stay in the fight
There’s a fight going on right now, and most men feel it. It’s not in the headlines or on a battlefield, but it’s deep in the bones. It’s the tension between what we’re told masculinity is and what we know it can be. Culture is swinging hard—sometimes with reason, sometimes with lazy generalization. We hear the word “masculinity,” and it’s often paired with “toxic.” That wears on you. It gets confusing. But we can’t check out. We have to stay in the fight.
Being a man today takes grit—but not the kind that just grinds through pain and calls it strength. We need emotional intelligence. That doesn’t mean becoming soft or passive. It means learning to name what we feel instead of stuffing it down. It means knowing when to speak, and when to just be present. It means not letting anger be the only emotion we feel safe expressing. It’s the difference between reacting and responding. One leaves a wake of damage. The other builds trust.
There’s strength in that. Not fake strength. Not puffed-chest, “I’ve got it all together” strength. Real, grounded, tested strength. The kind that can hold the weight of responsibility and not collapse. The kind that knows failure isn’t final. The kind that stands up for truth, even when it costs something. And it always costs something.
We need each other, too. This whole lone wolf idea—it’s killing men. Quietly. Slowly. A man cut off from community is a man walking wounded. We weren’t built to do this alone. We need spaces where we’re not posturing or performing. Where we can say, “I’m struggling,” and someone says, “Me too. Let’s keep going.” That’s not weakness. That’s brotherhood.
Look, culture’s confused. It’s afraid of strength that’s misused and skeptical of tradition that’s been abused. Fair enough. But we don’t fix that by stepping back. We fix it by showing up differently. By being men who lead with humility, who serve with courage, who live with integrity. Not to earn applause, but because it’s right.
So if you’re tired, good. That means you’ve been fighting. Don’t quit. Keep showing up. Keep listening. Keep learning. Keep leading. Don’t let culture’s confusion make you doubt your design. Masculinity isn’t the problem—it’s the absence of healthy men that is.
Stay in the fight. For your wife. For your kids. For your friends. For your own soul. The world doesn’t need less masculinity. It needs better masculinity. And that starts with men like you who refuse to sit down, shut up, or drift away.
You don’t have to be perfect. Just be present. Be honest. Be strong in the right ways. And remember: you’re not alone. See you at the next event - Wednesday, July 16.
