User Reviews
Rating: really liked it
I'm of two minds about this book.
On the one hand, it's an inspiring story of a man who has overcome a lifetime of struggle and proved that you can do anything if you're willing to push yourself. In the first half of the book especially this was a message that resonated with me and made me think about David Goggins as a man to look up to.
On the other hand, it's a cautionary tale of a man who is so stubborn he can not learn from his past mistakes. He is constantly going into situations underprepared and then pushing his body past the point of sanity in order to accomplish a goal and seemingly expecting applause for that. Were he in some life or death situation then I might just give him said applause, but instead, he is always just trying to prove something to himself which is a really unhealthy way to go through life.
Overall there were two main lessons to take from Mr Goggins story. One is that if you really put your mind to a task you can achieve the impossible. The second is that there is nothing admirable about taking the path of highest resistance just for the sake of personal pride. Yes, Mr Goggins has achieved amazing things, but there are others who have achieved similar results in a more intelligent and healthy way.
In the end, I came in exactly on the halfway mark in regards to how I felt about this book and I have rounded up for the sake of not wanting to give this book a 2-star review.
One final note is a comment on the audiobook. Mr Goggins made the decision to insert multiple interludes that feature the narrator interviewing him. These were interesting at first but soon grew really tiresome. They felt really self-serving as each one went along the lines of the narrator expressing how in awe of David Goggins he was, and David Goggins expressing yet again how hard it was for him to achieve his goals. I could have done without 50% of these as well.
Rating: really liked it
OH MY GOSH!!! DAMN. This book was such an unexpected treasure and I am shocked it does not have more ratings. Guys, you need to read this book. It was one of the best books I have ever read. I would recommend giving the audiobook a try. It is part audiobook and part podcast. In between chapters, Goggins actually gives new insight and commentaries on his extraordinary life.
Goggins was not meant to amount to much. He was supposed to become another statistic. Instead, through sheer work ethic and will power, he became a Navy Seal, motivational speaker, and athlete. This is not your typical self-help book. I love reading self-help books like this because you know they came from a person who has lived through the struggle. He is a living example of everything he talks about in this book.
I love and admire Goggins's passion, grit, and resilience. His ability to push past discomfort to be all that he can be is astounding. I know I am raving about this book like crazy, but it really was life changing. Like, OH MY GOSH!!!
Anybody can benefit from this book. For instance, I was reading this book from the perspective of a student who really wants a career in academia. If I wanted to pursue something like that, it would require great self-discipline and focus. This book helped me see how I can push past discomfort to achieve my goals.
I am serious when I say this book changed my life, and I know I will listen to it again in the future. I want to better absorb all the wisdom Goggins has to offer his readers. A phenomenal, life-changing book that everyone should listen to. I could not stop listening to it and I dreaded it being over. You know a book is good when you want it to last forever. :)
Rating: really liked it
I feel like everyone is going to hate me for this review, but I just don't get the love for this book. I thought the first 1/3rd of this book was fantastic--the part where he is growing up is just striking, but then the rest of the book is just a bunch of really amazing physical feats. I have so much respect for Goggins, but the book is all about domination. Dominate your body. Dominate your enemies. "eat their souls." Don't be a "pussy"! His training guy yells at them at one point to stop being a bunch of "vaginas." I mean, come on! Running on a broken foot is super badass and all, but have you ever seen a "vagina" during childbirth? I know they are not literally saying "vaginas" and this book was written a long time ago when sexism was ok, but it's just hard to feel inspired when your body parts are basically the symbol of weakness.
Rating: really liked it
Summary (Throwback Review)
This is a memoir that shows us the real importance of hard work. David Goggins beautifully portrays how hard work, self-discipline, and mental toughness transformed his life from a depressed, overweight young man to the only man in history to complete elite training as a Navy SEAL, Army Ranger, and Air Force Tactical Air Controller.
What I learned from this book 1) The 40% rule The author tells us that most of us are able to use only 40% of our capabilities. He calls it the 40% rule. He tells us that we should be able to go beyond this 40% by demolishing fear, going with full confidence and hard work to reach our true full potential.
"When you think that you are done, you're only 40% in to what your body's capable of doing. That's just the limits that we put on ourselves. The human body can withstand and accomplish a hell of a lot more than most of us think possible, and that it all begins and ends in the mind."
2) How did David Goggins convert a difficult situation like the winter storm to his advantage? The author tells us the situation where he faced a winter storm in the mountains during his fortnight field training exercises (FTX's) with minimal protective equipment and food. His colleagues wheezed and coughed with their eyes wide with terror. He feared that someone would die from frostbite, hypothermia, or pneumonia. He found this winter storm as an opportunity to lead by example. He tells us the importance of coming out of the comfort zone.
He looked at the winter storm as a platform to become uncommon among uncommon men. "No matter who you are, life will present you similar opportunities where you can prove to be uncommon. There are people in all walks of life who relish those moments, and when I see them, I recognize them immediately because they are usually that person who's all by himself. It's the suit who's still at the office at midnight while everyone else is at the bar, or the badass who hits the gym directly after coming off a forty-eight-hour op. She's the wildland firefighter who instead of hitting her bedroll, sharpens her chainsaw after working a fire for twenty-four hours. That mentality is there for all of us. Man, woman, straight, gay, black or white. All of us can be the person who flies all day and night only to arrive home to a filthy house, and instead of blaming family or roommates, cleans it up right then because they refuse to ignore duties undone."
3) Kaizen technique David Goggins is indirectly mentioning the kaizen technique in this book. He tells us the importance of small achievements in life, which will help us achieve big. To know more about Kaizen, please read this book, Kaizen by Suki R. Johns.
"We all need small sparks, small accomplishments in our lives to fuel the big ones. Think of your small accomplishments as kindling. When you want a bonfire, you don't start by lighting a big log. You collect some witch's hair—a small pile of hay or some dry, dead grass. You light that, and then add small sticks and bigger sticks before you feed your tree stump into the blaze. Because it's the small sparks, which start small fires, that eventually build enough heat to burn the whole fucking forest down."
My favourite three lines from this book “Pain unlocks a secret doorway in the mind, one that leads to both peak performance, and beautiful silence.”
“I thought I’d solved a problem when really I was creating new ones by taking the path of least resistance.”
"It's funny, humans tend to hatch our most challenging goals and dreams, the ones that demand our greatest effort yet promise absolutely nothing, when we are tucked into our comfort zones."
What I didn’t like in this book There is a lot of swearing in this book, which some people might find offensive. It is true that the author's language might pump you up and motivates you to push forward over the obstacles. But some readers might think his language as inane and will make them indignant and discontent.
Rating 4/5 Major portion of this book is dedicated to various exercises and how the author was able to do it despite the difficulties. It will be a great add-on to the book The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding: The Bible of Bodybuilding, Fully Updated and Revised by Arnold Schwarzenegger. It enables you to shape both your body and soul and the people's lives related to you.
If you feel indolent in your comfort zone or are currently going through a tough phase in life, this book will help to motivate you and get back on track.
Rating: really liked it
I read this book in one day. Certainly is interesting.
That said, I worry about the message. I agree with his point - to a point. But life isn’t always about just pushing yourself to the point of breakdown. It’s also about acceptance.
In the last chapter, he does talk about that. But I still think he has more to go in his journey in life. He’s accomplished a lot and has done a lot of good and I sincerely thank him for his service - but I hope for his own sake he finds true inner peace.
Until he does, I caution against following his advice blindly. It’s good, but only good to a point. Also rage shouldn’t fuel you - the most successful people transcend that and are fueled by love (sounds cheesy I know but it’s true).
Rating: really liked it
Second Read - August 2022
I revisited this one because I recently realised my life had gotten far too comfortable and somewhere along the line I stopped challenging myself. Reading it is like getting a pep talk. And it had it's desired effect: I've just entered a rather large ultra-marathon. Time to start training!
First Read - March 2020
“You are in danger of living a life so comfortable and soft, that you will die without ever realizing your true potential.” The words of David Goggins resonate with me on a level that I cannot quite describe.
I understand what it is to watch people suffer and fail because they did not believe in themselves. I understand what it is to watch people waste their lives and fuck up time and time again. I will not walk that path.
Motivation is not enough to pull us through. It comes and goes, like the wind. Something much stronger is needed for ultimate success. Some would call it an unrelenting drive. Some would call it obsession. Call it what you will, but what it needs to be is a singular pursuit for a goal that never dies. It must continue on the days when motivation ceases to exist. It must continue on the days when you feel like death and the world overwhelms you.
What I love about Goggins is his brutal honesty. He writes from a position from strength and success, but these traits were only born from weakness and a brutal backstory that gave him the drive he needed to take on some massive challenges.
“I thought I’d solved a problem when really I was creating new ones by taking the path of least resistance.”The truth is, we will only ever get anywhere in life through hard work and even then life might surprise us and leave us in the gutter. But we don’t know unless we try, we don’t know if we don’t give this game everything we have and all that we are. We have one life, so why not spend it trying to become the best version of yourself and trying to help as many people as possible on the way?
I listen to clips from Goggins every morning to keep me sane. I listen before every training run I do. I listen because Goggins has found a method that works and he wants you to try it to.
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You can connect with me on social media via My Linktree.
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Rating: really liked it
I hope you’re ready. It’s time to go to war with yourself.I recommend therapy.
Rating: really liked it
David Goggins made me do it.
Seriously, such a breathe of fresh air. Finally a self improvement book from someone who has been there and is living the life he teaches. And in such a straight forward, no bullshit way. Goggins is brutal, real, and incredibly inspiring. Definitely the kinda book I needed going into the new year. Each time I picked up this book I felt his drive and passion and when I put it aside I put that mentality into my own life and got shit done! I also ran more this week than I have this whole year - who am I?! I am completely and utterly fascinated by this man and his willpower.
Rating: really liked it
Pain =/= gain.
This book is only about pushing past pain, taking pain meds, and constantly being in unbelievably stupid situations purely because he thinks "Pain" = gain.
There are multiple times where if others were not around to save him, he would have died.
I gave the first 25% of the book a benefit of the doubt that Goggins would get smarter, but as the book and his life progressed what you're reading is a story about someone who is never prepared, and always just pushing through pain even to his own detriment. It feels like he never actually learns.
Goggins will never not take the opportunity to say that he was the first to do something.
Never winning, never being the 1/40 warrior that he talks about and that's all because he does not see anything more then having to constantly push past pain as his only ability.
I'm sure others will think that what he pushed through and have achieved are amazing feats of mental toughness. His pain tolerance is impressive, I won't disagree there but the fact that there's multiple times that he would have died if others had not been there for him just baffles me as to why that's a good thing?
I think there are some good techniques and things that this book teaches about pushing through pain and being tough but those are not unique to this book and are better found elsewhere.
Rating: really liked it
I'm divided on whether or not I like this book.
I'll preface this review with acknowledgement that Goggins survived a brutal, abusive childhood, and that kind of upbringing will certainly mold the choices a person makes as an adult. Through all of the audiobook, I kept thinking to myself that Goggins consistently sought pain, and not necessarily because I felt he needed to prove himself to... his peers, himself... God. I think he was unwittingly drawn to pain because that's what he grew up with and it was familiar and comfortable to him. I know that sounds like an oxymoron - pain being comfortable. But that's all he knew. He knew how to cope with it and handle it.
His being drawn to pain certainly pushed him to excel in painful situations - most specifically physical. I'd be interested in hearing more about his life on the emotional side, as the majority of the book is spent talking through how he overcame physical barriers and pain (many of which, after childhood, were voluntary choices he made.) As he's divorced twice, there's something going on back there on the emotional side that he clearly wasn't comfortable with sharing with his audience, and I'm sure he's probably still working that out for himself.
Really the best part of the book for me was towards the end when he finally saw a small shimmer of humility when he was thinking he may be dying. I saw full re-emergence of his ego, however, when he turned his stretching routine into yet another physical challenge he had to master.
Everything is an internal fight with him. And for some people, that's fine, and maybe that's the only way they can push through life. And I agree that comfort zones kill. Maybe not physically, but they can certainly kill a person's spirit. I don't think we're meant to live our lives in comfort 100% of the time. There's a drive in all of us that wants us to test our boundaries and do something more. He's got a lot of great advice on how to nurture that drive instead of put it back up on the shelf.
However, I'll disagree with the mindset that we're here on this planet to compete and battle - either other people or ourselves. Goggins is a type A personality which means everything has to be a competition with him. He's discontent unless he knows he's "better than". He's never "enough" in his heart. At least not at the point of his finishing the book.
I disagree with his view on a punishing higher power, as well. But that's another story, and he only dedicated perhaps .02% of this book to anything spiritual. But I feel that view of a punishing higher power feeds his "I'm not enough" mindset and fear.
Being a woman, I'll put it out there - I found the constant derogatory insults towards women highly distasteful, and I just about ceased listening to the rest of the book altogether when I heard him use the phrase "I need to hem my vagina." Goggins, you have no clue there. I can deal with all the rest of the cursing - that's life for our amazing, hard-working soldiers, but it's still disappointing even in this day and age that men still need to describe feminine traits and feminine body parts as points of weakness. I'm not sure if your nod to the women wildfire fighters was enough to take away the overall disdain you seem to feel towards women that was sprinkled throughout the rest of the book.
So, this is a good book, to me, if you're specifically looking how to push yourself past painful physical barriers (and physical can mean actual athletic sports, or writing a book.) I don't think this is a great read, however, if you're wanting to learn how to love and accept yourself and handle life on life's terms. Acceptance of not always getting your way and being willing to let go takes some real mature thinking.
Rating: really liked it
Fascinating man who overcame a lot (to put it lightly) to achieve insane physical feats. However, I cannot abide by his extreme mentality and largely found his approach to be awful advice to live by. I struggled to get through this book.
Pushing himself to the point of kidney failure, stroke, broken bones, extreme pain and suffering, is Goggin’s way of proving that he’s “a hard motherfucker” and the ultimate “uncommon among the uncommon”. That’s great and all, but there is chapter after repetitive chapter on how he shows up to seriously grueling endurance races completely underprepared and predictably suffers the consequences. I quickly lost patience with this. The man chases pain for the sake of pain, and has no concept of training smart.
The tone of the book reeks - REEKS! - of toxic masculinity. Of an unwillingness to show weakness or vulnerability, of needing to constantly be chasing displays of machismo. Sprinkled throughout are degrading comments like “I knew I was being a whiny bitch, but I knew I had to hem my vagina” and many references to “pussy” to mean “weak”.
I understand that the man has serious demons, but he’d be better-served nurturing himself with therapy, instead of stuffing those demons under situations of extreme physical and mental suffering that he voluntarily constructs for himself.
Rating: really liked it
"The Can't Hurt Me" mentality!
"From the time you take birth, you become eligible to die... You also become eligible to become a warrior. I hope you are ready! It's time to go to war!!"Can't Hurt Me is all about, as the subtitle of the book states, mastering the mind and defying the odds. This book is the inspiring story of David Goggins - his struggle during childhood, hardwork and perseverance to become a Navy Seal and Army Ranger, faith and belief in himself while overcoming severe health challenges - and many more life lessons.
Just a heads up : this is a straightforward and raw account, hence be prepared for multiple usages of the f*word.
A should-be-read memoir."The most important conversations you have are the ones you have with yourself."
Rating: really liked it
Roger that.
Can’t Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds is powerful. David Goggins is a former veteran, a Navy SEAL, and an army ranger, who overcame many obstacles in life and is now known for his incredible athleticism, competing in endurance events worldwide. He shares his life story in unapologetic detail and I was hooked.
Goggins had to endure a hellish childhood with an abusive father. He witnessed awful things at such a young age. After school, he joined the military, holding many impressive positions over several years. He retired and now competes in grueling athletic events, including long-distance runs of 100+ miles. His story about BUDs training for the Navy SEALs was intense. As a listener, I was exhausted just thinking about the rigorous intense physical activities required day in and day out. It was a very real example of mind over matter.
Goggins shares lots of his own experiences throughout the book. The biggest themes are holding yourself accountable, to the highest standard on a daily basis; maximizing your potential; and stretching your mind, to its limitless bounds. A large portion of the book focuses on physical fitness improvement. While undoubtedly inspiring, you don’t have to complete BUDS training or even want to run marathons to implement these principles — They can be applied to many facets of life. A couple of favorites:
- Know the terrain. Know yourself. And know your adversary, in detail.
- Abandon the path of least resistance and do not let your desire for comfort rule you.
Adam Skolnick did a good job as the audiobook narrator, and Goggins chimes in frequently as well. Initially, I personally didn’t care for their added discussion, though I didn’t feel it detracted from the book. Over time, it actually grew on me. I enjoyed the blunt, informal tone throughout the book too — It kept things relatable and the message is motivating.
Can’t Hurt Me is a book I’ll think about for a long time, and one worth revisiting for a solid dose of self-discipline and inspiration.
Rating: really liked it
This book should be called ‘How I got famous for making really stupid decisions that ruined my relationships, body, and mental health.’
This book can be very entertaining. Especially the behind-the-scenes brutal accounts of navy training. But seriously, Goggins’ story is one of seemingly ignorant PTSD and extreme inconsistency. His only consistency is hyper selfishness. What kind of fool runs on broken legs? This one. What kind of guy says ‘don’t let me motivate you’ or ‘I’m not an example’ and then spends the rest of the book trying to get you to emulate his steps? This guy. What kind of guy says he lives for nobody but his own opinion, but then clearly makes so many huge decisions on the basis of what others will think of him? Goggins.
Can’t believe where the book ended up - so close to an accurate portrayal of judgment before God. Yet so far. He’s a man desperately in need of healing and forgiveness. But he doesn’t seem to know it at all.
I went through waves of being entertained and annoyed the whole book. If you want to be entertained by extreme physical and relational folly, this book’s for you. But it seems pretty clear to me that he’s a model fool.
Rating: really liked it
Do you have a 5k run or a marathon that you want to run?
Are you overweight, obese and trying to lose weight?
It can be done but it’s not easy!
If you think you’re a badass, I’m pretty sure you’re not David Goggins badass!I did a buddy read with my husband for
Can't Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds.
We’re trying to eliminate the excuses for being lazy and not working out during the day.
Well, this book did the trick! After listening to the audiobook, I can now admit that I am a soft bitch and need to be more mentally tough to get to my goals!
Who is
David Goggins?
He's a Navy Seal and ultra-marathon runner that makes us mere mortals look like lazy slobs. If there’s a tough race or competition in the world, this guy has done it!
Do you have to be as extreme as this guy? No, you don't but you'll get something from this book on being more mentally tough. He has tapped into his mind and body to become extraordinary. He shows you that your excuses and being mentally tough is a challenge, but it can be done.
The athletes and competitors that can do the impossible are just like you and me. They just have the mental toughness to go out when it’s 4am, pouring buckets of rain and run 10 miles.
Can't Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds is part audiobook and podcast. The narrator,
Adam Skolnick will read the chapter and then he will talk to
Goggins about the chapter while getting more insight on his life and details to becoming more extraordinary.
I really liked the format!
The only thing that might concern you on picking this book up is the language. Lots of cussing in the book but it wasn’t a problem with me. If you have a trucker mouth like I do, you’ll not have an issue with the colorful language.
