The Man You're Made to Be

Book excerpt: What makes a man? The answer used to be easy. You chopped wood, you wrestled bears, and never showed an ounce of emotion. Today, thankfully, we’ve started leaving some of those ill-fitting gender stereotypes behind. But what replaces them? How do you make sense of masculinity in a world of mixed messages? If you’re a young man growing up in this world, then you’re invited on an adventure (well, more of a ramble). We’ll explore the issues that confront us as guys - from conducting relationships and processing emotions, to handling money and behaving online. There may be footnotes. Drawing on personal stories – mainly about the sorts of mistakes you don’t have to make – and pointing at a role model who provides a much better blueprint for growing up well as a man, this is an entertaining, easy-to-read way to ask the biggest questions: who am I, and why on earth am I here? Martin Saunders is Deputy CEO of Youthscape.