The Most Disappointing Self-Improvement Book I’ve Ever Read

Don’t waste your time.

“We are all here for some special reason. Stop being a prisoner of your past. Become the architect of your future.” ― Robin S. Sharma

If you’re even a little bit into self-improvement, you’ve probably heard about Robin Sharma’s work.

He is a Canadian writer and a bestselling author. He wrote over ten self-help books, including his most popular “The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari”. He is a famous keynote speaker who advises companies on employee motivation and conducts leadership training for big-ass corporations.

Sounds like a big deal to me.

So when I came across his “The 5 AM Club” book, I thought I’ll give it a chance. Normally, I’m skeptical about advice that claims that getting up early will change your life, but Sharma’s track record and credibility convinced me.

That was a big mistake. Here’s why.

Why This Book Is Full of Crap

Let’s start with a little bit of backstory. Robin Sharma has a background in law. He started his writing career when he was 25 and gained popularity after his second book was released in 1997. Since then, he quit his job as a lawyer and focused on writing, public speaking, and leadership consulting.

He is also, unfortunately, the most pretentious author I’ve ever read.

Sharma writes self-help and motivational books. All non-fiction books tend to locate on either side of the spectrum: scientific and real-life experience. The first category of books is written by someone with academic background. These books are well-researched and scientifically backed. The common problem with these books is they are written not with a reader in mind — it’s hard to apply this knowledge in real life.

The second category includes non-fiction books written by someone with real-life experience and knowledge that can be applied right away. Authors don’t necessarily have an academic background and can range from executives to coaches to CEOs. These books provide practical advice from the author’s life that isn’t backed by science or evidence.

Robin Sharma’s “The 5 AM Club” doesn’t fall into any category. The book doesn’t have any scientific background or research-backed claims, nor does it provide clear applicable advice. Here are the three problems I had with this book.

Problem #1: The Story

“What the heck?” — was my initial reaction when I read the first few pages.

Unlike most non-fiction books, “The 5 AM Club” conveys the idea through the lens of three fiction characters — a mentor, an entrepreneur, and an artist. The main messages are the lessons these characters learn from their life stories and adventures. Robin Sharma must have thought it was a great idea.

The problem with this storytelling is that it’s pretentious, annoying, and unreal. You don’t even believe it. The characters are bizarre, and the plot is like a second-rate Netflix movie. From the very first pages, it sounds like the book was written in some other mushroom reality.

I was hoping this joke with the characters would be over, but it wasn’t. It was the first red flag.

Problem #2: The Style

If I had to describe “The 5 AM Club” in three words, it would sound like this: terrible, arrogant, useless. But three words won’t be enough.

The style and the language Robin Sharma uses in the book makes it clear to the reader — Robin Sharma is confident he has it all figured out. He is the master of life. His advice will change anybody’s life.

Give me a break.

If you have something real to share, go ahead, but drop the bullshit. We are all here to grow. If you cut out the attitude in the book, there will be nothing left but a list of quotes we’ve heard before.

The way Sharma communicates aims to fascinate the reader with his knowledge, power, and experience. In reality, it does the opposite. If you didn’t get hooked on the first page, you won’t anymore.

It’s one of those black and white situations — you either love the book, or you hate it. There is no middle ground.

Problem #3: The Advice

“Okay, you didn’t like the story and the style, but what about the content”, you’d ask.

Unfortunately, it’s still nothing. And honestly, it’s full of crap.

At first sight, the book seems full of theories, schemes, and rules. In reality, it’s a bunch of quotes and superficial advice. A single ordinary message of the entire book gets stretched out to unimaginable lengths. The amount of concepts and methods is overwhelming and not applicable in real life. It’s one thing to read a book; it’s another — to implement the advice. And in this case, it’s hard to do so.

People who read self-help books look for straightforward recommendations. They want to improve their lives and change something. This book only gives a made-up story that should supposedly teach them something.

After I finished reading, the only thing on my mind was: “what do I do now?”. If you expect clear advice, Sharma’s “The 5 AM Club” won’t give it to you.

Final Words

You probably wonder: “If this book was so bad, why did you keep reading it?” I asked myself the same question. I don’t have a problem putting down the book I don’t like. There is too much great content to waste my time on the crappy one.

I was so fascinated by how bad this book was that I couldn’t stop reading it. I wanted to know if it could get any worse. It did.

I didn’t read any other Sharma’s books, and I’m not planning to. I consider it pragmatic. I’ve wasted enough time with “The 5 AM Club”, and I don’t want to waste more of it with Sharma’s work. The competition is too high to give second chances.

It was truly the worst and most disappointing book I’ve ever read. If you take away one thing from this rant, let it be this: in case you’re considering reading “The 5 AM Club” by Robin Sharma — don’t. Choose an alternative book — you’re better off spending your time elsewhere.

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