We’ve stated this over and over again: Men today are getting softer. This is the main reason why we created the Man Institute (The secondary reason being sweet internet fame). The following is a graph which illustrates the 3 groups of men that are around today: Manly Men, Minimum Requirement and Average Men. Obviously there is a group for less than average men, but I was too disgusted by that group to even include it.

Take a look at the graph and I’ll explain it below:

The Average Man:
The first thing to keep in mind is that this is the average man in today’s society. The average man has not always been this way. He was once a magnificent male specimen. There was a time when the average male would have been similar or the same as the manly man on this graph; however, a form of wimpy evolution has occurred in many men over the last few years, ruining the high level of manliness in the average male.

The first thing you should notice about the average man’s graph is the decline in manliness after age 10. You’ll notice that in all three groups, there is a drastic incline to about 2-4 man points by age 10. So why is it that the average man experiences a decrease until about his 20’s? It’s essentially due to the influence of school and pop culture which appeals to this age group. MTV, Much Music, etc. are major contributors to the manliness decline. Such popular channels depict men in clothes originally designed for women with fake tans and pierced ears. Sure these people are successful, but at what cost? If I were to give “P-Diddy” a man rank, it would be about 1.5. He has money and gets women; that’s it. And I’m sure the latter wouldn’t happen without the former.

After age 20, most men seem to realise how ridiculous they are and straighten out. As they progress to age 30, men begin to develop their old man strength. Old man strength is a manliness only acquired by age. Originally it evolved to assist men of the past to beat their wives and children. Now it remains and develops as a way of showing your kid that you own his ass. No matter how tough you get, your old man is always tougher.

By age 40, Average Man has acquired his old man strength. He probably has a kid by now and is forced to be manly, hence the increase in manliness from age 30. Although he has acquired full old man strength, his lifetime of trendy jackassery has permanently affected his man points causing Average Man to plateau at around 4-5 man points. Significantly less than a man should.

Minimum Requirement:
The Minimum Requirement Man is fairly self explanatory. This is the minimum amount of manliness men should strive for.

Minimum Requirement Man starts out the same as all men. Even by age 10, he’s only slightly ahead of Average Man. This is because age 10 is where a man makes his choice to strive for a life of manliness or a life of being looked down on by real men and laughed at.

By age 20, Minimum Requirement Man has already hit 5 man points, 2 full points higher than Average Man at the same age and as manly or manlier than Average Man will ever be.  This is why a man’s teen years are so important. These are the years where he learns to play sports and get fit, gets an education so he can avoid simply swinging a hammer for a living and ultimately avoids the trendy pansies who are constantly looking to destroy young men’s manliness.

By age 30, Minimum Requirement Man has gotten manly enough. He’s around 6-7 man points which is enough to be called a true man. He has begun to develop his old man stength and has pretty much plateaued. He will remain this manly for the rest of his life unless he does something drastic to decrease it. Normally, though, 30 years of manliness causes a man to stay manly until the day he dies.

The Manly Man:
In our opinion, here at the institute, we feel that the minimum requirement isn’t sufficient. Yes we can call you a man for achieving minimum status, but in our eyes 2nd place is just a fancy term for losing. If you walk away from this site having learned anything, we hope it is to never aim for anything less than the manliest man alive. Obviously this goal is extremely improbable, but not impossible. By aiming to be the manliest man and taking steps towards becoming the manliest, you almost certainly set yourself up for an above average man rank. There is no shame in not becoming the manliest man as long as you make the top 10.

Notice Manly Man’s man rank by age 10. It is a full point above the previous two groups. This is because your path to be the manliest man begins before age 10. Some people feel this is a lot of pressure to put on such a young man, but it isn’t. A young boy is still a male. He will have to fight for man points in his life. The difference between Manly Man and the other two is that Manly Man realises the importance of being bad ass at this young age. He then begins playing sports early, exercising and all other things that are manly before most other kids. This is largely the choice of the child; however, the man of the house also has a big impact on early Manly Man’s decisions.

By age 20, Manly Man has already become manlier than Average Man or Minimum Requirement will ever be. He is at about 6-7 man points and rising. At this point the increase becomes fairly constant until he plateaus at around 9-10 man points. Manly Man develops his old man strength like the other two (except it’s a far stronger old man strength) at around the same age.

So there it is right in front of you. You can probably spot where you are on the graph and I’m guessing if you found us searching something like “how to be manly” or “what makes men manly,” then you aren’t happy. Fortunately for you, you can break the graph somewhat. Think of smoking. Say you smoke for years and years then decide to quit and take on a healthy lifestyle of exercise and proper diet. Your body repairs itself somewhat, but there is still damage done. If you are in the average man group, there is hope for you, it just requires some serious manliness to break free. You don’t have a hope in hell of becoming as awesome as Manly Man, but you may be able to hit the minimum requirement, securing your man status.

I know this was a lot to take in, but think about it and spread it around. The Man Institute is aiming to make men of the world manly once more. With your dedication to striving for ultimate manliness as well as helping out your fellow man with his man goals, there is still hope.