The Nobility Of Manual Labor

I have to thank Johnny Grube of Wildmantraining.com who got me thinking about how so many men nowadays go their whole lives without having to do manual labor of any kind and what this means for those men. It’s no secret that we have a generation of soft “men” in the West. This softness has spread to every level of society sure the upper classes have been more affected than the others but they all have undergone a softening. While the reasons for this are multifaceted (such as hormone disruption, mental programming, and much more) one big reason is tied to the lack of manual labor.

Without work man goes soft in both body and mind. There was a time when even the aristocracy of a society spent more time outdoors than your average working class man today. From teaching much needed life skills (that are lacking in today’s culture) to strengthening the body manual labor is an essential part of every man’s life. And while weight lifting and doing a martial art are great they aren’t a replacement for learning the trades and having a decent knowledge of how thinks work and how to fix them.

The Nobility Of Work

Though manual labor has been derided as being “below” most people (especially those with college “educations”) the fact of the matter is there is nobility in working with your hands. Hopefully everyone reading this has created something with their own hands and knows the pride that comes from it. Regardless if it was building a deck, working on a home, or something as simple as constructing a duck blind. There is something to be said for doing something yourself and a pride to be had in that. There’s not a man on this earth who wouldn’t feel like less of a man if he couldn’t work with his hands.

There’s a reason for this. It’s like not being able to fight or hunt, basic skills that has kept mankind alive throughout the centuries. There’s nobleness in calloused hardened hands. There is nobleness in knowing simple things like how to split wood, change a tire, and just being able to do basic things. To survive in today’s marketplace no doubt you have to learn sales, technology, and other skills that weren’t needed before but this doesn’t mean forget timeless skills that men will always need. Hard work is needed to succeed in anything and there’s nothing like manual labor to instill a hard work ethic (especially when instilled at a young age).

Testosterone & Manual Labor

One thing Johnny has talked about that got me thinking about this whole thing was the link between men not doing manual labor. Like I said the decline of Western man is a multifaceted thing but lowered testosterone levels is perhaps the number one reason and one major reason for lowered testosterone is a sedentary lifestyle. Being out in the field, swinging an axe or hammer, or simply being on your feet all day in the sun goes far to keep a man sharp in both body and mind. A weight room as great as it is is no replacement for the fields, woods, or factory.

Between the strengthening of the body that manual labor does or simply the fresh air manual labor can does much to increase a man’s testosterone and keep him strong and sharp into his later years. Anyone with farmers in their family knows what I’m talking about. Point is manual labor is made to be part of a man’s life. It’s good for not just our bodies but also our souls. Working the land and being able to get what you need from it is something to be proud of, not looked down upon. Plus for the soft it’ll help to make them more of a man and harden them up.

Learn The Trades

While you don’t have to neccesarily go and start a plumbing business you should have a working knowledge of the trades. For starters if you can’t change a damn tire learn right away (you’d be blown away how many don’t know how to do this). Know how to fix simple things, even if you don’t have someone in your life to teach these things to you just go on YouTube and look them up. You can learn all sorts of things that’ll save you time and money as well as more important give you a sense of pride and accomplishment in what you do. If you have children teach them the value of hard work young, the younger the better.

Though manual labor is not “needed” anymore to live, meaning you can make your money and outsource it all to others. You should never get so divorced from yourself and your manhood that you can’t roll up your sleeves, dive in, and get shit handled. Learn the basics and make sure your sons know them as well. Simple and easy. I don’t care if you’re a billionaire CEO. Manual labor needs to be a part of every man’s life and fabric. Never forget the nobility of manual labor and of having a calloused hands and a clear mind.

If you have any questions you would like to see answered in a future post send them to me at charlessledge001 (at) gmail (dot) com. If you found value in this post then I would encourage you to share this site with someone who may need it as well as check out my books here. I appreciate it.

-Charles Sledge