Key Themes:
Self-development, Overcoming Challenges, Focus, Productivity
Summary:
Can’t Hurt Me by Goggins demonstrates that anyone can push past pain, demolish fear, and reach their full potential. From a nightmare childhood of poverty, prejudice, and physical abuse, Goggins demonstrates that through self-discipline, mental toughness, and hard work you can change your mindset and future. He is his best case study, taking himself from a depressed, overweight young man with no future into a U.S. Armed Forces icon and one of the world’s top endurance athletes. He is the only man in history to complete elite training as a Navy SEAL, Army Ranger, and Air Force Tactical Air Controller and to set records in numerous endurance events, winning the accolade of being named “The Fittest (Real) Man in America.” By Outside magazine. Goggins makes Rocky look like an ‘also-ran’.
Content Overview:
David Goggins proclaims, “life is unfair and the sooner you accept the sooner you can prepare for it. The best way to approach life is with a “Can’t Hurt Me” mentality”. He created a bulletproof mindset by going to war with himself. His biggest fear being that he wouldn’t reach his ultimate potential. He recognised that most people only use 40% of their potential so he set out his life to ensure he could be the best possible version of himself.
The book covers the following concepts:
- The importance of writing down and processing your difficulties
- Owning the truth of your shortcomings
- Doing all the things that make you uncomfortable
- Choosing any competitive situation, picking your opponent and beating them with excellence
- Visualising and overcoming challenges
- Building your cookie jar of accomplishments and using it for motivation
- Removing the governor from your brain with constant incremental growth
- Scheduling your life to make the most out of it
- Sustaining greatness by staying in constant pursuit
- Writing down all failures, learning from them and going at it again.
Goggin’s life is a testimony to persevering in the midst of extreme challenge and adversity. He is dogmatic in setting a clear vision and goals, and to ruthlessly pursuing each step until the goal’s achieved. Goggins ‘no fear, no surrender’ attitude is inspiring in a world full of self-doubt. He lives his message, enlarging and moving his mental boundaries, welcoming pain and suffering, recognising that we are more capable than we believe and in championing discipline and persistence to accomplish anything you desire in life. Awe inspiring – if not a little scary!
Rating: 10/10
Written by a real-life Superman, this book is an eye-opening view into how you can push the limits of the mind and body.
Readability: 10/10
Goggins style of mixing stories and lessons and being truly open about his successes and failures is so refreshing. His no-holds barred style creates a riveting, if somewhat uncomfortable read.
Does what it says on the tin: 10/10
Yes – by the end of this book, you will have the resources you need to push through and challenge your limits – going beyond what you thought was possible.