I’ve always said that every man should know at least the basics of how to cook, curious as to other opinions.
What is an underrated skill that more men need to learn in today’s world?
r/AskMen
I’ve always said that every man should know at least the basics of how to cook, curious as to other opinions.
Comments
Laundry.
Understanding the true nature of women.
A surprising amount of men and women never learned to admit that they were wrong. Everyone should learn that as soon as they can.
Emotional intelligence and how to be vulnerable in a self-assured and strong way
how the central heating works in the house.
A man should know how to be self-sufficient. How to wash and iron your own clothes. Basic sewing skills are also useful for doing small repairs.
Cooking is another skill that a man should know to feed himself. An additional perk is also being able to woo your partner by cooking for them too, but that’s a side effect of knowing how to cook.
Finally, emotional intelligence goes a long way.
Cooking; being very confident in the kitchen and able to make nutritious meals, comfort food. Hugely positive for oneself and or living with a partner.
Honestly, basic handyman skills. You can save yourself so much money and headache if you can do basic shit around your house yourself. It makes you much more confident in yourself when discussing larger projects too, even if you have to hire someone to do them. I regularly have to do things for other people my age and it baffles me they can’t do basic home or car maintenance.
Critical thinking.
The ability to communicate and respectfully enforce boundaries
I’m not convinced that it’s useful to distinguish between skills that men should know vs women should know. All adults should know how to:
– Clean yourself and your home
– Cook. Have a healthy relationship with food.
– Argue constructively. Compromise when needed, stand your ground when needed.
– Empathize with others.
– Prioritize others joy/happiness/pleasure when it doesn’t compromise your own (or when your own is also increased).
– When in doubt, do good.
How to listen without trying to fix someone’s problem
Humility.
For me i struggle with emotional detatchment, so when i do have friends i feel nothing for them.when im around familiy i feel nothing for them. It makes me feel like a fuckin sociopath sometimes. Even further i feel like im never going to be able to have a partner because of it. Everything is extremely lonely.
Saying, “I don’t know”. It’s extremely powerful when you admit you don’t know everything. It opens yourself to learning.
Being open to learn
Basic carpentry.
Making friends
Conversation that doesn’t involve sports or abusing the weakest in the group.
Everything is available on internet. So finding the right information (rather steer clear of the wrong information) is something that everyone should know.
Listening
Reading comprehension.
It is insane we’re in a digital age and people still have trouble with basic reading, and even less with actually understanding what they read.
Vote.
90 million eligible voters didn’t vote in 2024.
How to shut the f up and not tell everyone your plans.
Especially when it comes to finances.
I am amazed every single day by the low communication skills of so many men around me. They can’t listen, they can’t answer a question straight, they can barely participate in two-way conversations. Even the nice ones.
Personal accounting.
How to apologize and admit mistakes, how to take accountability.
How to comfort someone in need. How to be assertive without being a dick.
Small unit tactics against a cavalry charge.
Having common sense. The severe lack of it is disturbing
Money management, budgeting and living within their means. Applies to women too.
Its insane how many people couldn’t even tell you how much money they spend a month
How to eat 12 Krispy Kreme glazed rings in under 10 minutes.
Courage to stand by one’s convictions.
“A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects!”
-Lazarus Long
How to change a tire?
I have two boys, and I try to teach them as much as I can, but I focus on two things: money management and interpersonal skills. If they can manage their money, they can have a lot of it or a little of it and be fine, and if they can make friends and find a spouse, well–that’s pretty much the whole enchilada.
There’s a lot else I have to teach them–self-respect, kindness, right from wrong, etc etc etc x1000, but I’ve given a lot of thought to boiling it all down, and those are the two things I think are most important. Everything else they can pick up along the way.
I mean this without exaggeration. Every single man in my life is the primary cook in the household. Where are these men that can’t cook?
Open up to other men
All the skills.
No, really. If you’re single, you need to know how to do them all to be a successful adult. If you have a partner, you need to know how to do them all for when your partner is unable due to them travelling, or are sick, or have been injured, or simply have other more important responsibilities (i.e. taking care of a sick parent maybe). Either way, you need to know them. And if you’re in a relationship and there are skills that only you know how to do, take the time to teach your partner. They don’t necessarily have to do them, but they should at least know.
My wife and I made sure our son’s knew how to handle every household chore before they left for college. My youngest even used his ability to cook to ditch his meal plan junior and senior year in college so he could cook his own meals. Saved him thousands in costs even with buying his own food.
Self control
How to just be friends with a woman.
Juggling. It’s fun.
The ability to deal with stressful situations, especially emergencies. I see a lot of posts from people who simply can’t handle what I would consider normally stressful, or even what shouldn’t be stressful, situations – being in a conversation with a woman, dealing with a jerky boss at work, dealing with planning a wedding, a flat tire on the side of the road, etc. They just can’t handle it and shut down or run. That’s not even to mention actual emergencies where they do the same.
I blame the parents, though, not the men. You learn to deal with stress by being exposed to increasingly stressful situations as you age. Sports is one good way to do that but sports have been nerfed. Too many parents are too self involved as well and don’t pay enough attention to kids as they grow up, especially as teens.
Home maintenance. I wish I was one of those dudes that could just wake up one weekend, run to a hardware store, come home, and build a fence or fix my concrete steps or something. I’m just now only barely able to fix very very minor plumbing issues and that’s pretty much it.
Communication
Patience
Very basic understanding of how hand tools work. College and trade programs have to spend far too much time teaching people how to tighten a bolt or use a screw driver correctly. This is the basis for working on or fixing anything.