manlihood

I firmly believe that in order to grow as a man, we need to read. Some of the best books for men are books written by men who want to share what they’ve learned.

We have access to some of the greatest mentors we could ever have, if we would read. There are men that have felt the need to share what they know in the pages of a book, in order to invest in the lives of others. Let’s strive

As a Man Thinketh by James Allen

“A man’s mind may be likened to a garden, which may be intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild; but whether cultivated or neglected, it must, and will bring forth. If no useful seeds are put into it, then an abundance of useless weed-seeds will fall therein, and will continue to produce their kind.”

– James Allen, As a Man Thinketh

“It is pleasing to human vanity to believe that one suffers because of one’s virtue; but not until a man has extirpated every sickly, bitter, and impure thought from his soul, can he be in a position to know and declare that his sufferings are the result of his good, and not of his bad qualities.”

– James Allen, As a Man Thinketh

“He who would accomplish little need sacrifice little; he who would achieve much must sacrifice much. He who would attain highly must sacrifice greatly.”

– James Allen, As a Man Thinketh

Making Men by Chuck Holton

“A man who knows who he is doesn’t need a facade. The first thing you should notice about him is his character, an internal quality that doesn’t require an ostentatious display of any kind.”

-Chuck Holton, Making Men

“A man continually looks at his environment and thinks of ways to make it better. Men view situations with an eye to fix what is broken and create value. And once they’ve assessed, men take action—whether as insignificant as picking up a burger wrapper off the ground or as daring as rescuing someone from an oncoming bus—to make things better for everybody.”

-Chuck Holton, Making Men

Sovereignty by Ryan Michler

“A man who has given up his sovereignty fabricates excuses. He tells himself stories. He feeds himself lies. All of this to justify the reality that he has given away the one thing that has the potential to allow him to be the man he is meant to be: his sovereignty.”

-Ryan Michler, Sovereignty

“You think you’re safe now because the reality of doing nothing hasn’t caught up with you yet. But when it does, it will come with a vengeance. On that day, ignorance is not a successful defense strategy.”

-Ryan Michler, Sovereignty

Mansfield’s Book of Manly Men: An Utterly Invigorating Guide to Being Your Most Masculine Self by Stephen Mansfield and William Boykin

“Each man must determine what is dear to him and what is worth sacrificing for. A transcendent cause must exist in a man’s life if he is to reach his full potential as a man. Few men today have done a thorough self-analysis to ascertain what their transcendent cause is—or even if they have one. It is time, though: time to determine what we hold dear and what is worthy of sacrifice. As men, we cannot wait until the later years of our lives to make this assessment. I urge you: do it now, and bring meaning to who you are as a man.”

-Stephen Mansfield, Mansfield’s Book of Manly Men: An Utterly Invigorating Guide to Being Your Most Masculine Self

“Manliness, in my view, is about doing. It doesn’t matter what you look like. I’m neither put off by nor in awe of the physical. I’ve known great men who are three and a half feet tall. I know an awe-inspiring man who has no arms or legs. I’ve known powerful, dynamic men who looked like women from a distance. I’ve known immoral men who had testosterone to spare. It is the doing, the deeds, the actions that make a male a man. This is good news.”

-Stephen Mansfield, Mansfield’s Book of Manly Men: An Utterly Invigorating Guide to Being Your Most Masculine Self

A Survival Guide for Life: How to Achieve Your Goals, Thrive in Adversity, and Grow in Character by Bear Grylls

“My mum and dad gave me a few bits of great advice as a young boy (along with a fair amount of scolding for being an idiot, but that’s another story!), but there is one thing my late father told me that has affected my outlook and approach to life more than almost anything else, and it was this: If you can be the most enthusiastic person you know, then you won’t go far wrong.”

-Bear Grylls, A Survival Guide for Life: How to Achieve Your Goals, Thrive in Adversity, and Grow in Character

Behind every successful person you’ll undoubtedly find a string of failed attempts. We might not always notice the failures (as the successes tend to blind us to them), but to get to the success, those people will inevitably have had to walk through a good number of ‘failures’ first.

-Bear Grylls, A Survival Guide for Life: How to Achieve Your Goals, Thrive in Adversity, and Grow in Character

Manhood: How to Be a Better Man-or Just Live with One by Terry Crews

“Male pride is like walking a ledge on the side of a building, and any taunt or challenge will keep a man out there—until he falls to his death.”

-Terry Crews, Manhood: How to Be a Better Man-or Just Live with One

“…anger can trick us. If we don’t let our anger go naturally, it can become an offense we hold on to that blinds us, clouding our ability to see our own behavior clearly and causing us to become helpless. It’s like removing our hands from the wheel of our own life, and letting whoever offended us drive, while we sit meekly in the passenger seat, holding the offense in our lap.”

-Terry Crews, Manhood: How to Be a Better Man-or Just Live with One

Wild at Heart: Discovering the Secret of a Man’s Soul

“I wasn’t mean; I wasn’t evil. I was nice. And let me tell you, a hesitant man is the last thing in the world a woman needs. She needs a lover and a warrior, not a Really Nice Guy.”

― John Eldredge, Wild at Heart: Discovering the Secret of a Man’s Soul

“Truth be told, most of us are faking our way through life. We pick only those battles we are sure to win, only those adventures we are sure to handle, only those beauties we are sure to rescue.”

― John Eldredge, Wild at Heart: Discovering the Secret of a Man’s Soul

If you haven’t read these books, you definitely should consider grabbing them from your local bookstore, or if they do not have them, from Amazon, or the local library.