The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck
In The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, Mark Manson challenges the idea that we must chase constant positivity to live well. Through his blunt honesty and humor, he reminds us that a meaningful life comes from choosing our values wisely, embracing responsibility, and letting go of what doesn’t matter. The excerpts below highlight his belief that clarity, courage, and well-placed priorities can free us to live with greater purpose and intention.
Quotes to Consider from The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck
“Happiness comes from solving problems. The keyword here is ‘solving.’ If you’re avoiding your problems or feel like you don’t have any problems, then you’re going to make yourself miserable. If you feel like you have problems that you can’t solve, you will likewise make yourself miserable. The secret sauce is in the solving of the problems, not in not having problems in the first place.”
“I wanted the reward and not the struggle. I wanted the result and not the process. I was in love with not the fight but only the victory. And life doesn’t work that way. Who you are is defined by what you’re willing to struggle for.”
“Values underlie everything we are and do. If what we value is unhelpful, if what we consider success or failure is poorly chosen, then everything based upon those values—the thoughts, the emotions, the day-to-day feelings—will all be out of whack. Everything we think and feel about a situation ultimately comes back to how valuable we perceive it to be.”
“There is a simple realization from which all personal improvement and growth emerges. This is the realization that we, individually, are responsible for everything in our lives, no matter the external circumstances. We don’t always control what happens to us. But we always control how we interpret what happens to us, as well as how we respond.”
“Certainty is the enemy of growth… Instead of striving for certainty, we should be in constant search of doubt: doubt about our own beliefs, doubt about our own feelings, doubt about what the future may hold for us unless we get out there and create it for ourselves. Instead of looking to be right all the time, we should be looking for how we’re wrong all the time. Because we are.”
“If you lack the motivation to make an important change in your life, do something—anything, really—and then harness the reaction to that action as a way to begin motivating yourself.”
“For a relationship to be healthy, both people must be willing and able to both say no and hear no.”
“Without acknowledging the ever-present gaze of death, the superficial will appear important, and the important will appear superficial.”
“We are always interpreting the meaning of every moment and every occurrence. We are always choosing the values by which we live and the metrics by which we measure everything that happens to us. Often the same event can be good or bad, depending on the metric we choose to use.”
“Many people become so obsessed with being ‘right’ about their life that they never end up actually living it.”