Review of Tony Robbins: I Am Not Your Guru (2016) by Jordy M — 14 Jul 2016

Given that I am an author, public speaker, and self-help guru in my own right (though not nearly on Robbins' level of success), I felt compelled to watch this documentary about the man who many consider the world's #1 self-improvement expert.

Without question, the portion that resonated with me the most was the segment involving the woman named "Hali." Hali was a woman who forced herself to believe that she was in a 'happy' and 'satisfying' relationship with her new boyfriend, but Robbins - in just a matter of minutes - made her realize she was actually involved in a very self-serving, dishonest, disingenuous, manipulative romantic relationship. The segment ends with her calling her boyfriend during the seminar and breaking up with him in order to "free him" on Robbins' recommendation. I've had similar conversations with my own male and female clients. A close second was the seminar interaction with the weak Beta male named "Lance." Robbins gives him a message about masculinity and manhood (The Lion vs. Sheep story was hilarious).

The other thing I love about Robbins' speaking style is that he very frequently uses profanity and sexually provocative language (as do I in most of my workshops). Robbins does not apologize for this at all, making the assertion that 'taboo language' grabs people's attention quicker than basic, conventional language and leaves them thinking about the lessons he is teaching.

Overall, it is definitely worth watching (free on Netflix). My minor criticism would echo the criticisms already expressed: The documentary plays more like a lengthy, feature-film version of an 'infomercial' more so than a true, objective documentary that truly explores the strengths and weaknesses of Robbins as a human being and a multi-millionaire 'expert' with no true credentials (such as a Ph.D in psychology), which I'm sure causes some of his critics to view him as a more of 'pseudo-psychologist' than someone who warrants $5,000 per seminar. The doc does not examine what challenges and obstacles that Robbins had to overcome in order to reach his current level of career success and financial success. Some will also argue that some of the exchanges between the seminar participants come off as a wee bit melodramatic and contrived, but I believe the good of the doc far outweigh any nitpicky criticisms viewers may have.

I believe Robbins helped transform the self-help industry, and he will remain someone who I consider an influence and an inspiration for what I do with my own career. I believe the best lesson from Robbins is that most people view their problems, their disappointments, their frustrations, and their episodes of adversity as a 'bad' thing ... but the reality is, it is our individual problems and challenges that help shape who we are over the course of our lives.