Self-help topic for MN forums?

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Lots of threads on here are about self- help, managing difficult emotions, respecting yourself etc. It makes me wonder if it would be good to have a space where people share tips, books and website recommendations etc.

Secondly, a question about self-esteem. Often when people feel low about themselves, they are advised to work on their self-image and recite affirmations, boost themselves etc. And that's fine, but what if someone really is, say, ugly, doesn't have much going for them, not very talented - how does that work when you really aren't good at stuff? Is it a lack of self- esteem, or is it being honest with yourself?

Your first Q - I think I would rather see these things in their appropriate topic than in a general self-help topic.

Your second - A good question. I'm an example of someone who really is ugly - nothing is going to change that - and I get annoyed when people start spouting 'beauty comes from within' and that sort of crap. But it depends what the person is posting for.

In the 'ugly' example someone might still want tips on how to make the best of what little they have. In the example of someone lacking talent, they might want tips to improve regardless of the fact they're unlikely ever to excel at whatever it is.

I would say posters should focus on answering their question, giving practical advice, rather than offering unasked for 'affirmations' However well-meant, 'I bet you look lovely in real life, OP!' or 'I bet your oil paintings are wonderful, OP!' and similar can come across as minimising someone's plight.

Not sure why 'self-help' should be a unified topic. People seek help for themselves,and/or advice about how they themselves can solve their own problems better, in a whole range of topics. Collapsing it into a single enterprise seems unrealistic and unhelpful.
And the techniques you mention? the difficulties with those techniques seem to flow from the same artificial construction of a single set of problems and solutions. Real answers have to be about real and specific questions - not about a fake reduction of all questions to a single set of concerns