Tony Robbins: I Am Not Your Guru (2016)

I might have heard of Tony Robbins (born 1960 as Anthony Mahavoric) before my friend told me to watch this Netflix Documentary.  Robbins came from a chaotic and abusive family, left home when he was seventeen and never returned, and didn't go to college.  Today he's one of the most powerful self-appointed self-help gurus on the planet.  He earns about $30 million a year, has written best sellers, done infomercials, is a philanthropist and "peak performance coach," and the master of the aphorism — like "turn fear into power," or "anyone can be successful at almost anything."  He's been married twice, and had a child with a third woman.  He's most famous for his seminars called Date with Destiny — a six-day, 12-hour-a-day emotional marathon that costs $5000.  For the most part this movie follows the six days of one of these seminars.  I found the psycho-babble, the emotionally abusive tactics like fire-walking and board-breaking, and his "science of taboo language" (lots of f-bombs) hard to watch, even scary.  It's like Dr. Phil on steroids.  But three things became clear — Robbins is an earnest believer in his snake oil, many people have experienced shocking amounts of pain, and they long to experience honesty, authenticity, and healing. I watched this film on Netflix.