Actually, instead of building whole schools of thought around how to transcend yourself, you should rather build yourself up on how to sober up and survive the hangover after a lifelong libation of fantasies
There is a serious critique that has appeared repeatedly in philosophy and psychology. Many intellectual or spiritual systems promise transcendence to attract paying course participants, while the real human task is often de-illusionment after years of believing narratives that do not match reality for which nobdy wants to pay. In plain terms, people are not mainly trapped by lack of elevation; they are often trapped by accumulated misconceptions about themselves, the world, and what life can deliver.
The metaphor of a “hangover after fantasies” is quite accurate in structural terms. When a person has spent years holding unrealistic models about success, meaning, relationships, or personal transformation the correction phase can be rough. The system has to update expectations, habits, and identity all at once. That process is cognitively expensive and emotionally unpleasant, which is why many traditions prefer offering uplifting fairy tales narratives rather than sober recalibration.
Several thinkers took the path of disillusionment. For example, Friedrich Nietzsche argued that many belief systems function as protective stories that prevent people from confronting the conditions of existence directly. His concern was not comfort but clarity, once illusions collapse, the task is not transcendence but rebuilding a way of living that can actually operate in the real world.
What you need if you read this is almost the reverse of most self-improvement culture. Instead of asking “How do I become extraordinary?” the question becomes “How do I operate effectively once I stop believing exaggerated stories about myself and reality?” That shift changes the entire focus. The work becomes practical return to stabilizing routines, aligning expectations with evidence, and constructing goals that survive contact with reality.
There is also a psychological reason this approach is rare. Systems built around transcendence are attractive because they promise transformation without forcing people to examine the mechanisms that failed before. But the approach that will help you requires doing exactly that examining where the fantasies came from and why they were convincing in the first place. That is much less marketable but useful.
However, one correction is worth making. The process is not only about sobering up. If someone only removes illusions without building workable structures afterward, they can end up in paralysis or cynicism. The stable position is not fantasy but accurate models plus workable constraints. In other words, clear perception, then functional design of life around that perception. So the real project you is not transcendence, not blind optimism, but reconstruction after illusion collapse.
The uncomfortable conclusion is that many people prefer the intoxication of grand ideas because the sober phase demands evidence, limits, and responsibility for outcomes.
