How does a book published as recently as December 2024 sell over 4 million copies and get translated into 50 languages in just a few months?

When an article about this book popped up in my news feed, I was curious to read about it. The book is called "The Let Them Theory" and was written by Mel Robins, a motivational speaker and self-help author.

I was curious enough to read about it but not curious enough to spend $15.78 on Amazon to purchase the book. Instead, I read reviews and a book summary, and this is what I've learned.

The book claims that the road to emotional freedom involves letting go of trying to control other people's behavior. If someone is talking behind your back, let them. If someone is not inviting you to a party, let them. If someone is in a bad mood, let them be. You cannot control other people's words, actions, or feelings, so just let them.

When we don't focus on controlling and changing others, we can focus more on ourselves, our emotional needs, and our wants. So "letting them" really helps us be more ourselves.

I like that a lot.

From personal experience and observing other people, I know how stressful it can be to worry about other people—what they think, say, and do. So, "letting them" can remove plenty of stress from our lives.

But I also know that this book is only part of the solution.

Think about it. Why do we try to control what others do? Because we are control freaks? For most of us, that's not the case. We do it because we want to have a better life for ourselves.

When we see our boss in a bad mood, we are worried they might not appreciate us, get upset, or even fire us. We are concerned about losing our social standing when they don't invite us to a party. We know how important social life is for mental health and advancing our careers.

So, "letting them" is a good suggestion, but it's not enough. It's tackling only the surface. For the complete solution, we need something that goes much deeper.

And I found it in another bestselling book.

Let me introduce you to it. This book has already sold over 4 billion (yes, billion!) copies. And the publishing date? Oh, it was written over 3,000 years ago, but its divine wisdom is as priceless and relevant as ever.

You might be familiar with this book... it's called the Torah!

Every time you learn Torah, you find deeper meanings and new insights. So this week, while learning the weekly Parsha, I found the answer to my problem: I discovered the missing piece (or rather the foundational piece) for a better emotional life.

It's called "The Let Him Theory."

"Him" is G-d, and "Letting Him" is a profound theory that combines two main ingredients: First, "Let Him" do His thing because He is the one who is in complete control of what is going to happen to us—not the angry boss, not the disrespectful friend, not anyone but Him. Second, "Let Him" because He is our loving creator, so He knows our needs even better than ourselves. So we know we are in good hands.

What sparked my inspiration was a paragraph in our parsha. After describing the Mitzvah of Shmitah, it tells the Jews entering the land of Israel to observe every seventh year as a sabbatical and not work in the fields at all.

The Torah then presents a hypothetical question:

"If you should wonder, "What will we eat in the seventh year? We cannot sow, and we cannot gather in our produce!" I (G-d) will command My blessing for you in the sixth year, and it will yield enough produce for three years."

What's beautiful about this verse is how G-d recognizes and acknowledges our worries. He knows our fears, He understands them, and He reassures us that if we follow His ways, we will be okay.

So let them, but first, let Him. Because once we trust that we're in His hands, everything else becomes a lot easier to let go.

Shabbat Shalom!
As we complete the 3rd book of the Torah, Shabbat Chazak, may we all truly be strong and strengthened!
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