the holder of a PhD from the same school
where John Gray received his: Columbia Pacific University. Which means the degree
is worthless.
She has also been married five times. John Gray was her third. How can she
tell how to make love work when she cannot seem to stay married?
Susan Powter
This spiky blond haired woman took the world by storm with, “Stop the
Insanity” in the 1990s. Her program was reasonable, and smart. Her body was a
testament of how she kept the weight off. The problem entered when she started
trying to tell people how to live their lives. She became an alcoholic. She
exchanged her food addiction for alcohol. Though she is sober, the question
remains, how can you take people to places you have never been?
These self-appointed gurus should remind readers of the old fable, "The
Emperor’s New Clothes."
This fable relates how swindlers convinced a ruler that they were weavers,
but only those fit for office could see their clothes.
At the end of the story, the emperor parades naked down the street, but the people
along the way for some time refuse to admit he has nothing on.