The Art of Manliness

One of my favorite books I read last year is called Self & Soul: A Defense of Ideals by a professor named Mark Edmundson. He makes the argument that in the West, our commitment to ideals (the Soul) is fading, and we're becoming a culture of the Self -- desiring comfort, safety, and materialism over the ancient ideals of courage, compassion, and contemplation...

One of the biggest sources of contention in marriages is money. The reason for that is because people come into marriage with very different ideas about how money should be managed, saved, spent, etc. My guests today, Derek and Carrie Olsen, are a couple who had a big financial catastrophe at the beginning of their relationship. On today's show, we talk about their book One Bed, One Bank Account.

I talk to media and image consultant Frances Cole Jones about how to put your best foot forward in your personal life and business. Lots of great actionable steps to help you make a great first impression.

If you've read Band of Brothers or watched the miniseries, you're familiar with the name Dick Winters. He was part of that famous airborne division which was so crucial in so many pieces of WWII. We've written a lot about the Band of Brothers here on AoM, and each one had something unique that set them apart from the others. What set Dick Winters apart was his leadership abilities...

We've probably all heard of Emily Post, who wrote an etiquette book back in the 1920s that became world-famous. Her work of encouraging good manners and etiquette continues today with her family at the Emily Post Institute. Today on the show I have Emily Post's great-great-grandson Daniel Post Senning to discuss etiquette for men, as well as digital etiquette in this world of smartphones, emails, etc.

A while back I got an email from an AoM reader named Jareem Gunter. He does a lot of mentoring for at-risk youth in Oakland, CA. He's released a book called The Man Book, which I contributed to, and is full of skills for young men to succeed in the world. On this podcast, we talk about that book, as well as the topic of mentoring, and why it's so important not only for young men, but older men too.

For the past year I've been doing a lot of research on the benefits of face-to-face conversation, and looking for more ways to incorporate it into my own life. One of the books that really helped is called The Village Effect by Susan Pinker. She highlights not only psychological, but physiological benefits of face-to-face contact. It makes us healthier, happier, and smarter, and we talk about how to get more of it in your life.

Last year I got an email out of the blue from a guy named Tod Moore inviting me to a weekend of doing various man skills: shooting guns, butchering animals, doing obstacle races. Of course, I was in. The event was called the Vanguard, which was put on by a gym in Austin, Texas called Atomic Athlete. Their goal is overall strength and conditioning, and on today's show, I talk to the two founders of the gym about lifting, conditioning, the psychology of strength, and more.

There's been a transformation in the West about what it means to be a grown up. There used to be scripts to follow, and markers to meet which would mean you're an adult. But those scripts have been thrown out the window, and now it's confusing for young people to know if they've entered adulthood. My guest today takes us on a whirlwind tour of modern adulthood, going back to the 1500s. His name is Steven Mintz, and he's a professor of history at the University of Texas.

Winter is coming. If you like to be in the outdoors, one thing you need to start thinking about is what would happen if you were stuck in the wilderness with nothing but your wits. Would you be able to survive the harshness of the cold? A lot of survival resources gloss over what you do in cold environs. My guest today is Dave Hall, and he's written a book about just that, called Winter In the Wilderness. We talk about shelter, how to get water, building a fire, surviving hypothermia, and more.