About This Month’s Book
For decades, we’ve been told that positive thinking is the key to a happy, rich life. "Fck positivity," Mark Manson says. "Let’s be honest, shit is fcked and we have to live with it." In his wildly popular Internet blog, Manson doesn’t sugarcoat or equivocate. He tells it like it is—a dose of raw, refreshing, honest truth that is sorely lacking today. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck is his antidote to the coddling, let’s-all-feel-good mindset that has infected modern society and spoiled a generation, rewarding them with gold medals just for showing up.
Manson makes the argument, backed both by academic research and well-timed poop jokes, that improving our lives hinges not on our ability to turn lemons into lemonade, but on learning to stomach lemons better. Human beings are flawed and limited—"not everybody can be extraordinary, there are winners and losers in society, and some of it is not fair or your fault." Manson advises us to get to know our limitations and accept them. Once we embrace our fears, faults, and uncertainties, once we stop running and avoiding and start confronting painful truths, we can begin to find the courage, perseverance, honesty, responsibility, curiosity, and forgiveness we seek. Source
About Mark Manson
Mark is an author, blogger, entrepreneur, and personal development consultant. Mark grew up in Austin, Texas, graduated from Boston University in 2007, and a couple years later, started an online business and blog. Over the next few years, he traveled all over the world, working as a blogger full-time. He now lives in New York City with his wife and continues to help people through his blog and his books.
Sarah’s Takeaway
I had major Gary Vaynerchuck and Grant Cardone vibes while reading this book. Manson is very straight forward and to the point about the ideas he presents in his book. But he also shares relatable examples to help you understand. After you get past the first chapter that is filled with a few more f-words, you will find an immense amount of gold within the pages of this book to help you find what it means to not put your energy into caring about what doesn't matter so you can give it to what is most important to you.
Shaunae’s Takeaway
I was a little worried this book would be all swear words and fluff, but I was so wrong. This book is full of great content. Mark shares that it’s not about being indifferent, it’s about putting value on the right things. Mark shares his thoughts and humor in the best possible way. My favorite part of the book is when he gets into five counterintuitive values that we should adopt. Values like taking responsibility for our actions, the willingness to discover our own flaws, contemplating our own mortality, and more.
Favorite Quotes:
“Because here’s another sneaky little truth about life. You can’t be an important and life-changing presence for some people without also being a joke and an embarrassment to others.”
“We suffer for the simple reason that suffering is biologically useful. It is nature’s preferred agent for inspiring change.”
“Don’t hope for a life without problems. There’s no such thing. Instead, hope for a life full of good problems.”
“Because happiness requires struggle. It grows from problems. Joy doesn’t just sprout out of the ground like daisies and rainbows. Real, serious, lifelong fulfillment and meaning have to be earned through the choosing and managing of our struggles.”
"Negative emotions are a call to action. When you feel them, it’s because you’re supposed to do something. Positive emotions, on the other hand , are rewards for taking positive action. When you feel them, life seems simple and there is nothing else to do but enjoy it. Then, like everything else, the positive emotions go away, because more problems inevitably emerge."
“If you want to change how you see your problems, you have to change what you value and/or how you measure failure/success.”
"The only difference between a problem being painful of being powerful is a sense that we chose it, and that we are responsible for it."
“Don’t just sit there. Do something. The answers will follow.”
"Action isn’t just the effect of motivation; it’s also the cause of it."
“Confronting the reality of our own mortality is important because it obliterates all the crappy, fragile, superficial values in life. While most people whittle their days chasing another buck, or a little bit more fame and attention, or a little bit more assurance that they’re right or loved, death confronts all of us with a far more painful and important question: What is your legacy?”
Pick up your copy of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck!
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