The enemy of happiness is complaining. Men don’t do that shit. -Chad Howse
I’m reading one of the best stories I’ve ever read. It’s the story of Adam Brown, member of SEAL Team Six, father, husband, all around great man, and former drug addict, now deceased. (Check it out here: Fearless)
I’ve never read a book that made my eyes water with a weird salty clear liquid some humans call tears. I’ve only had a few stories show me specifically how a man should act. His story is one of incredible highs that were always earned facing unbelievable obstacles. It’s also one of lows that I may never experience in my own life, but lows that he was able to overcome.
It may be the best book I’ve read simply because it’s focused on a man who is what most should aspire to be while also being flawed.
Without ruining the read, it’s a story of a man who had setback after setback yet never uttered a complaint.
Typically at least once a week I venture out to the Rocky Mountains that rest only an hour from my house. When you’re hiking, especially in snow, up a mountain and in weather below -15, there are opportunities to complain.
I hear them.
That weak voice that we all have but I seem to have on steroids mumbles a reason to quit. It offers a reason to go slower, to rest, to explain why I’m not going at a pace that I could be going at.
It sounds logical. It sounds like it’s thinking about my welfare and happiness.
But it isn’t.
It’s a voice that leads men down dark paths of dependence. It’s a voice that prevents us from being happy and being valuable to our fellow man. It’s a voice that the vast majority of people on this planet listen to, and it’s one that makes happiness impossible. (Read This: The Most Important Battle You’ll Ever Face Is Happening Right Now)
It’s this same voice that makes it sound reasonable to sleep in. The very same voice convinces you that it’s a good idea to cheat on your lady. It whispers in your ear that you don’t need to stand by her when she gets pregnant. It shows you an easier path in life, a path that it claims will lead you to happiness, ease.
This voice also holds you back when you want to attack a goal, aim just a bit higher, or do something you’re afraid to do. It justifies not working out. It gives you a reason not to help your fellow man.
This voice is cancer.
It grabs on to the host and degrades its strength without relent.
Adam Brown gave into this voice at times, but found a way to conquer it, own it, remove it from his mind.
When I hike or train or even when my alarm rings at 4:30am I hear this voice providing me an easier path. It’s the path of the masses who live small, insignificant lives devoid of daily meaning, of a greater purpose, happiness, and adventure.
When I give in to this voice it grows stronger and louder, blocking out the part of me that understands that excuses weaken the soul and degrade the host.
When I fight this voice, I am happy.
When I fight this voice and hustle harder, work longer, train more intensely, I’m happy.
Happiness comes from action. It comes from doing what you thought you could not do. It comes from pain, from suffering, from meaning, from accomplishment.
Without accomplishment how can you be happy?
Fight the voice telling you to take it easy, to relax, to quit.
This voice wants you to be a little bitch, a victim, a slave.
Read This: 5 Ways Men Are Becoming Little Bitches
