Brett McKay is the founder and editor-in-chief of The Art of Manliness, the largest independent men’s lifestyle magazine on the web with over 10 million monthly page views. Brett earned a degree in Letters (with a focus on Classics) from the University of Oklahoma and graduated from the University of Tulsa College of Law. He lives with Kate, his wife and AoM’s Executive Editor, and their two children in Tulsa, OK. When he’s not talking or writing about manliness, Brett enjoys barbell training and spending time outdoors. Favorite Success Quote “Be useful, not important.” Key Points 1. Focus on Being a Man of Value  We live in a society where everybody wants to be “Somebody.” And while there is nothing inherently wrong with ambition or a drive to become successful, in our modern, ego-driven culture, this desire for fame and recognition has begun to supersede our desire to provide real value as men. We are more worried about our status on Facebook and the number of fans we have on Instagram than the quality of the work that we are producing on a daily basis. And it’s gotta stop. Success is the result of doing your work and doing it with excellence. It’s the result of trying to find ways to serve others, instead of constantly serving yourself. And the sooner that we can embrace this axiomatic truth, the sooner we will be able to live richer, healthier, and more abundant lives. It’s not about you. It’s about the impact you have on others and the legacy that you leave. 2. The Worst Rarely Happens  Mark Twain is often quoted as saying I am an old man and have known a great many troubles, but most of them never happened. And while the quote itself might have been uttered tongue in cheek, it’s relevance to our modern lives cannot be understated. Yes, you are going to face challenges in your life, you will face difficulty, adversity, pain, and suffering. It’s an inevitability. But the vast majority of your internal worries will never come to fruition. As a society, we spend time locked inside of our heads, mentally plugging through the “What if’s” and “Oh no’s” until our blood pressure is through the roof and our anxiety levels critical. To be an effective risk taker and leader, you must learn to discern between genuinely possible worst-case outcomes and unlikely disasters. Yes, if you quit your job to go full time with your side hustle, it is possible that you might lose everything, go bankrupt, become homeless, and eat out of garbage cans until Elon Musk saves humanity. But it’s not very likely. Chances are, even the worst failure would simply require you to find a new corporate job, live at home for a while, and rebuild yourself from the ground up. There is an element of risk in everything worth pursuing. And as a man, you must learn to cull your fear and worries and realize that despite the perceived risk, the big, scary, life-altering disaster of an outcome that you fear is unlikely at the least and downright laughable at most. 3. Toughen Your “Mental Hide”  With the wide reach of the internet, it is all but impossible to do anything of worth without attracting negative criticism and denigration. Keyboard warriors and airsoft commandos abound, each of them offering a different (and graphically detailed) opinion about why you suck and should immediately quit at your current endeavors. It doesn’t matter whether you are creating products, offering information, or detailing your journey through life… If you do anything for long enough, you are going to have to haters. So what is a man to do? While it might be uncomfortable and difficult, there is certainly merit in accepting and responding to constructive criticism that offers genuine value to you and your brand. However, the vast majority of the emails, comments, and posts that you will find littering your inbox and social platforms are not constructive, they are simply the result of disgruntled individuals with an abundance of time and a lack of common sense. In these situations, y