9 Solid Habits That Will Turn You Into A Grounded, Badass Gentleman

“Grounded badass gentleman”, I like how that sounds.

As a young man, I’m on a journey of discovery. What are some of the essential doings that will improve the quality of a man’s life, without making it complex? After years of experimenting, I observed which things impact my life the most. I hope these can add to your happiness as well.

It’s my goal in life to inspire young men to become the strong, audacious men they want to become.

The world needs great men. The world needs you.

1. Prioritize Sleep, Optimize Nutrition, And Move Your Body

There are countless fad diets and exercise programs out there. Some of them even cost a ton of money! This diet tells you to count calories, that diet tells you to get 80% of your daily nutrition from fats. “You have to follow this work-out”, “don’t eat this”, “don’t do that”.

Enough.

We are making all of this too complex. Let me simplify things for you today.

Sleep

• 7.5–9 hours every night. Go to bed at the same time, wake up at the same time.

I will dedicate a full article about this in the future if you wish me to do so. Optimizing the quality of your sleep should be in your top 5 priorities in life.

Nutrition

“Our food should be our medicine, our medicine should be our food.” — Hippocrates

Use the 80/20 rule. Clean eating for 80%, and cheating for 20%.

Consume these foods for the majority of the time:

• Water, tea, black Coffee
• Vegetables, leafy greens, and rice
• Meat, fish, and eggs
• Nuts, avocados, coconuts, and oils
• Fruits

The occasional times you cheat, cheat well

Movement

“The pain you feel today will be the strength you feel tomorrow.”

If you are a beginner, start slowly and build it up week after week. You have nothing to prove to nobody. Practice builds competence, competence builds confidence.

Start doing any of these types of training for only 3 days a week, 30-45min per training.

• Calisthenics = Bodyweight training (FOR FREE).
• Strength training = 5x5 of heavy compound lifting with your equipment of choice: barbells, dumbbells, kettlebells, heavy bags, rocks, etc…
• High intensity interval cardio = 10min of alternating between sprinting and walking (preferably on an empty stomach for maximum impact).
• Swimming or climbing

“Instead of abusing your body, weaponize your body.”

Still looking for a good reason? Do it for the “Holy shit, you got hot!”

2. Spend Time In The Wilderness In Solitude

Mindfulness is being aware of yourself in the present moment while cancelling the noise of the outer world. It’s about embracing the silence where you can practice introspection.

The time you spend in the wilderness, is the time you allow yourself to learn how to become comfortable with who you are. It can be daunting or uncomfortable at first, but you are the only person who has to live with yourself 100%. Eventually, you’ll start to see the beauty in it.

There is no one there to give their opinions about you, doubt you, judge you, annoy you, compete with you. There is nothing urgent you have to do. There are no facebook updates, instagram pictures, or email notifications. To put it simply, there are no insignificant distractions.

This is the time for you to connect with your inner caveman. Initiate activities like building, exploring, reading. Try to truly reconnect with yourself.

3. Travel To Magical Destinations

Tom Kuegler is currently staying in Bali. I’m sure he’ll have some great stories to tell! Anthony Moore just returned from living 18 months in Korea. These are places I want to experience too. Both of these gentlemen on Medium spark my dreams of traveling the world.

Traveling gives you experience — it matures you in ways unlike anything else can. It breaths truth and knowledge into you. Your travels will expose,and test, your character.

“Wisdom doesn’t come with age, it comes with experience.”

4. Study Philosophy From The Real Sages (Instead Of Just Any Self-Proclaimed Internet Expert)

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” — Dr. Seuss

Everyone is a philosopher nowadays. Believe me when I tell you that there are significantly more bad ones than good ones. Don’t take advice from just anyone. Rather search for people who made a difference, and left clues for others to follow.

Here is a list of books that will broaden your mind — they keep dropping wisdom bombs in mine.

• “Meditations” — Marcus Aurelius
• “Letters From A Stoic” — Seneca
• “Man’s Search For Meaning” — Victor Frankl
• “Tao Te Ching” — Lao Tzu
• “The Success Principles” — Jack Canfield
• “The Subtle Art Of Not Giving A Fuck” — Mark Manson
• “The War Of Art” — Steven Pressfield

5. Practice Gratitude And Random Acts Of Kindness On A Daily Basis

“Instead of focusing on all the things you don’t have, practice gratitude for everything you do have.”

Kindness can be found in the smallest of gestures, like a sincere “I-see-you-and-wish-you-all-the-best” smile, or holding the door for someone.

Small acts of kindness can make someone else’s entire day. Tip your waitress, buy someone coffee, give your mother flowers, compliment the cashier, etc…

6. Surround Yourself With Your Tribe Of Brothers Regularly

A beautiful passage from David Wagner’s Book “Backbone”:

“The best way for men to become stronger, is to surround themselves with more good men. Men need brothers they can count on and whom can count on you.

Brothers are men that you feel genuine love and devotion for. You’ll sacrifice for a brother. You’ll take a bullet for a brother.

Men in a brotherhood will be there for each other to pull each other up when they are down, and applaud one another when they are doing great. They will also cut through your bullshit because they truly care about you well-being.”

7. Limit Your Bad Addictions — Then Crush Them

Cutting back on the “enjoyable-yet-not-so-healthy-stuff” will help you conquer them in the long run.

You’ve read multiple blog posts that have told you to stop doing all the things you like. I understand that. Even though I agree that certain mannerisms are better left behind, I don’t want to take everything away from you either. Also, I’m not a doctor. My intention is to share with you how I conquered my addictions and how it might help you too.

There is nothing wrong with drinking a few beers or puffing on a stick with the green stuff, as long as it’s under control and done with the right intent.

However, please realize that habits like smoking regular cigarettes, injecting the happy stuff, or swallowing dance pills, shouldn’t have any place in your life. They destroy you in every thinkable way. These are dependencies I do strongly incite you to quit immediately. If you’ve conquered any severe addiction, you are the fucking man — never forget that.

The five main things that are slowly killing you both mentally and physically are sugar, alcohol, nicotine, porn, and work —especially if implemented in excess.

• Nicotine speeds up the aging process, kills your lungs, and makes you damn ugly.
• Porn twists your view of actual sex, while destroying your vigour at the same time. This is probably one of the worst instant gratifications for men.
• Sugar makes you gain fat more quickly.
• Alcohol destroys your liver, brains cells, and basically makes you do stupid shit. Oh yeah, this one makes you fat too.
• Working too much simply drains your life force. It also negatively impacts your intimate relationships.

This will be hard, and you will probably not succeed the first 3 tries. However, don’t let this discourage you. Changing your habits is not a an easy process. Rather try cutting back on some of them while replacing them with good habits. You will need to encourage yourself and you will need supportive people around you. Keep reminding yourself why you want to get rid of them.

Every morning you wake up, take some time for self-talk. Use stimulating sentences to solidify your mindset.

“Today I will be faced with my cravings for (insert addiction), but I will not give in. I will be a slave no longer. Every hour that passes will be another victory for me. This is too important for me because (insert strong reason).”

“A man who makes his body his master, will be a slave to many things” — Seneca

8. Unleash Your Creativity In All Things

Creativity nurtures the soul.

Don’t let society tell you what to do. Creativity is what makes your life fun and excited each day you wake up in the morning. Creativity is an important factor that makes your work meaningful because you are putting pieces of you in it. It’s what allows you to be your true self. It’s what keeps you working on something until 4am because you love it so much.

Innovation rises from creativity. Live up to your potential!

“Every child is an artist, the problem is staying an artist when you grow up” — Pablo Picasso

9. Experience Growing A Beard At Least Once In Your Life (And What It Means)

Beard rule #9 : Grow it with care, wear it with pride

Yes yes, I can already hear some people telling me how silly this is. How beards are dirty, itchy, old-fashioned, uncouth, intimidating, la-di-da-di-da…

Beards are not to everyone’s preference.

I accept.

There are some of us who love it (myself included), and there are some of you who are fondling the idea of growing one. Trust me, just try it once.

Taking care of your manly mane will become a ritual that will inspire you, challenge you, and develop you. It’s the perfect physical portrayal of your wild side. Beards have been a sign of masculinity throughout history. Seneca had a beard. Beowulf had a beard. Lincoln had a beard. Hemingway had a beard.

Ever since I started maintaining one, a lot has changed mentally for me too. It goes much further than just growing hair on you face.

If taken seriously, growing a beard will teach you to cultivate some positive habits.

• Patience
• Taking better care of your overall appearance
• Becoming more hygienic (because you added another vital reason)
• Living healthier
• Cultivating a routine

Beards have some cool benefits too.

• It protects your face from the sun and cold.
• Using beard products not only makes your beard look well taken care of, they also take care of the skin underneath thanks to the healthy nutrients.
• They combat bacterial infection, asthma, and throat disease.
• You will get compliments from fellow beardsmen.
• Fountain of youth — and the aftershock of others when you do shave.
• Women love them. They can’t keep their hands off of them.

Conclusion

Thank you very much for reading! A follow-up article will present itself in the near future. Please feel free to share your thoughts and wisdom.

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