Real Men Quit by  Duncan Bhaskaran Brown: A Review

“This is f*$king brilliant!” – Aaron Phipps, Paralympic gold medallist for Real Men Quit

Quote, “look, it’s really important for me to clear this up now. I don’t force people to do things. I can categorically state that I have never attached electrodes to anyone’s genitals except my own, and that wasn’t nearly as much fun as I was hoping. Over the coming pages, you’re gonna learn three things about me.

I have questionable sense of humor. My references are obscure, and I like to celebrate. So let’s party. In fact, tonight, let’s party like his 1999.” – From Real Men Quit

Gentlemen, welcome to another book review here on my site. As you know, I read a lot of books and so this is something I do because I love to share these things with you guys. ’cause I get to read not only for work, but personally. So today we’re reviewing Duncan Baskar Brown’s Real Men Quit. The reviews on this thing were amazing and had to be edited because of that great British humor.

But gentlemen, if you’ve ever. Drank. This is a good book to read. You don’t have to be an alcoholic. You don’t have to be a drunk, you don’t have to have a drinking problem. Maybe you don’t drink at all. But I can honestly say not only did I thoroughly enjoy reading this book, but if you miss my interview with Duncan on The Fallible man now the Driven 2 Thrive broadcast, whatever you want to call my old, my podcast. If you miss that conversation with Duncan, you absolutely missed out because that was just a phenomenal conversation. I thoroughly enjoy talking to the man, and I learned a whole lot. What you guys can’t see is I got bookmarks hanging out of this book all over the place.

Like I put so many post-it notes in this book as I was reading it because there’s just a lot of great information. Now the short version of this is it’s five stars. Now, it’s probably not a giant surprise if you’ve read any of my book views or listening to the book views here on the site. And the sort simple truth of that is I read a whole lot of books for my podcast.

I read a whole lot of books, period. And I’m not gonna waste you guys’ times by doing book reviews. On books that sucked or that I didn’t enjoy. I only bothered to do reviews and share reviews on books that I absolutely believe would bring value to you. So there’s a cheat list. If you look at my book reviews, if you look at the ones I’ve actually bothered to do and I review on, I’m gonna recommend the book.

But this one is gonna knock your sock off socks off, guys because. This book on his front is about putting facts behind alcohol. But one of the things I really enjoyed about Duncan’s book and talking to Duncan was that Duncan doesn’t say drinking is bad. He doesn’t say You have to give up alcohol. He doesn’t even try and tell you that you should give up alcohol.

In fact, let me read another quote from the book quote. “Look, I’m not gonna force you to do anything. My operational philosophy doesn’t include waterboarding. And anyway, you’re a grown ass man. You make your own decisions. When the time comes, you can make up your own mind. You can decide what the right path is for you.

Maybe it’s stopping drinking, maybe it’s moderation, maybe it’s unabashed, hedonism, whatever it is. When the time comes, it’ll be your choice. But for now, just don’t worry about it. I’m gonna offer you some ideas that might challenge your assumptions, and maybe it will change your thinking, and then maybe you’ll choose some new actions.

Whatever happens, you make up your own mind.” – Real Men Quit

Duncan doesn’t make an argument in his book for giving about call. Duncan reaches out to your mind. He asks you to think. He asks you to ask questions. That’s all it is. We all have a fascination with alcohol in our culture. Drinking is a normal way of life and it’s very different than other cultures.

Drinking is far more accepted in a lot of European countries as a normal part of life, but it is. Is viewed much differently and is treated much differently. Being drunk is not celebrated. Partying until you pass out is not celebrated. In fact, you are rather looked down on for being drunk in public or being losing control and being smashed.

As we would say here in the US it’s a very different cultural outlook on alcohol in many different countries where alcohol is actually much more readily accepted. But in the United States, our marketing is targeting all the way down to children. From the time you are a child, tall enough to walk on your own.

American marketing targets us with a barrage of ads on the senses, making us think that alcohol is amazing. Duncan brings up some very significant points in the book about the way we ev alcohol. It says real men drink, right? Just look at all the macho reasons for drinking great nights, less stress, high jinks, amazing sex.

It’s what proper blokes do, except that’s rubbish. Alcohol doesn’t make you tough. It makes you weak. It doesn’t remove your stress, it causes it behaving like a lad is preventing you from becoming a man.

I had to compliment the man right off the bat when I first. I jumped on the podcast to talk to him because quite honestly, this was one of the most entertaining books I’ve ever read. It was also like I did not know that you could write in such a way to speak to men with such clarity. Like this challenged me as a men’s coach, as someone who makes content specifically for men.

I have read this book and reread this book. Because his writing style appeal appears deeply to men. Like I was utterly amazed. Like I, I, off camera just barraged him with questions about how he managed to write so clearly, so focused on men. I mean, there are all kinds of jokes in here that are hilarious.

As you read through the book and you will laugh, you’ll read his stories and chuckle out loud. You’ll read his jokes and just roll your eyes like he has the number. This book was, feels like it was written just for me. It is like sitting at the pub. Swapping stories with an old mate and I, I use the British term because Duncan is British.

Actually I think he’s Irish or Scottish, sorry Duncan, if you hear this, and I got that wrong. But he lives in Great Britain and so he speaks with a very heavy accent when you talk to him. And he uses British terminology or British English terminology when he is talking to him. And he uses it in his writing as well.

And so that’s what this feels like this book really feels like you were sitting down with your friend at the pub having a conversation. It even has some nice little pictures that are hand drawn in here. And he even came up with, with an acronym for this sole purpose of being able to use it in the book because the visual representation, the drawing he made to go with the acronym is just cool.

And when his. Publisher asked him about it. He called it the three bullet holes of change. He said the publisher asked him about it and he is like, oh, yeah, no, I made it just because it’s. Absolutely a cool graphic to represent it. Like that’s his sense of humor. He thought through the book through so far that he managed to build an acronym that worked for his book just so he could make a cool graphic with it.

Guys, I kid you not, I was sitting in the living room reading this book. When I first read the book, I just sat down to read it. I’m usually reading multiple books at a time and. Like I got through the first chapter and it was just me and my wife sitting there and without meaning to, I just blurted out, fuck.

Yeah. Because the book spoke to me on such an incredible level in the first chapter. Like he wrote this book in a way that talks to men, which is like just so amazing. But what Duncan does, if you read this book. Real men quit. What you’re gonna find is you’re not gonna find brow beating. You’re not gonna find the same arguments.

You’re not gonna find moral debates over alcohol or being drunk. You’re not gonna find ethical questions. You’re not gonna be browbeat by faith or by social standards. In fact, what he’s gonna do. And what this book does is it actually ask you to look at cold hard information and challenge the assumptions that you’ve been taught since the day you could walk.

Real Men Quit Tackles Big Marketing

I was actually incredibly disturbed going through the book because it was shocking to me because Duncan has done absurd amounts of research. Going through media, finding out how barraged you are to drink. He actually audited shows on Netflix with his group that he’s built to show you per episode like he’s done the research of per episode.

How many alcohol references are both verbally? Visually and implied in various shows that are very popular in Netflix. There are hundreds of references to alcohol and drinking and having a good time, and Dr. Being drunk. And almost every episode of anything Netflix makes for an adult and even for like junior high and elementary age kids, this book is a challenge.

To look at all of the built-in conclusions that you have been taught, and let me reiterate that this book proved to me that you, we have been educated to want to drink. We have been influenced to believe that alcohol will do amazing things for us throughout the entirety of your lifetime. Everywhere you go, everything you watch.

You have been conditioned since the time you could walk that alcohol is something you wanna be a part of.

Duncan Challenges that Assu assumption in this book, and as he said at the beginning, he says at the end I’m not telling you, you have to quit. I’m simply pointing out the hypocrisy of the message that marketing sells us. About alcohol and trying to show you and get you to realize and think for yourself.

Is this really everything? It promises. Alcohol promises a whole lot. It promises that we’re gonna be popular and attractive, that we’re gonna have a good time, that we’re gonna enjoy the life that will be better with alcohol. But Dunking goes through the whole book and. Step by step, reason by reason.

Example by example, and Duncan was drunk for years. He tears apart an argument that this would shoved down your throat, your whole life. On top of that, it’s just fun to read guys like I truly, truly think this is one of the most entertaining books I’ve read in years. I have post-it notes all through this book.

I highly recommend this. Whether you think you have a problem with alcohol or whether you’re just truly curious, you might just actually be interested in just how much programming is being stuffed down your throat, because if they could do this with alcohol, something that is a toxic substance to your body, you have to start to question.

What else are they throwing? Marketing at you? Marketing is a multi-billion dollar empire. The alcohol brands, the tobacco brands that all spend hundreds of millions and sometimes billions of dollars a year to try and condition you to want their products, and they do it exceedingly well. I didn’t understand how well until I read this book, absolutely a must read, five out of five stars, no questions asked.

Real men quit. It may not get you to quit drinking, and I’m not asking you to out of pure defiance, I’m sitting here drinking bourbon while I’m doing this review. It may not get you convince you to quit alcohol, but it’ll get you to look at the way you drink or drinking in a totally different light, and it’s never bad to question something.

But if nothing else, you’ll start to question. Everything that you’re shown every day through media and what they’re actually trying to convince you of. You’ll look at the world of marketing in a totally different way. It will transform the way you understand marketing and the way you think about everything you’re blasted with from the latest gadgets like iPhones, taboos.

Guys, check out this book, Real Men Quit Duncan Bhaskaran Brown. Catch you guys in the next one.

“My time in the Special Forces was often spent with my head in the bottom of a pint glass wishing the madness would stop. Duncan takes you on the “reality check” rollercoaster and when it comes to a stop, you are left with a solid plan of how to beat alcohol and be the best healthy version of you. Do yourself a favour, read the book.”— James Menday, SAS Veteran

My Interview WIth  Duncan Bhaskaran Brown’s