Latest news with #selfactualization
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
How Democrats can make "Speaking with American Men" a success
After losing big with men under 30 in the 2024 election, Democrats have spent $20 million on a program called 'Speaking with American Men' (SAM) to help figure out which 'spaces' they need to show up in to fare better with this demographic. A smart place to start would be the gym; the booming men's fitness market is expected to more than double by 2029, growth driven by men under 25, who are joining gyms almost twice as fast as women. And as SAM co-director Ilyse Hogue and I wrote here last year, the right has done an excellent job parlaying young men's healthy interest in exercise into an embrace of reactionary politics. But it doesn't need to be that way. Across the political spectrum, craving the surefire sense of accomplishment the gym provides is an age-old response to an unstable political and economic environment. And historically, championing physical fitness with appeals to American manliness has not been a partisan issue. If the SAM initiative is going to net the Democrats more than online snark, its leaders should appreciate that this history suggests the party's path forward might just begin at the gym. In the vast digital universe targeting young men, the idea that exercise is imperative to self-actualization is inescapable. It's most obvious in fitness-focused influencers like Ashton Hall, whose six-hour 'morning routine' recently racked up nearly a billion views on X. But plenty of public figures with grander concerns insist exercise is integral to achievement. Take Andrew Tate's obsession with 'plummeting masculinity' or Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s quest to make America healthy again. A commitment to early-morning workouts, Tate advises, is Step 1 to asserting alpha dominance. Performing pullups, as the septuagenarian Kennedy does shirtless at Gold's Gym, is proof of political power. Such encouragement spans the political spectrum. While it's become more common to see Republicans like Paul Ryan or Pete Hegseth flaunting their fitness, Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden often promoted exercise as a personal and policy priority, and former Rep. Jamaal Bowman went viral in 2023 for benching 405 pounds while wearing a Working Families Party T-shirt. Online, progressive streamer Hasan Piker expounds on his diet and fitness regimen as readily as he opines on capitalism and climate change. He recently met up with fellow streamer and 'big Trump guy' Bradley Martyn at a rare site of common ground: the weight room. When Piker, with mock seriousness, announced to his followers that he and Martyn hoped to inspire 'the young men out there who are lost — who feel anchorless, rudderless — by lifting some heavy weights,' he articulated an idea that long predates the so-called right-wing 'manosphere.' For more than a century, in moments of upheaval that raise questions about what it means to be a man, men have reliably sought a sense of agency in exercise. When the world feels confusing or out of control, make a man of yourself, beginning with your body is an especially enticing proposition. If, despite one's best efforts, landing a rewarding career or a loving mate proves elusive, then why not capture a sense of self-efficacy at the squat rack? Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg's billions may be out of reach, but attaining their newly sculpted bodies only takes some discipline and protein shakes. The social and economic roots of the American man's fixation on fitness date to the early 20th century. As urbanization and compulsory education laws kept middle-class, mostly white boys in schools staffed by women, psychologist G. Stanley Hall worried in 1904 that they were being weakened by the 'social instincts of girls' and prescribed rough sports such as wrestling and boxing to counter what he called the dangerous 'repressions of modern life.' Although the white-collar careers to which upwardly mobile young men aspired conferred superiority over the sweaty masses, this prestige came at a cost: so-called 'desk diseases,' as 19th-century doctors styled them, marked by sloped shoulders and sagging paunches. And President Teddy Roosevelt touted 'the strenuous life' as a way for young men to resolve the paradox of progress. During the Depression, as men of all classes reckoned with the emasculation of joblessness, bodybuilder and entrepreneur Charles Atlas successfully peddled an inexpensive mail-order muscle-building regimen that promised to unlock 'he-man living' and 'make you a new man.' To combat concerns at the time that caring for one's body and appearance was somehow effeminate, Atlas promised men that a muscular physique would inspire adoration in women and command the respect and fear of other men. The unprecedented prosperity of the 1950s, with its many desk jobs, televisions and time-saving appliances, ushered in yet more anxiety about the softening of the American male — among members of both major political parties. Worried that the sudden glut of leisure risked rendering boys unfit for military duty, Republican President Dwight D. Eisenhower's administration launched what would become the Presidential Council on Youth Fitness in 1957. 'We are not a nation of softies,' Vice President Richard Nixon warned at its launch, 'but we could become one.' In the December 1960 issue of Sports Illustrated, President-elect John F. Kennedy, a Democrat, amplified this concern that 'soft Americans' who languished on the sofa, or as spectators in the stands, represented a national security and a moral hazard. A vigorous American man, he insisted, must be on the move — a lesson he reinforced in countless photos of him swimming, sailing, tossing a football or challenging the military (and his brother Robert) to hike 50 miles in 20 hours. The tumult of the 1970s, with its 'stagflation,' second-wave feminism and general loss of faith in government and the military coincided with another wave of male fitness boosterism. 'If neither our doctors nor the government can be expected to bring us good health, to whom can we look?' wrote running proselytizer Jim Fixx in his 1977 bestseller 'The Complete Book of Running.' 'The answer is plain: to ourselves.' Given the many physical and mental benefits of exercise, the latest push for men to self-actualize through fitness is hardly a negative — or necessarily partisan — development. Experts agree that exercise is close to a 'magic pill' for its many health benefits. Gyms have also never been more inclusive: Weight rooms welcome women and men frequent studio classes. It's progress, surely, that no one needs the reassurance Arnold Schwarzenegger offered in 1977, that 'men shouldn't feel like f--s just because they want to have nice-looking bodies.' Yet destabilizing moments like the one we are now living through reveal an enduring dynamic: Men are encouraged with particular urgency to get moving when their social status feels in flux. Generation after generation, boosters sell men the irresistible idea that at the gym, if nowhere else, the sweat of your brow is all that stands between you and success. It's an understandable, even healthy impulse, and Democrats would do well to start rebuilding their political muscle quite literally, by seeking to identify with the guy at the gym. This article was originally published on
Forbes
07-05-2025
- General
- Forbes
Do Your Goals Seem Elusive? Try Wild Courage
. Pixabay You've no doubt heard many of the popular self-actualization quotes: 'If your dreams don't scare you, they're not big enough.' 'Replace fear of the unknown with curiosity.' 'It's not because things are difficult that we do not dare, it's because we do not dare that things are difficult.' 'A ship in harbor is safe, but that's not what ships are built for.' Courage is an unspoken theme in all those sentiments. Interested in stretching your wings and flying to new heights? Jenny Wood offers a master class in WILD COURAGE: Go After What You Want and Get It . She's a New York Times bestselling author, speaker, former Google executive, and former Harvard Business School researcher who says 'real success isn't about following the rules or waiting your turn.' So, how does she define wild courage? 'Think about something you want,' she says. 'It could be a job, a relationship, a project. Then think about what gets between you and achieving that goal.' Jenny Wood . In training thousands of people on success, leadership, and influence, Wood says the same theme kept coming up when people felt stuck: their relationships to fear. Fear of failure. Fear of uncertainty. Fear of judgment of others. 'Wild courage is the process of feeling that fear and taking action anyway,' she says. 'It's the set of tools that help you go after what you want and get it.' Woods says wild courage helps people 'reclaim nine traits from their negative shackles' and teaches them how to apply those traits in a savvy and sane way to supercharge their success. Weird: Win as you or lose as 'who?' Selfish: Be your own champion. Shameless: Kick imposter syndrome to the curb and self-promote with ease. Obsessed: Push, persist, and perform at your highest level. Nosy: Get curious to network confidently and learn from others. Manipulative: Build influence with empathy and manage up like a pro. Brutal: Draw lines and stick to them. Embrace the power of no. Reckless: Err on the side of action and take healthy risks. Bossy: Steer others to success, even if you're not in charge yet. What's going on in our society these days that makes the need for courage such a hot topic? 'Given the rapid transformations we're all experiencing—politically, economically, and with AI—there's more fear than ever,' Wood says. 'But that's actually great news because fear is in your control. Fear, you can work with. Muster the wild courage to chase what you want in life, and you'll discover a vital truth: whether you succeed or fail at doing any one thing, you'll never feel as purposeful, powerful, and alive as when you're pushing through fear toward the success and joy on the other side. Everything you've ever wanted is waiting for you on the other side of fear. It's right there waiting for you.' The WINN Mindset Wood talks about what she calls the What I Need Now (WINN) mindset and how it can help a person with career navigation. 'Align yesterday's ambitions with today's circumstances,' she advises. 'Just as your long-term vision informs your day-to-day decision-making, your day-to-day experiences should shape your vision. Changing course often feels selfish because your plans inevitably involve other people. However, everyone's needs and desires change over time. What you wanted may no longer resonate.' As a strategy, she says, WINN means continuously coordinating your short-term experience with your long-term vision. She provides an example: Last year, you did the laundry. This year, your partner's firm went fully work from home while you're still commuting five days a week. WINN: renegotiate the split of household chores. You said no to a third date. Four months later, you're wondering if you made the wrong call. WINN: call them and book date number three if they're still open. Two years ago, you set your heart on becoming a manager. After a short stint to cover a leave, you've decided management isn't for you. WINN: find another ladder to climb. . . Wood says she is saddened when smart, talented people don't advance because they hold themselves back. She cites a study from the University of Leeds showing that 75% of employees lack confidence at work. 'People limit their full potential when they're too scared to ask for the promotion, too nervous to stand out, and mostly, too hesitant to identify and share their strengths with leaders in their organization. Being 'shameless' begins with owning your strengths.' Shameless begins with owning your strengths, she says. 'Embrace and highlight what you can offer. Ask yourself: What's a struggle for others but easy for me? What am I passionate about? Where have I made the greatest impact? If these questions bring up negative self-talk, flip those defeatist thoughts on their head. No experience? I bring a fresh perspective. Don't know the internal politics yet? I have an unbiased view of the players. Every weakness is a strength from a different perspective. It's on you to figure out how to leverage everything you've got.' NAP Traps On the job, how can people avoid NAP (not actually promotable) work without seeming uncooperative? 'NAP work is made of up of tasks that aren't part of your job description and won't advance your career,' Wood says. 'Aim to limit them to 15% of your time at work. Examples: taking notes in the meeting, organizing the offsite, planning the team dinner, scheduling a VP's day in your office location, leading the well-being pillar, and so on. Wood suggests reviewing your tasks and writing down everything you've been asked to do that isn't explicitly a part of your job description. 'Moving forward, add to that list of NAP traps whenever you're given a task that needs doing but not necessarily by you . Keep this list where you will see it when deciding priorities.' To politely decline these tasks without seeming uncooperative, she advises, 'point to more strategic, higher-profile work you have on your plate: increasing customer satisfaction by 12% or leading the AI integration plan for your division.' . . How does Wood help people stop worrying about what others think of them? 'As mentioned earlier, my biggest blockers are three fears: fear of uncertainty, fear of failure, and fear of judgment of others,' she says. 'In my 18-years at Google, I battled these daily. There was the fear I wouldn't impress my boss in our weekly one-on-one. Fear that I would say something stupid in that big meeting full of VIPs. Fear no one would ever forget the presentation I flubbed. Cool and collected Google exec on the outside, a lot more going on on the inside.' What finally helped her push past the fear was naming it in the moment and remembering the 'Spotlight Effect'—the idea that no one was lying awake at night thinking about her mistakes because they were too busy worrying about their own. 'The truth is,' she says, 'everyone's got their own spotlight on their head. Name which of the three fears you feel, remember the Spotlight Effect, and you will push past the fear to the joy and success on the other side.
