My fellow Mark Manson fanatics out there know that today is a big fucking day.
The reason? Mark’s new book, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, hits shelves today. I pre-ordered my copy weeks ago and can’t fucking wait to get my hands on it when I get back to the states in a few days.
Of course, some of you may be reading this and thinking to yourselves, “But wait…who the fuck is Mark Manson?”
So before I go any further, I’ll give you a little fucking background on this guy Mark and why I was so fucking excited to tell you guys about his new book, which I knew I would love long before I ever read it–hence the pre-ordering, which is something I’ve literally never done before in my life.
Mark Manson is an author, blogger, and entrepreneur who writes his own special flavor of “personal development advice that doesn’t suck.”
And I’m all about personal development–in fact, I almost exclusively read self-help books anymore. The only problem is, well, a lot of them kind of fucking suck.
But my instincts are telling me that Mark’s book is different. Actually, Mark told me that himself.
Yes, I actually got to talk briefly with Mark about his new book, and it was every bit as glorious as I’d hoped.
But more on that in a minute. Hold your fucking horses.
Mark Manson is one of the few writers out there who I really fucking admire, for a few important reasons:
- His articles are really fucking well-researched
- He doesn’t fucking sugarcoat anything
- He stands by his ideas, often in the face of a lot of fucking criticism
- He’s really fucking entertaining
I’ve been enthralled by so many of his articles covering a wide range of topics. I’ve shared many of them here on the blog, on social media, and even in my email newsletters. Some favorite titles include:
- The “Do Something” Principle
- 10 Things Most Americans Don’t Know About America
- 33 Things Every Aspiring Entrepreneur Should Know
- Fuck Yes or No
- 5 Life Lessons from 5 Years of Traveling the World
- 7 Strange Questions That Help You Find Your Life Purpose
- Everything You Wanted to Know About Procrastination but Were Too Lazy to Figure Out
- Why You Can’t Trust Yourself
If you have a few hours to kill and you want to venture down an existential rabbit hole, I suggest starting here.
However, I’m pretty sure it was Mark’s eponymous article, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck, that first introduced me to his writing.
In the original piece, Mark explains why giving fucks freely and unnecessarily in life is causing us far more problems than it’s solving:
“…most of us struggle throughout our lives by giving too many fucks in situations where fucks do not deserve to be given. We give a fuck about the rude gas station attendant who gave us too many nickels. We give a fuck when a show we liked was canceled on TV. We give a fuck when our coworkers don’t bother asking us about our awesome weekend. We give a fuck when it’s raining and we were supposed to go jogging in the morning.
Fucks given everywhere. Strewn about like seeds in mother-fucking spring time. And for what purpose? For what reason? Convenience? Easy comforts? A pat on the fucking back maybe?
This is the problem, my friend.
Because when we give too many fucks, when we choose to give a fuck about everything, then we feel as though we are perpetually entitled to feel comfortable and happy at all times, that’s when life fucks us.”
But he doesn’t stop there. He goes on, explaining why we must fine-tune the art of giving fewer (if any) fucks so as to take back some control over our lives:
“Developing the ability to control and manage the fucks you give is the essence of strength and integrity. We must craft and hone our lack of fuckery over the course of years and decades. Like a fine wine, our fucks must age into a fine vintage, only uncorked and given on the most special fucking occasions.
This may sound easy. But it is not. Most of us, most of the time, get sucked in by life’s mean trivialities, steamrolled by its unimportant dramas; we live and die by the sidenotes and distractions and vicissitudes that suck the fucks out of us like Sasha Grey in the middle of a gangbang.”
Finally, he brings it home by detailing exactly how to give fewer fucks in your day to day life.
As you can probably guess, the book is, in part, an expansion on these ideas and the subtleties of not giving any fucks, but it goes much deeper than that.
From Mark’s website:
“The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck is all about self-improvement not through avoiding problems or always being happy, but rather through engaging and improving upon problems and learning to accept the occasional unhappiness. It’s a radical departure from anything else you’ve ever read, and that’s what makes it so powerful.”
And as I mentioned above, Mark graciously agreed to answer a few questions for me about his new book. Here’s what the man himself had to say:
LD: Who is The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck intended to help?
MM: Everyone, including but not limited to students, business owners, mothers, and common household pets.
LD: Who will it NOT help?
MM: Deities, hyper-intelligent super-computers, my buddy Jon — Jon has his shit together.
LD: Some people are calling the advice in your book counterintuitive. Can you give an example of a piece of advice that’s different from all the other self-help books out there?
MM: Embrace pain and struggle. Fail often. Stop believing in yourself. Get better at saying “no.” It’s pretty much the opposite of everything your mother or Tony Robbins told you.
LD: You seem pretty confident that this book will melt faces off. What do you mean by that, exactly? Should I be concerned for my safety?
MM: A special protective thermal blanket will be included with the hardcover edition, otherwise you may suffer third-degree burns. But I think it might be worth it.
LD: How many times is the F-bomb used in this book? If I turned it into a drinking game and took a shot every time I saw one, would I make it past the first chapter?
MM: Hundreds of them. And probably not. Unless you’re Amy Winehouse.
LD: In a few words, tell us why we should all go buy this book RIGHT NOW.
MM: In all seriousness, the book is unlike any self-help book you’ve ever seen before. It’s grounded, realistic, backed by academic research, but also funny and engaging at the same time. For anyone who wants to improve their life but is turned off or disillusioned with all the usual happiness and rainbows stuff, give it a try.
Get your own copy of Mark Manson’s new book and stop giving fucks today.
If you’ve read this far and you’re ready–SO READY–to hear some solid personal development advice that doesn’t make you want to gouge your eyes out AND can help you stop giving so many fucks in life, you can order Mark’s new book right now. It’s available in hardcover, on Kindle, or even as a glorious audiobook.
Click here to buy The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life.
Many thanks go out to Mark for being so generous with his knowledge, time, life experience and wit and, in doing so, gifting the world with this book.
And of course, a personal thank you from me for this mini-interview, during which zero fucks were given.
Does Mark Manson’s new book sound like your type of self-help? What other titles do you recommend? Leave some suggestions in the comments. Or not. I don’t give a fuck.
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