Can’t Hurt Me
We have another must read book recommendation to talk about! This one is a bit polarizing in the world, but Kendra and I both were instant fans! It is Can’t Hurt Me, by David Goggins. And there is so much to unpack with this one! This book and this man are truly something, so much inspiration in his story!
“A lot of people think that once they reach a certain level of status, respect or success, that they’ve made it in life. I’m here to tell you that you always have to find more. Greatness is not something that if you meet it once, it stays with you forever. If you truly want to become uncommon amongst uncommon, it will require sustaining greatness for a long period of time. It requires staying in constant pursuit, and putting out unending effort. This may sound appealing, but will require everything you have to give and then some.”
Check out our full discussion in the podcast below, including more of our favorite quotes and how we’ve adapted the advice into our own trading journeys and lives.
Can’t Hurt Me opens with the story of David’s childhood and it was truly so awful. He was raised with substantial abuse in his home, neglect and no real safe space to learn even the basics as a child. And then as an older child, there was racial prejudice and poverty. He and his mother endured more than any soul should ever have to. This brought him to his early adulthood where he found himself an overweight, depressed, single man with a job he hated. Finding inspiration from an infomercial for the Navy seals, he was able to channel an early drive to get it together to gain entry into the services and that really started the next phase of his life! In fact, he’s the only man in history to complete elite training as a Navy SEAL, Army Ranger, and Air Force tactical air controller, and he went on to set records in numerous endurance events including running and pullups. He really painted a very gritty picture of pushing himself to levels that very few humans even consider possible. There were so many parts of this book that were truly incredible and told in a way that held real passion and depth.
Goggins is a serious legend. And a lot of the messages behind his stories are applicable to how we are pushing ourselves to be the best version of ourselves in what we are pursuing! This quote is a legit mantra for us! The shorthand that we refer to all the time is: “I deserve what I’m willing to earn.” But to elaborate more, Goggins says: “It won’t always go your way, so you can’t get trapped in this idea that just because you’ve imagined a possibility for yourself that you somehow deserve it. Your entitled mind is dead weight. Cut it loose. Don’t focus on what you think you deserve. Take aim on what you are willing to earn!” I mean, this is real talk for sure.
This analogy from Goggins in Can’t Hurt Me was one we really loved! “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.” I mean, right?!?!? This is an excellent use of imagery to see all the work that must be done first to really build up something of strength and power that can sustain. With building a trading career or a successful podcast, both have to start with a lot of work for early sparks and then slowly add fuel, diversity, leverage, complexities, depth. But you can’t go in heavy with any of it and expect a big beautiful fire to just happen right off. We love the idea of knowing how large and powerful you want the fire to be eventually, but keep our heads down and start it from the beginning with reasonable, persistent effort and just keep building it.
So much to study from this man. Goggins can be pretty intense. He really pushes himself, at times to a dangerous place physically. But, there is a simplicity and beauty in the core of the messages that he imparts on us in this book. We do not have to be fighting for the same goals. It's about more than that. Whatever you are striving to be exceptional at, the lessons he blesses us with are powerful. Hear them in the way that speaks to who you are. There is wisdom to be gained from such a wide array of people in this world and we have definitely identified many from Goggins that were really impactful for us.
Can’t Hurt Me has a 4.9 star rating on audible with nearly 200,000 ratings!
To listen to this book for yourself through our favorite resource for audiobooks & podcasts, go to: https://www.audible.com/pd/Cant-Hurt-Me-Audiobook/B07KKMNZCH?action_code=ASSGB149080119000H&share_location=pdp
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