Can’t Hurt Me by David Goggins
Childhood for David Goggins was a nightmare filled with deprivation, discrimination, and physical abuse. Yet, Goggins changed himself from a hopeless, obese young man into one of the best endurance athletes in the world via self-control, mental fortitude, and hard training. He was the only man in history to successfully complete the rigorous training required to become a Navy SEAL, Army Ranger, and Air Force Tactical Air Controller. He then broke records in a number of endurance competitions, earning him the title of “The Fittest (Real) Man in America” from Outside magazine.
He discusses his incredible life experience in Can’t Hurt Me and demonstrates that most people only use 40% of their potential. This is what Goggins refers to as The 40% Rule, and his life narrative shows how anyone can use it to overcome sorrow, face fear, and realize their full potential.
Can't Hurt Me by David Goggins
41 used from $9.24
Free shipping
Amazon.com
- Easy to maintain
- This product comes in a proper packaging
- It is made up of premium quality material.
Former Navy SEAL David Goggins is renowned for his tenacity, willpower, and capacity to endure suffering. Before you scream, “Och, not another gory novel by a bloody SEAL!” and raise your hands, let me reassure you that CAN’T HURT ME is most definitely not like any other books you may have read. The likes of Chris Kyle, Marcus Lattrell, and others were narrating war tales and, to some extent, creating protracted advertising for their particular branch of the armed forces. Goggins isn’t one. In fact, he doesn’t write nearly enough to complete a page throughout his time spent stationed in a conflict zone. He spends a lot of time discussing his military education, but only in relation to the book’s main subject. which goes like this.
Goggins was raised in a violent household. His father was a hustler who mistreated him on a physical and mental level and treated him like a slave. He later moved home with his mother and found consolation in eating a lot of food, which led to his eventual grotesque and extreme weight gain. He also experienced horrendous bigotry because he was one of just a few black students in an all-white institution. His profession consisted of emptying traps set in restaurants that were stuffed with dead rats by the time he was in his late teens or early 20s. His life had become a kind of dark joke at that point.
He had no future and no respect for himself. Goggins eventually came to the conclusion that he must quit seeking the easy road in life, must “find comfort in being uncomfortable,” and always seek to challenge himself in every element of life, to condense a very convoluted story into a few phrases. This introduced him to the SEALs, whose training he had to repeat multiple times owing to ailments and injuries — an impressive feat in and of itself given the rigour of the training both mentally and physically.
Even after becoming a SEAL, Goggins sought out the most difficult training programs he could join, such as the Rangers and the Delta Force, and participated in marathons and then the ultramarathon, a masochistic endeavour. Later, he took part in even more strenuous competitions, like trying to break the chin-up record for the Guinness Book of World Records, which sounds like my idea of hell. However, what sets him apart from the competition is that he accomplished most of this while still having severe congenital defects that he was unaware of at the time.
He was completely floored by this finding and began to wonder, “What if…?” He started to understand that we are mostly slaves to our own perceptions and are capable of far more than we realize because we routinely undervalue our potential and settle for what he terms “the 40%.” He wants to achieve 100% for both himself and you. He is unconcerned with the possibility that this might not be feasible. Not because it will lead him to the goal, but because it is the goal, he seeks the struggle, agony, and pain. Understanding one’s limits expand one’s potential. The “obstacle is the path,” as authors like Marcus Aurelius and Ernst Jünger have observed.
It’s noteworthy not for listing all of Goggins’ blisters, perspiration, and torn ligaments, nor for his accomplishments as a sailor or athlete, but rather for the way, he approaches the key issues surrounding the struggles we all have in life. Goggins could have easily played the victim, but he opted for the route of self-ownership. It’s actually that easy. For instance, when he talks about his obesity, he places the blame on himself rather than his father, racism, or society. We should never use our traumas as an excuse for being lazy, apathetic, cowardly, or abusing drugs or alcohol, according to the man who lives by this maxim in every part of his life…
