Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] If you're like most modern men, you've probably felt that quiet confusion, wondering where you fit in in this world. You were born with strength in your bones, fire in your chest, and the instinct to lead. Yet somewhere along the way, you were told to sit down, shut up and be nice. Culture mocked manhood, turned fathers into fools, heroes into punchlines. But here's the truth. The world has never needed strong men more than right now. Men who are grounded, dangerous, dangerous and disciplined. Men who protect, who listen, who love and fight fiercely. If it's your first time here, my name is Michael Riggs. I'm a full time author, entrepreneur, men's personal development and marriage mentor, husband and father of six. And I teach men all over the world how to live fully optimized, leveled up lives. So if that's something you're into, definitely stick around, subscribe to this podcast, subscribe to this channel, wherever you're getting this, because that's what we do here every week. And this episode is about rediscovering those masculine traits. The prime animal, the listener, the lover, the protector, the warrior, and the king. Because being a man isn't something to apologize for, it's something to master. So let's talk about what it means to be a strong man in a weak world. Hello and welcome to the Warrior Kings podcast. I'm your host, Michael Riggs, here to assist you on your journey to living a fully optimized, leveled up life as a man. So again, welcome and welcome back. It's great to be here today. It's great to talk to you today. I have kind of a crazy day today, super busy day recording this podcast episode, a couple of YouTube videos. I have a coaching call in about an hour and. But we're doing it, we're getting it done. You know, busy is good, but I hope that you are well, wherever you're getting this again, if it's your first time here, definitely subscribe. Stick around. Subscribe to the YouTube channel. I put out more content on there, not just the podcast episodes. So if you want to keep up with me, what I'm talking about, what I'm doing, definitely subscribe to that channel. And there are links in the description of this podcast episode or this video where you can find out more about me. You can find my books, all my information is on there, my socials and all that. It's a link tree, so definitely check that out as well. And with all that being said, let's dive right into the topic of the day, which is being a strong man. In a weak world, if you're like most men, you were probably a little bit confused about your place in the world as a young man as you were growing up. And it's kind of weird. We live in a society, this modern society, that doesn't really value traditional masculine traits. It was almost like when I was growing up, especially in my teen years, it was almost like being a man was wrong or something to be ashamed of, you know, with the rise of feminism and things like that.
[00:02:41] And still to this day, like, there are a lot of ideologies that kind of shame, being manly, shame, manhood, things like that. But basically, what I want to talk about today is how important and how necessary it is to have strong men. You know, a lot of us were led to believe that being manly was cringy or stupid or wrong. You know, in movies and television and things like that. Like the. Even heroes these days, in hero movies, the hero is like a goofball. You know, he's. He's fumbling over himself, doing dumb things, saying dumb things. You know, in television shows, the dad was always kind of a goofy, dorky overweight guy, and the mom was always the one holding everything together, you know, through, like, I feel like the 2000s and on. Men are portrayed as goofballs, like goofy idiot lugs who have no idea what they're doing. And that on top of the narrative and the idea that being a man is wrong or being manly is wrong. You know, a lot of us grew up feeling, like, completely lost about our places, the world. Like, who are we? What am I supposed to be? What am I supposed to do? And now a lot of people, a lot of men are waking up to the fact that being strong, being a man, having your masculine traits, is absolutely necessary. Because we see so much of the world headed in this totally wrong, destructive path. And we kind of figured out, it's like, hey, this isn't working, and what's wrong here? And one of the things that is very wrong is the lack of strong men. And like I said, the world needs strong men now more than ever. And it's okay to be a manly man. And not only that, but it's absolutely, absolutely necessary. So what are the traits of a strong man? The first one that I want to talk about today is the primal. Our primal spirit as men still exists within us, even though we live in this comfortable, modern society. Just because everything got convenient and comfortable doesn't mean that we just transformed and became a new being and lost all of those traits. The same traits and skills, those innate things that you would have needed to survive, to hunt, to fight off invaders to your village, things like that, that's still within us. That's the. The primal, the warrior.
[00:04:44] And you can see this primal, wild warrior spirit in little boys. If you have, like, a son or a nephew, if you've spent time around children, you see, the boys are naturally wild. I have three boys myself, and they drive me insane, dude. Like, boys are just naturally wild. It's who we are. It's how we start out. And then at a certain point, you're told to, you know, sit down, shut up, be quiet, stop being so wild. And while some of that is necessary, you know, I tell my kids all the time that there's a time and a place to be wild, and they have to learn how to conduct themselves in certain situations. My point is that they're born wild. We are born wild. And that primal, wild warrior spirit, that's kind of taken away from us when we're kids. You know, a lot of guys make the mistake of expressing that in the wrong ways and getting themselves in all sorts of trouble in life. So the trait of the wild primal, the warrior, that those innate things that you would have needed to survive hundreds, if not thousands of years ago, it's a matter of embracing that, accepting that, accepting that that's a part of us, and then channeling that right ways. Because the suppression of the primal is actually dangerous, in my opinion, because if you don't know who you are inside, naturally, innately, then how can you choose who to be? So accept the primal wild warrior self because it is a part of who you are as a man. The second trait that I want to talk about today is the trait of the listener. The loudest man in the room is often the dumbest man in the room. And the quietest man in the room is often the most dangerous man in the room. Wise men listen more than they speak, and that's why they're wise. And if you're not listening, ultimately you're not learning. And if you're not learning, you will never be the wise man and listen man. See what I did there? Listening is the foundation of my work. Listening plays into every aspect of everything that I talk about. And listening. Training yourself to truly listen will level up every aspect of your life. Your marriage, your business, your friendships, your relationships, your interaction with other people. Training yourself to listen more than you speak improves literally everything about your life. And when I say the loudest man in the room is often the dumbest man in the room. That's because he's never listening. He's never learning. All he sees is his own perspective, his own view of the world, his own opinions. He can't shut his mouth. He's a loud mouth. The wise man listens. Listens to everyone, absorbs information, absorbs different viewpoints, is receptive to others. You know what I mean? So truly listening, learning to truly listen more than you speak is a deeply masculine trait. Now, imagine a table full of people at, like, a dinner party, and they're all having a debate. One person gives their opinion, then another person on the other side of the table gives their opinion. And at the head of the table, there's a wise man, and he's viewing the debate. And this, this debate is actually something that he is very learned in. He knows pretty much all there is to know about this subject. And while these people are arguing and having a debate about this subject, I want you to imagine what the wise man is doing. Imagine him as, you know, gray beard, deep eyes, dressed really well. He's been very successful in life. Is that wise man at head of the table cutting people off, interjecting, talking over other people? Or is that wise man just taking in the situation, listening, sitting stoic, considering everyone else's viewpoints because he knows that any one of the people at the table might have a perspective that he's never heard before. And he will grow in wisdom from that. I'm telling you right now, the wise man at the head of the table is sitting silently. That's what he's doing. He's listening. Wise men listen more than they speak. That's why they're wise. And then when that debate is over at the table, everybody falls silent. Does the wise man give his input and his opinion? Yes, of course he does. But it's after he considers everyone else at the table, their viewpoint, their opinion on it. He considers that, takes in the information, maybe even adjusts his viewpoint on the thing, and then he responds. The loudest man in the room is often the dumbest man in the room. And the quietest man in the room is often the most dangerous man in the room. So listen more than you speak. Speaking of wise men, the next trait that I want to talk about today is the trait of the wise man. Wise men have mostly been lost in our society. You know, back in the old days, wise men led the youth. You know, they. They were mentors, they were guides. They told stories, they gave advice. And wise men are deeply needed to lead and guide others. And how do you Become the wise man by listening and learning every single day, by improving your life, seeking improvement, seeking wisdom, seeking knowledge, getting better and better every single day, and then sharing that wisdom with other people. The wise man is the one who, when someone's in trou or needs help in life, they come to him for advice. And he has the advice to give, and he gives it freely and openly. And ask yourself, how many wise men have I known in my life? If not zero, probably very few, right? Like that guy who takes it upon himself to be the wise man and lead and guide others. That is deeply needed in our society and also deeply masculine. The wise man would lead and guide the tribe. He would lead and guide the youth. You know what I mean? And if you don't want to be the wise man someday or a wise man, or even start doing that right now, dude, what's the point of anything, you know what I mean? Strong men and wise men are needed now more than ever. And another problem is we've lost the concept of initiation into manhood, you know, back thousands of years ago. And some places in the world still to this day have initiations into manhood. But I feel like it's deeply important and we should bring that back sort of. Because if there is no separation from boy to man, we're all just kind of lost, you know what I mean? And a lot of young men, unfortunately take their craving for that initiation and end up getting themselves in trouble as well. Like getting initiated into a gang. It can be interpreted as that. Or, you know, trying to be cool enough for the wrong people, misunderstanding what it means to be a man. The initiation into manhood teaches you how to be a good, honorable, respectable man and separates you, cuts you off from being the boy. Without that initiation, we have basically grown up man boys everywhere who have no idea how to lead or navigate their lives. And I feel like that's a huge detriment. Like, if you don't know when you became a man, how do you know you're a man at all? And are you still attached to boyish things? And that's one of the reasons that wise men are needed and necessary to lead the youth, to lead young men into manhood and teach them what that means. And the next trait that I want to talk to you about today is the trait of the lover. You know, a lot of men think that the soft side of them needs to be suppressed in order to be a manly man, but that's not true. The same heart that would swing an axe into the face of an Enemy is the same heart that can feel joy while while making funny faces at a little child. And the same heart that blossoms into love at nurturing a beautiful woman. The lover does not need to be suppressed in order to be the warrior. You understand what I'm saying? Like, I consider myself a pretty tough guy and I snuggle with my kids, I play with my kids, I love on my wife, I write my wife love notes sometimes and send her sweet texts, you know, the lover doesn't need to be suppressed. It's actually a part of the man, a part of the warrior. There is a balance in everything. The badass can also be the romantic. There's nothing wrong with that. And actually it's very beautiful. Imagine the biggest, baddest warrior dude that you can imagine in your mind and imagine him also being the sweetest guy in the world to the people that he loves. To me, I don't know man, that's awesome. And that's how I live my life. So remember, the lover is one of the traits of the warrior king. And the next trait that I want to talk about today is the trait of the protector. It is a man's duty and responsibility to protect everyone around him, your family and even strangers. It is your duty and your responsibility as a man to be a strong protector. And people who are against men being strong protectors don't live here on planet Earth with the rest of us because it doesn't make any sense. Men should be dangerous. They should be able to protect themselves and protect other people and they should have the means and the resources to be protectors and protect others. I mean, this is a crazy world. Bad things happen every day to perfectly innocent regular people. It's just a hard truth. And it's getting worse actually. I mean, just watch the news sometimes or don't because it's terribly depressing. But this is a crazy world and every man should be ready to protect. Every man should be dangerous on a certain level. I mean, what if it became common knowledge that every man in a room was ready and willing to kick your ass if you were going to do something stupid? How many less atrocities would occur? How many less mass casualty crimes and things like that would happen if it was just common knowledge that every man in the room was dangerous and ready to rush towards danger, not run away from it. And that's why it is so important for men to be protectors and be taught to be protectors, have the willingness to run towards danger and defend and protect others rather than run away like a coward. You know what I mean? Like I said, it is a man's duty and responsibility to be a protector. You need to be a strong protector in your home. You need to be a strong protector everywhere you go. And ask yourself, do the people around you, the people that you know, your friends, your family, your co workers, do they feel safe simply because you're around, simply because you exist? That's what it comes down to. People should feel safer just because you're there. You are honorable, strong, and you're a protector. And they know that. You know, like, my name's Michael. Let's say that I walk into a room like a family gathering. I want people to feel like, oh, Michael's here. Awesome. I can relax. I don't have to feel on edge. Michael's got this. That's ideal. And the next trait that I want to talk about today on this episode is the trait of the warrior. Lost, broken, stupid. Men in this world think that being tough and being a badass is being an.
[00:14:38] And it's absolutely not. The warrior. The true warrior is calm, reserved, patient. He's not getting in people people's faces. He's not asserting himself as a tough guy or always trying to prove his worth. The warrior in a regular, everyday situation, you might not even recognize as the warrior because he's so composed, he's so grounded, he has himself all together. Then if the time comes to be dangerous, then he strikes. The true warrior isn't a who walks around acting like a tough guy with his arms bowed out, giving people dirty looks and stuff. And so many men in this world think that being a tough, manly man is being just that, just a jerk. I mean, imagine a straight up warrior, an honorable warrior who's on his way to charge into battle. Is he being a jerk and trying to act like the toughest guy in the world? Or is he calm, reserved and ready? That's really what it comes down to. So these guys with big mouths who act tough all the time, who are constantly trying to prove their worth as a tough guy, that is not what being a man is. That's not being manly, that's not being masculine. It's just being a little, basically. And I'm sure some of you are glad right now that I always take profanity out of my episode. Sorry, I'm getting a little bit heated here today. But the warrior is grounded, calm, locked and loaded, but holstered. You understand what I'm saying? The true warrior is reserved, patient, even kind, until the time comes to strike. And then the warrior is Unleashed. So basically what I'm saying is, have the ability and the capability to be dangerous, but only when necessary. Those traits are in you, but you don't just put them in everyone's face all the time. That's not being a man, that's not being manly. A true warrior conducts himself more like the wise man. And the last trait that I want to talk about today is the king. Do you think highly of yourself? Like, what is your self worth? Because I've noticed that people don't really see themselves as important anymore. Like, it's kind of taken away from us. We're kind of, you know, you go to school, you get a job, all these things. And like, it seems like the importance of your life is taken out of a lot of people. Whereas in the old days, things like family, lineage, bloodlines, things like that were very important. People had sort of pride in who they were and where they came from and the importance for their lives. So what is your value of yourself? Do you see yourself as sort of a historical figure? I believe that every man should start viewing themselves as a historical figure, you know, because that's basically what we are. It's hard to see that in this modern world when we think of historical figures, we think of, you know, whatever you're thinking right now when I say historical figures. But technically, bro, we are all historical figures, and we need to conduct ourselves as such. You know what I mean? So start living your life viewing yourself, yourself like a king would think of your lineage, your legacy. What are you passing down? What are you going to leave behind? What is your history? What is the story that people are going to tell about you when you're gone? Cultivate a lineage mindset because your life is important. You are important. What's your calling? What's your purpose? What are you going to do? Start viewing your life as more important. You're not just a person in a sea of people that is meaningless and doesn't matter. View yourself as more important than that. And when it comes to your lineage and legacy, start taking that more seriously as well. You know, I don't know. One thing that I recommend all the time, if you've been here for a while, you've heard me say this, but design a family crest. I designed a family crest, and I take great pride in that symbol, you know, because in the past, I was ashamed of my last name. I was ashamed of where I came from for a lot of reasons, you know, But I reclaimed my name. I said my family line, my legacy, my lineage starts with Me. And it starts right now. And that might sound cheesy to design a family crest, but it's not, dude. It's awesome. And consider, what am I leaving behind? What am I passing down? That's the lineage, the legacy. And teach your children to take pride in who they are as well. To be proud of where they came from, who their family is, where they're going, what their purpose is. One of the major problems in this world and what's lacking in men in this world is that people view themselves and others as kind of meaningless, just another person. Begin viewing yourself and even others as more important than that. Start conducting yourself in your life as a wise warrior king. It's up to us to be men and raise the next generation of men to turn this crooked world around. It's getting. Getting really bad out there, guys, and it is up to us to turn it around. And if you didn't know, I wrote an entire book on this subject where I break down and get way more in depth about each one of those traits. The primal, the listener, the lover, the protector, the warrior, and the king. So if you're in the mood for a good book, there's a link in the description of this episode where you can find that, and that's available in ebook, paperback, and audiobook with digital voice. So if you want to dive more into what it means to be an honorable man and how to make that happen, check out my book, Warrior King. So that's what I got for you guys today. I hope you got something out of this episode. I hope this episode inspired you in some way. You know, like I said, we need strong men in this world. And are you going to make the decision to be one? And if you're already doing that, I commend you. That's super awesome, dude. And continue on that path. Do not let this world make you think that being a man is wrong, because it's not only right, it's absolutely necessary. And like I said, link in the description to all my stuff. Go check that out. Definitely subscribe to the YouTube channel. Trying to grow that thing. You know, the audio podcast has thousands upon thousands of monthly listeners all over the world. Actually, I was looking recently, and it's literally all over the world. There are some countries on there that I've never even heard of before. So the Warrior Kings podcast is officially global. So that's super awesome. Thank you all for being here. But the YouTube channel, man, the YouTube channel, I can't get that sucker to grow. I guess it's just harder to grow on there than it is on an audio podcast. That's an excuse I'm making. I don't know, maybe it's my face, but definitely subscribe on the YouTube channel and get out there and kill it. Man, you are going to do great things in this life. There is a great calling and a purpose for your life. You listening to this right now? A life of overflowing abundance awaits you. On the other side of you deciding to make the switch, make the change, and level up every aspect of your life, a life of overflowing abundance awaits you. I love you. I'm proud of you. Now get out there and have a good week. Thanks, guys. Bye.
