BADASS BREAKDOWN - What You Can Learn from Ragnar Lothbrok
In my article on the Vikings, I mentioned how huge they’ve become in pop culture, specifically as a setting for books, movies, TV, and video games.
And there’s no better example of this than the History Channel’s hit TV Series - Vikings. After 6 incredible seasons and a new follow-up series - Vikings: Valhalla, it’s pretty clear that there’s a massive audience supporting the exploration of Scandinavian history and myth.
But for many, myself included, the best part of the show wasn’t the setting or the action scenes. It was a single character - Ragnar Lothbrok, played by Aussie actor Travis Fimmel.
The real Ragnar Lothbrok was a figure of legend, featuring in many of the old Viking sagas. And while it’s unfortunate that we don’t know a lot about him beyond the legends, that ended up being a key strength for the show because it allowed Travis and the writers to put their own spin on the character.
And thank god they did… because we got one hell of a fictional badass.
Travis’ depiction of Ragnar was the perfect blend of dangerous, cunning, curious, and loving. He became a powerful king, and the first great Viking to cross the seas and terrorise neighbouring countries.
With that context in mind, it’s pretty clear that there’s some stuff we can learn from Ragnar. And that’s what this article is all about.
So, let’s go through the principles of Ragnar’s success and see if there’s some stuff you can emulate in your own life.
Curiosity
There was no greater driving force for the events in Vikings, than Ragnar’s own insatiable curiosity.
A perfect illustration of this occurs in the very first episode, when Ragnar says the following quote to his son, Bjorn:
“Odin gave his eye to acquire knowledge, but I would give far more.”
It’s Ragnar’s curiosity that pushes the show forward, whether it’s him wanting to know what’s to the west, or him wanting to see Paris and explore the world.
The characters in the show always refer to Ragnar’s ambition as the driving force, but I think his ambition can only exist because of his curiosity. He was thinking and exploring ideas long before he ever accomplished anything.
But let’s get back to the point - what we can learn from Ragnar. What does curiosity mean for you? How do you implement this in your own life?
Simple. You pursue what makes you curious, even when it’s difficult. Ragnar wanted to see if there was land to the west so he gathered a crew and jumped in a boat.
With that in mind, what things do you find yourself to be naturally curious about? Dive into them. Read books, search the topic up on YouTube, find an expert and ask questions.
Don’t ever let a curiosity fade away without first pursuing it. It could lead to your next great ambition.
Ambition
As mentioned, Ragnar was highly ambitious and sought to achieve incredible things that nobody had achieved before.
And he was successful too. He became the first Viking to successfully sail west and raid England. He became the first Viking to form a settlement outside Scandinavia (although it was later destroyed). And over the course of several seasons, he managed to elevate himself from a humble farmer into a mighty king who many admired.
All of this only became possible because he dared to aim high and pursue the things he wanted.
We saw this in how he interacted with people too. He was rarely afraid to speak his mind, even if it meant antagonising someone else. On top of that, he was quick to pursue the women he was interested in.
Overall, Ragnar’s ambition was a key component of his success. But again, what does this mean for you?
Well, much like curiosity, it’s all about pursuit. If there’s something you want, whether that’s a job, a date, or an experience, go after it as if you’re guaranteed success.
You aren’t, and you won’t always get the things you set your eyes on, but trying dramatically increases your odds. And failing, well that gives you something to learn from. You win either way.
There’s 2 things that are worth mentioning here. The first is that all of this is a habit that can be reinforced. Each time you pursue what you want without letting hesitation or fear get in the way, you’re training your mind to do that again next time. Naturally, this means that it’ll get way easier over time.
The second is that it’s important not to forget about clarity. Pursuing what you want is important, but there’s a big difference between getting rich and building a company that earns $1 million in annual revenue.
The clearer you are, the easier it’ll be for you to pursue your ambition in the first place.
Remain Calm
One of the most intimidating aspects of Ragnar’s persona was that he always seemed to be in complete control of the situation.
The primary reason he came across this way, aside from his strategic brilliance, is that he was almost always calm and composed.
While there were many moments later in the series where he gave in to emotion, generally speaking, Ragnar was able to stay level headed, think logically, and take the best course of action in any given moment.
And while it’s clear early on that he’s trained himself to do this, I think it’s also a direct result of just how much self-confidence he has.
He trusts his own abilities and knows that he’ll be able to handle whatever situation occurs. He’s able to stay calm because he’s capable.
We’ll speak more about that in a second, but first, let’s talk about how to bring a sense of calmness under pressure into your own life. A great way to practice this is to deliberately put yourself in uncomfortable situations and try to remain in control of your thoughts and emotions.
While you can and should try to practise this during arguments or social confrontations, I don’t recommend antagonising people just for practice.
Some more practical ways could include:
Cold showers or ice baths
High intensity exercise
Martial arts training
Anxiety-inducing activities, such as starting conversations with random strangers
Those are some solid places to start but ultimately, you can do anything that makes you uncomfortable.
Now, let’s circle back to capability.
Become Capable
As mentioned above, one of the keys to Ragnar being able to remain calm under pressure, was just how capable he was. Ragnar wasn’t just a skilled leader. He also had plenty of skill in fighting, navigating, strategy, communication, and farming.
And with such a high level of skill in all these areas, why wouldn’t he remain calm? After all, he can probably handle whatever’s going to happen.
Which is exactly the point. That’s why being capable is one of the most important lessons we can learn from Ragnar - AND why it’s one of the 5 Pillars of Badassery. Having a useful skill set makes everything easier. It doesn’t just improve your self-confidence, it also improves your ability to achieve any of the things you want in life.
And that’s one of the biggest reasons Ragnar was so successful in the show. He’d already spent years of his life building a powerful skill set for himself, and by the time episode 1 rolled around, he was ready to go.
That’s the path that we all need to follow. The path of learning, building skills, and becoming capable. It’s how you get basically everything you want in life. It's how you become a badass.