Born from Millennial mantras like ‘zero f*cks given’ and ‘YOLO,’ the concept of not giving a f**k is becoming a trend in the self-help world. Books like Mark Manson’s The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck and Berger McDonald’s Secrets of Not Giving a F*ck are teaching people how to prioritize what they care about and ignore the noise.

According to Tree Franklyn’s review in the Huffington Post,

At its core, ‘The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck’ is a book about finding what’s truly important to you and letting go of everything else. In the same way that he encourages limiting exposure to mindless distractions such as social media, television and technology, he encourages limiting concern over things that have little to no meaning or value in your life.

In her review, Franklyn says The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life isn’t very subtle, but it is “a brutally honest and much needed reality check about our personal problems, fears and expectations.” Manson dismisses common self-help concepts like seeking happiness and positive thinking, saying “the path to happiness is a path full of shit heaps and shame.”

According to Goodreads, “The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k is [Manson’s] antidote to the coddling, let’s-all-feel-good mindset that has infected American society and spoiled a generation, rewarding them with gold medals just for showing up.”

“Life is essentially an endless series of problems. The solution to one problem is merely the creation of another”

Manson, a hugely popular blogger, makes the argument that improving our lives is based on our ability to accept our weaknesses and limitations, “not everybody can be extraordinary, there are winners and losers in society, and some of it is not fair or your fault.” Basically, instead of seeking feel-good solutions, Manson advises people to accept their fears, vulnerabilities, limitations, etc., so they can start to live a good life. The important thing is embracing the problems you want to have and ignoring the distractions. “Once we embrace our fears, faults and uncertainties – once we stop running from and avoiding, and start confronting painful truths – we can begin to find the courage and confidence we desperately seek.”

In the same vein, Berger McDonald’s Secrets of Not Giving a Fuck: A Humorous Guide to Stop Worrying about F**king Sh*t, and Start Living a Stress-Free Life teaches readers to stop sweating the small stuff and start living a better life. Although not as popular as Manson’s NYT bestselling book, McDonald’s self-help guide encourages people to embrace the fact they can’t control certain things in life, and to not give a fuck about those things.

In Aimee Deem’s review on Goodreads, she claims McDonald’s book succeeds by “bringing light” to our over-stressed lives, including the use of language that flies in the face of our current PC culture.

First and foremost, this book isn’t telling you to stop caring about what’s important. It’s a reminder of what really IS and ISN’T important and the necessity of prioritizing. Many of us tend to sweat the small stuff, which keeps us from being happy, growing and having a fulfilling life.

Both books work under the premise that we are bombarded with problems in our daily lives, and the idea that you can solve all of these problems is insane and will not lead to happiness. Rather than positive thinking, this self-help theory suggests ‘not giving a fuck,’ or rather, not worrying about the little things and the things you can’t control.

Related Reading

The Fear of Missing Out: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Instagram

The last f–king self-help book you’ll ever buy

Giving no f–ks: getting more out of caring less

Not Giving a F*ck Is the New Self Help Trend (and It Changed My Life)