The Top 11 Skills That Every Aspiring Badass Should Learn
If you want to become a badass, step 1 is to become capable.
I know I beat this drum a lot but that should tell you just how important it actually is. Think about it:
James Bond. Capable.
Bruce Wayne. Capable.
The Rock. Capable
You get the idea.
Basically anyone that young men look up to (real or fiction), got to that spot by building an incredible skill set. Which means you need to understand which skills to learn AND you need to be able to learn quickly so that you’re able to build talent in many areas.
Covering how to learn is an insanely complex topic so we’ll go over that in a separate article. But knowing what to learn is actually pretty simple - I’ve got a list for you below.
So, let’s dive into the top skills that every man should learn!
*SIDENOTE
Keep in mind, you don’t necessarily need to become world class at any of these. Only a very small number of people can become world class in anything, and you don’t need to reach that level to become truly badass.
This is just about reaching a general level of skill. You want to be better than 80-90% of people, which’ll actually take way less time and effort than you think.
11 Manly Skills to Learn
1. Physical Fitness
It goes without saying but a badass needs to be capable physically as well as mentally.
This means spending time building up your strength, endurance, and aerobic capacity. The most effective ways to do this include weightlifting, calisthenics, running, and other cardio-intensive sports.
“It is a shame for a man to grow old without seeing the beauty and strength of which his body is capable.”
2. Writing
While fitness being on this list probably wasn’t a surprise to anyone, I expect writing will be. After all, when people picture badasses, they don’t imagine them sitting down at a desk, scribbling notes and editing paragraphs.
However, writing is one of the most powerful skills to learn, and one that’s underestimated for the effect it can have on your communication skills.
Skilled writers have to learn how to communicate clearly and efficiently. This often means trimming away the fat and reorganising thoughts to present them in an order that makes more intuitive sense.
Because of this, taking the time to develop your writing can also have a substantial effect on your conversational abilities and just generally make you more articulate.
“There’s nothing more powerful than someone who’s articulate and who can think and speak.”
3. Cooking
Another one that’s probably unexpected - some skill in the kitchen is a must-have for any man that wants to get the most out of life.
Besides the fact that it’s impressive, it’s also extremely important for your health.
Processed foods are filled with all kinds of horrible fats and sugars that can have a disastrous impact not just on your health/fitness goals, but also on your brain health in general.
Eating a diet filled with whole, non-processed foods will have a huge impact on how well your brain functions… which improves literally everything else.
Learn to cook with these kinds of foods and you’ll be smarter and more effective in everything you do.
4. Car Maintenance
Personally speaking, I don’t give a fuck about cars. I know plenty of people who do and more power to them, but they’ve just never interested me.
With that said, I still absolutely believe that you should put some time into learning basic car maintenance. By this, I mean changing tyres, checking oil, and performing basic diagnostics.
The reason I think this is so important is simple - you never know when you might need it.
Let’s say you’re on a road trip and happen to be 5 hours from the nearest town. A car breakdown is going to mean a long-ass wait for help. Much easier, and better for anyone you’re with if you can take care of it then and there.
5. Martial Arts
A lot of people will have a strong reaction to this one. Some people love the idea of learning martial arts and will be all for it, while others see it as pointless, under the idea that you should always avoid fighting anyway.
And that premise is certainly on the right track - you should always look for ways to avoid a fight. Trained martial artists know this better than anyone. Unfortunately, it’s not always possible.
It’s much better to be prepared to defend yourself should the circumstances arise. Not only that, but people who know they’re able to handle themselves in a fight tend to act with the kind of confidence that discourages others from picking a fight with them in the first place.
For those who are interested, keep in mind that there are a wide range of different martial arts you can learn and they all have their strengths and weaknesses. This is why the most successful mixed martial artists have trained in a range of different styles.
For you, the most important thing is to find one you think you’ll enjoy. Here are some of the more popular options:
Boxing
Kickboxing
Muay Thai
Karate
Wrestling
Brazilian Jiu-jitsu
*SIDENOTE
It’s super important to remember that learning a martial art takes time. Becoming skilled requires huge amounts of instinct and muscle memory, which doesn’t happen overnight.
For this reason, stay away from self-defence courses that claim they can teach you how to protect yourself in only a few classes. This is inaccurate and you’re setting yourself up for failure.
6. Hunting and Fishing
Although this may be a controversial one due to the inherent violence, I do believe that men should know how to hunt for food for several reasons.
The first, just like with car maintenance and martial arts, you never know when you might need it. You hope you’ll never have to use the skill but if you need to, better to be ready to go.
Secondly, it gives you a greater degree of respect for the food itself. You’ve seen where it comes from and you’ve been involved in the process. Because of that, you’ll be more appreciative and less wasteful.
7. Survival Skills
Along the same lines as hunting and fishing, survival skills are something that won’t come up very often, but when it does… you really want to be ready. Because of that, it’s one of the most important skills to learn.
In case of emergency (or just to show off while camping), you want to know how to:
Find food and drinkable water
Find/build shelter
Start a fire
Stay warm in wet conditions
Navigate in the wilderness
Tie knots
Give first aid treatment
With all of these relatively basic skills under your belt, you’ll be much more likely to keep yourself and others alive in times of emergency.
8. Social Skills - Persuasion
For these last few, we’re going to move into the world of social skills and communication. And persuasion is first up to the plate.
Essentially, persuasion boils down to understanding the other person and convincing them that it’s in their best interests to give you what you want.
In a negotiation, this means presenting the deal as WIN-WIN - i.e. both parties benefit from the deal. In sales, this means showing the person that the benefits of the product or service will outweigh the money they would have to spend to get it. On a date, this means showing the woman that she’ll have a better time with you than without you.
In all of these circumstances, not only is it helping you get what you want, but it’s also giving the other party something they want too.
*SIDENOTE
Unfortunately, persuasion does have a bit of a negative stigma attached to it. It often gets thrown into the same pool as manipulation - trying to get what you want by taking advantage of someone.
However, this couldn’t be further from the truth. As outlined above, true persuasion is all about giving them what they want or what they would benefit from. It’s about helping others as well as yourself.
9. Social Skills - Flirting
Every badass you’ve ever seen on TV will have at least one scene where they’re suavely flirting with a gorgeous woman.
This is because flirting is all about confidence. A capable man is always going to carry himself as if nothing phases him. Naturally, this will carry over into his interactions with women as well.
If you want to be confident as well as capable, it’s important to build up your flirting skills. Get comfortable teasing people and approaching conversations with a playful demeanour.
10. Social Skills - Leading
Why is it that badasses are almost always leaders in their field of choice?
It’s because there’s a lot of overlap in the qualities required to be a badass and the qualities required to be a leader. They both demand confidence, competence, and a lot of integrity.
With that in mind, leadership is one of the most vital skills to learn for becoming a badass.
And the first step is to be the first to act. This might mean speaking up when everyone else in the room is silent. It could mean being the first to make a joke or poke fun at something. Or it could mean being the first to take the plunge and do something difficult.
Whatever it is, getting into the habit of leading from the front and bringing others alongside you is a hugely important step towards badassery.
11. - Social Skills - Dancing
Finally, we’ve got more of a lighthearted one.
As I’ve mentioned many times, confidence is one of the keys to badassery. And there’s no better way to display confidence (or insecurity for that matter) than through dancing.
Learning to move out onto the dance floor and bust some moves without giving a fuck what other people think, is an incredible skill for building and showing confidence.
Now, although it would be awesome to learn actual dance moves, this one is less about your skill and more about your commitment. Most people would be best off actually getting some dancing lessons, but if you’re able to head out there and not care what anyone else thinks, then your skill matters a whole lot less. Just have fun with it!
I know this list might seem overwhelming. Odds are, you’ve only built real skill in a few (if any) of the skills listed above.
But that’s okay. We all have to start somewhere and as I mentioned earlier, it really doesn’t take much time to build a decent skill set.
Just remember to make it as manageable for yourself as possible. Pick one to work on at a time and focus on progressing. Do that, and you’ll be a badass before you know it.
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