Real Men Consume Less and Create More

"Create more, consume less": it's a slogan blogger Brett McKay picked up at a middle school graduation, but he thinks that -- at this time of crisis for American men -- it could help boys transition into manhood.

Boys are consumers. The problem is that men aren't outgrowing this passive role. Instead of creating, they go on consuming. They may not depend on Mom and Dad anymore (although sadly, they often do), but they're still dependent on stuff for their happiness. Consuming clothes, movies, video games, cars, parties, fast food, and even travel to make them happy

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He's not the first man to argue that Do it Yourself (DIY) and working with your hands can be good for the psyche (i.e. books like Matthew Crawford's Shop Class as Soulcraft or Mark Frauenfelder's Made by Hand: Searching for Meaning in a Throwaway World), but McKay -- founder of the blog The Art of Manliness -- is one of the few who makes this explicit connection between DIY and masculinity.

In the video below, McKay explains how consuming less and producing more (whether in a garden or a painting studio) could be good for the soul:

• Can DIY become tradition or is canning just the new sewing?
• Downshifting explained: the happiness wealth disconnect
• How to build a backyard greenhouse
• An urban victory garden