Hi guys,
I find a need for men to check in with one another so I’m working something out so that we can all connect. I realize the Substack App chat is not really working out so will find another means to get to know you each other better.
That being said, anyone here wanting to connect can always DM and reach out to me if you have any ideas.
On to this week’s 5 thoughts and ideas!
Everything revolves around health
Steven Bartlett says we are nothing without our health.
He continued, “Everything else around life rests on this tectonic plate called health. If you remove my job, my pet, and my girlfriend, I still have my health but if you remove my health, you remove everything.“
So logically that has to be the first priority.
This is a quick reminder for me that my health is my first priority. Sleep, being mentally okay, and prioritizing health first.
Some people might argue that they can still take the load of not having sleep but that kind of thing will catch up to you.
The idea of hard work and sacrificing sleep might seem like a good idea but it can lead to situations that put you in irreversible situations such as having a heart attack and stroke.
It all becomes a slippery slope from then on, and every other part of your life will fall apart. Next thing you know, you’re on lifelong medications. Is that worth it?
I've experienced firsthand how burnout scars you after years of working in the security life. Your body takes a toll that might just be irreversible. You take a longer time to recover, weeks and months even and the scars you take with you will forever be ingrained.
We need love for men of all types
There’s a need to challenge traditional masculine stereotypes in media and advertising. Ask yourself, what brands do you love? Why is it so? Do you feel like you can connect with the brand?
If you haven’t found one that you really enjoy, then maybe it’s time to rewrite the script, or better, create your own brand for your community.
Craft narratives that are less narrow and cliche revolving around masculinity. Instead, tackle things that most men have in the problem that relates to them easily.
Days should be gone when typical masculine men portrayed in media and ads leave us feeling disconnected and feel like we’re less qualified.
Which leads to the question, how do you guys feel about some men’s merch?
You don’t have to be perfect, but you do have to show up.
A Linkedin connection reached out and ask for a meeting. He is also a subscriber of this newsletter.
We had a casual coffee talk. Unsure of what the meeting was about, I asked,” What’s going on?”
I sensed he has a lot going on in his mind and I resonated with the pain but it also opens up my own past experience dealing with life.
Out of respect, I’ll skip the details, but we exchanged our own experiences until we reached a conclusion where he would be in a better place to make an informed decision.
Deep respect for men who open themselves up and talk about deeply personal things, man. It’s not easy. Maybe it’s an Asian thing.
Failure is not a bad thing altogether. Failure unites us all in times of hardship. We share stories and learn from them and I’m a huge advocate of self-love and opening up.
How can one start to open up?
I think you don’t have to be perfect, but you do have to show up. Show up every day for yourself if you have something bottled up and know when to reach out.
Check-in with your support group. It’s not an update thing. It’s your thing. It’s a space where you’re practicing reaching out and mastering the art of letting go. It’s also a process of acknowledgment and a road to healing.
Nothing is normal, not anymore. Time to master a new skill.
The Pandemic period changed the meaning of being normal for me.
People lost their jobs, companies closed, some lives were destroyed and people decided to change careers. I suffered too.
When lockdown happens, a shift in management style occurs. The people on top had to adapt to a new culture of remote working. Mass adoption of people learning new ways of embracing tech like ‘Zoom Meetings’ and using digital apps is put in place.
When we survived the storm, we came back to a new norm.
Remote working was the in thing. Yay. Then, companies decided it was time to go back to the office. Some resentment happens. What used to be normal isn’t.
Layoffs happened. Inflation happened. Experts say 2025 will become worse and filled with more challenges.
What I’m getting at here is that there will not be a fixed phase of normalcy, at least while everyone is still figuring their lives out in the chaos.
We’re all going through this wave of continuous adaptation and we adapted. ADAPTED.
So, where does this brings us to? The next skill that we can equip ourselves is with being in love with adaptation. In being receptive to changes and working out alternatives to situations.
That means being okay with things not working out once in a while. This is the remedy you need for your mental well-being.
At least if you want to survive above 2025.
I’m not a therapist and time will heal.
I write this newsletter because I don’t want anyone else to feel alone going through their problems. But I can’t answer your questions or give you advice even if I read about them.
I don’t think that I’m in a good position to give advice because I don’t know your full story. Doing so could be me doing a disservice to you? I’m just a guy who has been through certain stuff in life, but I’m not a therapist.
So I try to keep my content true to only my opinions and my viewpoints. None of my posts are to be taken as professional advice.
But if there were already some golden nuggets you received throughout my writing, I hope you take it forth and apply it so that you can do what you need to do.
Watch this video below, if you’ve recently suffered heartbreak or loss.
That’s about it for this week's issue!
If you somehow manage to get to the bottom of this page, thank you so much. I enjoyed writing this newsletter as much as you enjoyed reading it.
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Till next time!