As I collected self-help audiobooks in my Audible account, Mark Manson’s The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck (full name: The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life by Mark Manson) not so subtly popped up in the books recommended to me. Using the free credit in my Audible account, I decided to purchase The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck audiobook and give it a listen, seeing how popular it was.
The audiobook is a little over five hours long, and the book presented a unique perspective on personal development that I had previously not been exposed to.
Overall, the book is not for everyone, but I loved it. Let’s get more into it in my Mark Manson’s The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck book review and summary.
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck Summary
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck is very different from many of the self-help books I had previously read. One thing many of us who have spent months immersing ourselves in self-improvement is that we eventually find many resources saying the same things differently.
Ideas such as believing in yourself, becoming immune from other people’s negativity, and being very self-aware are all commonly discussed in many self-help resources. Mark Manson’s The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck expresses the same ideas, but almost with a satirical view of these ideas.
A brief look at the table of contents and Mark Manson’s choices of words will give you a better idea of what I mean.
- CHAPTER 1: Don’t Try
- The Feedback Loop from Hell
- The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck
- So Mark, What the Fuck Is the Point of This Book Anyway?
- CHAPTER 2: Happiness Is a Problem
- The Misadventures of Disappointment Panda
- Happiness Comes from Solving Problems
- Emotions Are Overrated
- Choose Your Struggle
- CHAPTER 3: You Are Not Special
- Things Fall Apart
- The Tyranny of Exceptionalism
- B-b-b-but, If I’m Not Going to Be Special or Extraordinary, What’s the Point?
- CHAPTER 4: The Value of Suffering
- The Self-Awareness Onion
- Rock Star Problems
- Shitty Values
- Defining Good and Bad Values
- CHAPTER 5: You Are Always Choosing
- The Choice
- The Responsibility/Fault Fallacy
- Responding to Tragedy
- Genetics and the Hand We’re Dealt
- Victimhood Chic
- There Is No “How”
- CHAPTER 6: You’re Wrong About Everything (But So Am I)
- Architects of Our Own Beliefs
- The Dangers of Pure Certainty
- Manson’s Law of Avoidance
- Kill Yourself
- How to Be a Little Less Certain of Yourself
- CHAPTER 7: Failure Is the Way Forward
- The Failure/Success Paradox
- Pain Is Part of the Process
- The “Do Something” Principle
- CHAPTER 8: The Importance of Saying No
- Rejection Makes Your Life Better
- Boundaries
- How to Build Trust
- Freedom Through Commitment
- CHAPTER 9: . . . And Then You Die
- Something Beyond Our Selves
- The Sunny Side of Death
If I had to summarize The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck into three ideas, they would be:
- Focus on your own ideas of success rather than following what society determines success to be.
- Failure and hardship is the key to success. If you’re not prepared to suffer to get what you want, you don’t really want it.
- Go with the flow and be responsible for responding to what life throws at you.
Below are some more takeaways I got while listening to Mark Manson’s The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck as well.
Key Takeaways
- Stop blindly chasing values that aren’t necessarily your own. Society determines many ideas of success, such as being rich and sexy. Stop giving a f*ck about these values once you have a good thought about whether those values are important to you or not.
- Our goal is not to be happy. All emotions come and go and are a core part of being human. Stop chasing eternal happiness and learn how to deal with negative emotions healthily.
- You’re not responsible for everything that happens in your life, but you are responsible for how you react.
Mark Manson’s The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck Book Review
As I alluded to earlier in the article, the ideas presented in Mark Manson’s The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck are not new, at least for me. What was new, however, was the manner Manson presented these ideas.
Generally, in the self-help world, you have a lot of positivity. There’s a lot of “believe in yourself and you can do anything.” Many self-help books are written with the notion of helping you become successful in some manner, whether that’s making more money, having better relationships, being healthier, etc.
It’s a given as self-help books target readers who want to achieve something they currently are missing, which is why Mark Manson’s perspective is so unique and surprising.
In a world where people are telling you how to become the next Michael Jordan or the next Bill Gates, Manson opens up right away telling you to be average.
Now Mark Manson isn’t really telling you to be average and stop trying to achieve any form of success. He’s telling you that it’s okay to be yourself and that just because you don’t have a Lamborghini doesn’t mean you’re not successful.
Other common personal development philosophies, such as how failure is key to success and the need for one to be responsible for how they react, were in The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck with negative connotations. This would be my main criticism of the book.
How Readable Is The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck?
The self-improvement ideas presented in The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck are certainly ideas that will transform your life for the better. However, the way Manson presents these ideas makes The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck a better read to rethink some of these ideas rather than absorb them for the first time.
Mark Manson is a little cynical in The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck. This book has the most swearing I’ve heard, and while I personally do not care, I can see why some people would be offended. In addition to the swearing, Manson is pretty blunt and doesn’t make any attempt to fluff anything.
He will directly say that you’re not special. That you suck. But that’s fine because the book’s whole premise is to learn to deal with the bleaker things of life.
These criticisms, however, are not to say that Mark Manson is a lousy writer. It’s quite the opposite.
What I love about many popular self-help books is that they’re written in a conversational “story-telling” structure. Reading the book is like having someone sit in front of you and tell you their stories and learnings.
And Mark Manson is a great storyteller. When I was listening to an audiobook version of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, I noticed that I was very engaged with his writing. I often found myself laughing in reaction to some of his jokes or feeling empathy for Manson as he described his life’s shortcomings, but never drifting away thinking about something completely unrelated.
Manson’s points were all valid as well. They all had great supporting anecdotes and made logical sense. You can see where he’s coming from whether or not you liked his opinion.
Speaking of opinion, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck really shines as a book you read to help you question your existing values and knowledge.
In my The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck book review, I realized I didn’t really come away with a new productivity hack or a new way of thinking to change my life. Instead, I found myself reflecting on my existing ways of living and asking myself, “Is this what I really want?”
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck is undoubtedly a more enjoyable and influential read after you have already spent quite a bit of time in the self-improvement world.
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck Recommendation And Alternatives
Based on my The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck book review, I would give it a rating of 79/100. The book is fantastic for those who have already read quite a few personal development books. It’s a great book helping you continue changing for the better when you’ve already made initial strides to become the best version of yourself.
Overall, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck is an entertaining read, at least for those who can go in with an open mind.
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The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck Alternatives
Looking for other book reviews for similar books? Check out the links below:
- Links to other book reviews go here, table with images.
Mark Manson’s The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck Book Review and Summary – A Surprising Perspective
And that concludes my Mark Manson’s The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck Book Review and Summary article. Have you read The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck before? I would love to hear your thoughts in the comment section down below!
Thx