You learn a lot going through life, or at least you should. I’m happy that I’ve been able to experience many different things and try many different things out. I’m glad that something like a love of reading was instilled in me at an early age and aside from having a hard work ethic instilled in me as well made the biggest difference. Without these things I wouldn’t be anywhere close to where I am today.
And I know that for sure. In that (and many other ways) I can say that I am truly blessed. It was those two things that opened up so many other things for me in life and have allowed me to take actions and learn things that have made equally huge differences in my life and where I am going in it. And without those first two things being instilled who knows if I would have found the other things.
Those two things have given me a huge “advantage” (might sound weird saying something like having a strong work ethic gives one an advantage but it does). I hope that those two things are something that you are instilling in yourself (strong work ethic and love of reading) because they make a world of difference. But with that being said there are some key other skills that have made a huge difference in my life that I have to share with you.
Most Valuable Skill I Ever Learned #1 – Money Making Skills
Now that might seem like a broad term or maybe you’re even chuckling to yourself right now thinking “If there was such a thing wouldn’t everyone learn it?”. After all how many people do you know that have money issues, struggle with it, or at the very least could do with a little more. My thought would be probably just about every single one. Yet there is such a thing as money making skills are they’re seldom taught or understood.
The money making skills that I’m referring to won’t be any secret to readers of my work. Those skills are sales, copywriting, and marketing respectively. Master just one of these skills (and truly master it) and you’ll never hurt for a dollar a day in your life (if wanted). At the very least get a halfway decent knowledge of all three. This isn’t that hard to do. Have a deeper breadth of knowledge in these skills than 90% of the population and you’ll be good.
Even reading a single book on any one of the subject will put you above 50% of the people out there. Make an in depth study of these skill and all that comes with them. The ROI is exponential. If you have children then teach them these skills and show them why they are so valuable. Don’t tell them to go to college to make money, that’s nonsense, learning these skills will be more valuable money wise than anything else out there. They given me freedom and peace of mind, which are two rare commodities especially in today’s world.
Most Valuable Skill I Ever Learned #2 – Fighting
Again a broad topic but covers a wide area. This could be anything from point shooting to boxing to general bushcraft skills and more. One of the natural professions of man is to be a warrior and since we are born into this world we are born into struggle, into the fight. These things not only give one a sense of security and confidence in oneself but they are also great metaphors for how the world works.
A man must be brave and courageous and I know of nothing else that develops these skills better than hand to hand fighting (real stuff not katas or point sparring). Like I’ve said elsewhere it humbles the arrogant and gives strength to the meek. If it were up to me all children would be required to do a year of boxing, BJJ, wrestling, muay thai, and MMA in school. We’d have a much stronger citizenry to say the least (of course school isn’t about helping children so its a moot point but still, one can dream).
Anyways this is something that filled a hole in my life that absolutely positively nothing else had or could. It’s a unique thing for a man, for a human. It’s needed and your mind, body, and spirit function much better when one participates in it. It’s an aspect of me that can’t be developed even though other great things in my life. Like I said it’s unique and one of a kind and in my opinion needed for every man.
Most Valuable Skill I Ever Learned #3 – Story Telling
Story telling is another one of those primal things that you just can’t get anywhere else. I once underestimated the power of fiction and stories but since learning about the craft never will again. Fiction is more powerful and instructive than non-fiction could ever hope to be (not that both don’t have their place of course). Like I mentioned above a love of reading was instilled in me at a young age.
At first this was mostly fiction. When I picked up reading I noticed that things (especially social situations) that were hard for many others were easy to pick up for me and only later would realize the many cognitive benefits of reading. But that’s not the biggest thing here. Later when learning about fiction writing (AKA story telling) I learned a ton about human nature and how man works (same with money making skills).
Not only that but I was also developing an artistic side of myself, which I also feel is important. Sort of like with the fighting, art is something that can’t be scratched by any replacement. You need to real thing. We all have a warrior and an artist aspect to ourselves that should be developed for full and best (not to mention most fulfilled/happiest) functioning. Story telling does this for me.
Learning Valuable Skills
I can’t say that the most valuable skills that you find in life are going to be exactly the same as mine (though I’d imagine they’d be close) and regardless all of the above are skills that are essential for men to at the very least have a grasp of. We all need to make money and the money making skills (sales, copywriting, and marketing) and the quickest, most efficient, and most effective means of doing so.
We all need to be able to fight and defend ourselves which is why developing fighting skills and at the very least having a basic grasp of them is essential for a man. And finally we all have an artistic side that we need to find a way to express, for me it’s story telling/writing fiction for you it might be something completely different. But like the title says these are the 3 skills that have made the biggest difference in my life. Take what you can from this and make your own life what you’ve always wanted it to be.
If anything I said here interests you I’d highly recommend you check out The Ultimate Alpha Collection which is a compilation of 16 of my books for the price of 5. It covers everything from being a man to making money to getting the right mindset to getting girls to fighting and more and is a resource no man should be without. Pick up your copy today!
-Charles Sledge
