Book Review: The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck

To be perfectly honest, I've never written a book review, nor do I remember ever reading one from start to finish. Books, like all forms of media, create subjective, not objective impressions. One man's Monet is another man's doorstop. Blah. Blah. Blah.

That being said, I enjoyed Mark Manson's The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck. Manson has a well-defined, personable voice. The entire book reads like a conversation with a trusted friend. In fact, it's the perfect voice for the ideas Manson promotes.

And the ideas themselves...well, Manson hasn't thought up anything groundbreaking. He acknowledges that most of his advice is lifted from Buddhist teaching. Charles Bukowski gets a few shout outs as well. As someone who's recently come down from a Bukowski binge, it was refreshing to read a unique perspective on the man. The way that Manson uses him to bookend the narrative was a nice touch. No matter the subject, 'bookending' tends to make the experience of reading more satisfying. Don't ask me why.

What pain is worth enduring? Manson poses a variation of this question in the middle of the book. It's a powerful one, one I've been struggling with the last couple of years transitioning from teaching to writing full time. Both professions have their disappointments, pitfalls, struggles, and pain. However, since the struggle never ends, I might as well struggle doing something that I believe deserves my limited fucks. As I teacher I was giving out fucks left and right like it was Christmas morning, most of them to people and causes which didn't align to my core values. Looking back, that was likely the key as to why I always felt drained, tired, and just all-around depressed.

That's not to say changing careers has solved my problems. Manson writes that how we perceive pain is just as an important part of life as pain itself. Dealing with frustration and disappointment in my writing career is 100% on me to handle. Not to pat myself on the back too much, I think that's something I've improved on over the last year.

So this morning, after I finish this review and have something to eat, I'll follow Manson's advice (courtesy of his old Math teacher)...

Do something...and go from there.