My Honest Advice For Gen Z Men

Tips from a 'successful' Millennial who refuses to lie to you.

It’s been in my heart recently to create more messaging specifically directed towards young men. And it’s not only because I now have a son, although that’s made the mission more urgent.

As a teenage rapper starting out in the mid-2000s, my primary audience was boys and men aged 14-25. But as I’ve gotten older and my creative output has expanded beyond rap music to include podcasts, books, and social commentary, my audience has also aged with me. These days, my work is just as likely to be enjoyed by a 60-year-old as by a 25-year-old.

In public, I‘m occasionally stopped by people who recognise me and like my work, whether they discovered me through YouTube, X, Instagram, a podcast, or somewhere else. 80% of the time, it’s a young man telling me that I’ve inspired him in some way. It’s a humbling experience.

We Millennials are hyper aware of the challenges Gen Z is facing because my generation mostly shares them. From runaway house prices, to the ‘battle of the sexes’, to the enormous impact of technology; including smartphones, social media, and now, AI. But instead of writing yet another article lamenting the struggles, I want to share some practical advice based on my almost 39 years of life thus far.

Today, I offer 12 pieces of advice for Gen Z men. Most are not exclusively valuable to this demographic but the reader in mind is a typical 18-25 year old guy living in a Western country, who is feeling a bit lost and unsure about how to get ahead in this thing called ‘life’.

Some of these tips are orthodox and others may be controversial. All are my personal opinions. You’re free to live life however you want.

So, without further ado, here is my honest advice:

1/ Master something useful

As a man, the world will value you based on what you create and provide. You will be compensated according to your competence and usefulness. If you want to earn the respect of other men and the adoration of women, then you must be useful. You can get angry or offended by this, but this is the way of the world.

So, become proficient at something valuable. Hone your talents. Learn constantly and always be improving. Whether it’s construction, songwriting, plumbing, medicine, law, or any other vocation, become excellent at something. Whether you pursue a traditional job or self-employment, this will be a core pillar of your life.

Over time, you’ll want to build a complementary skill stack by building competence in multiple areas. If you’re not sure where to start, communication and sales are always valuable skills to have.

2/ Get in excellent physical shape

Barring any ailment or injury, you are currently experiencing the easiest time of your life to get into excellent physical shape. You have the time, energy, recovery capacity, and hopefully, the motivation to get it done.

Strength train 3-5 times per week and take it seriously. Make your muscles stronger. Build your physical and mental endurance. As an able-bodied young man, there is no excuse to be a fat slob or too weak to lift your own bodyweight.

It’s not wrong to be weak but it’s wrong to voluntarily remain weak.

Most of your peers won’t do this because it’s hard. So if you develop positive habits early, you’ll have a lifelong advantage. Start now and get ahead of the curve.

3/ Live by God’s law

The older I get, the more I realise that The Bible is right about everything. I don’t know your personal religious beliefs, but I can tell you that if you strive to live according to God’s commandments then you’ll avoid a lot of unnecessary pain. You’ll also experience a sense of meaning, purpose, and joy that many of your peers lack.

It’s hard to explain just how relevant this ‘old’ advice still is because it’s not always obvious. But in my observation, the most content and purposeful people are those who live according to God’s commands, even if they’re not explicitly religious people. Those who are miserable, dissatisfied, or constantly in conflict are those who reject and rebel against this timeless wisdom.

Most avoidable mistakes I’ve made throughout my life stemmed from rejecting God’s commands and following the way of the world instead. None of us are perfect and temptation is a constant battle. That said, I implore you not to gloss over this one. It may be the least ‘trendy’ but it’s the most important on the list.

4/ Go on an adventure

As a young man, you need to get some adventures under your belt. Modern society has no widely acknowledged rites of passage for young men. You have to create your own.

If you’ve never left your country, take a trip abroad. If you can’t for some reason, then take a road trip around your own country. If you already have your own family, then you’ve embarked on life’s greatest adventure, but you can still add to it.

In short, don’t be ‘bored’. Bored people are boring.

Do interesting things. Explore. Learn a craft. Write a book. Learn a language. Start a business.

Just do something.

Don’t be that guy who spends all day online complaining about how “life sucks”. No, your life currently sucks, but it sucks because you’ve chosen that through your own action or inaction. I encourage you to choose differently.

5/ Don’t make a serious life-changing mistake

We all make mistakes but there are some that will make your life far more difficult than it needs to be, forever. I’ll speak plainly.

Don’t get a woman pregnant who isn’t your wife. (see point 3 again)

Don’t get a criminal record.

Don’t get addicted to drugs or alcohol.

Don’t get into massive debt.

If this advice is coming too late for you, then take heart, there is still hope. Your life is not ‘over’ and I know successful men who stumbled at all of these hurdles. But they’ll be the first to tell you it would have been easier for them if they didn’t.

Live clean. Stay out of trouble. Life is already hard enough without the extra chaos. Control what you can for your own sake.

6/ Learn about bitcoin

Every generation has a unique, asymmetric investment opportunity. A rare chance to make life-changing money, reach escape velocity, and even create generational wealth if you’re savvy enough.

Baby boomers had real estate, Gen X had the internet boom, but what about Millennials and Gen Z? We have the greatest opportunity of them all. It’s called bitcoin.

Not ‘crypto’… Bitcoin specifically.

Ignoring bitcoin in the 2010s and 2020s is like ignoring the internet in the 1990s and 2000s. A decision you’ll regret for the rest of your life.

I’ll write a dedicated post in the future, but I’ll tell you now that you cannot afford to ignore bitcoin. You’re not smart enough or rich enough.

Take the time to learn about bitcoin and do it properly. Few investments will have a higher reward.

7/ Take yourself seriously

I like to say that you should take life seriously enough to become successful, but not so seriously that you become depressed.

This applies to yourself too. How you present yourself to the world will impact how others treat you.

What does this mean practically? It means that you should look after your body, be disciplined, dress well, be well-groomed, speak confidently, be polite, convey good body language, and be a man of your word.

If you act like a clown, you’ll be treated like one. But if you show up with self-respect, people will reflect it back to you.

Competence breeds confidence too. So if you lack confidence, work on those areas.

Remember, none of this stuff happens overnight. Don’t be too hard on yourself. It’s a lifelong journey.

8/ Work hard and smart

Some people work hard.

Some people work smart.

Do both and you’ll excel, no matter the field.

9/ Use social media for good

Social media gets a bad rap because most people like to blame tools instead of blaming themselves for their poor use of them.

The average young adult spends 3-5 hours per day on social media. Most are using it to fry their brains with propaganda, TikTok slop, and other braincell killing ‘content’.

Be different. Use social media to master communication, connect with influential people, build a valuable audience, learn useful things (health, wealth, mindset), and market yourself, your skills, and your business if you have one.

Social media is an incredibly powerful tool that has helped to mint countless millionaires. Just don’t use it like the average person.

10/ Avoid losers and degenerates

This will offend some people because it’s true. But winners surround themselves with winners and losers surround themselves with losers.

When I say ‘losers’, I’m talking about mindset rather than professional achievement, material success, or social status. I’m not saying you should ditch your childhood friends if they haven’t become millionaires by age 25.

Stay away from people who have a persistently negative outlook on the world, those who are overly critical or mean-spirited, and those who always see themselves as the victim whilst refusing to take any accountability for their life. They will poison you with their toxicity.

Also, avoid people who engage in degenerate or dangerous behaviour, especially if they’re proud of it. This includes drug addicts, drunks, and criminals. Trying to help is one thing, but be careful of how you go about it.

Many decent men have ruined their lives by surrounding themselves with irresponsible people. Good friends won’t put you at risk or impede your attempts to live a better life.

11/ Live within your means

Knowing how to make money is a different skill from knowing how to keep it.

While it’s true that taxation robs earnings and inflation robs savings, it’s also true that millions of people have a spending problem.

In many Western countries, spending more than you make has become ‘normalised’ but that doesn’t mean it’s good or healthy. It’s an unsustainable way of life.

If you are a young, single man, then your expenses should be low. Instead of spending money you don’t have trying to impress random people, learn how to save and invest your income. As you increase your earnings, don’t allow your lifestyle and expenses to inflate at the same rate.

If you can earn a moderate to high income and live well below your means for several years, then you can put yourself years or even decades ahead. Learn how to sacrifice short-term pleasure for long-term gain. Your future self will thank you.

12/ Be adaptable

I don’t know what the world is going to look like twenty years from now, let alone thirty, forty, or fifty. But I know there will be world-changing technologies and major shifts in the global economy, demographics, and culture.

It’s likely that by the time my baby son is an adult, he will work in a field that doesn’t currently exist. It’s unpredictable.

In light of that, learn to be comfortable with change and be willing to adapt. Once you have this mindset and expectation, you’ll be better equipped to deal with whatever comes down the pipeline.

If you are competent, reliable, and excellent at communicating, you’ll always be able to find a way in this world.

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If you’re a young man, I sincerely hope you’ve found this valuable.

If you’re not but have any young men close to you, please forward it to them if you think it could help them. We all need to invest in the younger generations.

The future will go to those who show up for it. So please, show up and do your best. I’m rooting for you.

God bless.

1,
Zuby