9 Skills That Instantly Make You High-Value

What separates a man who simply exists from a man who commands respect and lives life on his own terms? It all comes down to mastering the right skills. We've all been in situations where we felt unprepared, whether it's not knowing what to say in a high stakes conversation, dealing with a flat tire on the highway, or simply wanting to upgrade how the world sees us. In this masterclass, we are breaking down the essential skills every modern man must master. We've cut out the fluff to bring you the core fundamentals of style, communication, practical lifesavers, and mindset. And I really try to make this simple because if you nail these three things, you are so far ahead of most people. You know the Pareto Principle that 20% yields you the 80%? This is the 20% of style that will yield you the 80%. If your clothing fits you, if you choose the right fabric. And what I mean by this is quality-made clothing that drapes on your body and just makes you look good. And that's more than just suits. That's like actually finding the shorts that have the right inseam length that look good on you. Making sure that whenever you put on a hat that it frames your face properly if you're going to wear a hat, even a baseball cap. Function is choosing the right piece of clothing for the occasion. So, if you're going into an interview, but it's a casual company, you don't need to have a suit, but you need to have clothing that makes you feel good that you feel like a million bucks, so you go in there and nail the interview. When you're choosing shoes, you want to make sure that the shoes are going to work with the clothing. There is such a thing as having too dressy of shoes with too casual of clothing. It just looks off. People don't always even understand what they're feeling or seeing when they see it, but they do feel that something is off and that's what you don't want. You want your clothing to, in a sense, if you nail those three things, the style pyramid, all of a sudden your clothing is going to fade into the background and you are going to be able to shine. Next up, know the code. No, not this one. I'm talking about dress codes. And anyone that tells you there's no dress code, they're wrong. There's always a dress code. Otherwise, you could show up naked. Even at a nude colony, there's a dress code. Be naked. Point being is any place you go, there's an expectation of how you dress. Most people make it actually more difficult because they don't state what it is. I love dress codes because when a wedding has a dress code, they are making it very clear what you need to wear. And this is where it gets confusing because most guys haven't thought through this and all of a sudden they're not able to navigate this. How about you take the time to figure out, okay, what is really the dress code for work, where can I fit in it, and what message do I want to send? So, you're a lawyer, but you're a lawyer in a construction firm. Does that mean that you dress like the other construction workers? No, because this is a multi-million dollar firm and you make sure that everything is taken care of with the paperwork, so that you guys aren't sued, you protect the company. So, you do have a certain type of presentation you want to put on. You are going to probably be one of the best dressed guys in that company. And the CEO may dress down because he's on the job site, but that is not your job to be on the job site. Your job is to protect the company. If you're a high level consultant in New York City or you're over in Mumbai, you know, you're going to probably dress a little bit differently. Why? Because you've got different types of weather. So, understanding dress codes are oftentimes affected by your culture, by your location, by the weather. But, understand there is a dress code and then think about the image that you want to send the world. Think through this and put together a uniform, clothing that you can just default to and it sends that message of professionalism, of competence. Whatever your goal may be, understand that there is a dress code and that there is a uniform that you can have. So, you don't have to think about it, you can just default to it. And, yeah, this – and by the way, great fragrance. I absolutely love this one. Now, this next one is incredibly simple. Simply roll your shoulders back and sit up straight. When you sit up straight, when you stand straight, when you roll those shoulders back, you push the chest out. Not only does your voice sound better, but you just feel more confident. You feel like, okay, I belong. You others are going to pick up on this. I know this is something in the military that people all the time notice that, you know, you're told to stand at attention, you stand very erect in general in the military. And those habits, whenever people see someone in the military, they're like, wow, are they taller? They just seem more confident. This is something as a human being, we notice the stance, we notice the positioning of others and it is something that it reflects in what they're saying. So, if you want to come off as more confident, look more confident. How long should you make eye contact? In general, about one and a half to two seconds. And that actually is a little bit longer than what you would think. It should be long enough that you can just quickly pick up what color their eyes are and then look around, especially if you're talking with other people. This is the next rule is being able to, you know, what's the percentage that you actually make the eye contact with when you're not making eye contact with. So, if you're talking with somebody, if you're engaging with them, 50% of the time, you want to be making eye contact at least a little bit more if it's an important point or if it's somebody that, you know, you know very well. And if you're engaging with other people, you want to split that up. You'll be making eye contact closer to probably 90% with people because you'll have multiple people. Let's say there's three, you're going to give 30%, 30%, 30%, and 10% of the time, you're welcome to look at whatever as you're talking. Now, if you're listening, rules slightly change. It's the 50-70 rule, 70% of the time when you're listening to somebody, you want to be giving them eye contact. Again, this is in the western world primarily in the United States, but about 70% of the time, you're going to make an eye contact and then it's okay to look down at your notes to simply look at a different direction. But, I advise to continuously nod. And, again, this percentage can go up if you're just on a one-on-one conversation with somebody relatively up close. Now, touching back on the length, I said about one and a half to two seconds. What happens if you go for three, four, five seconds? Okay. So, that can be construed as being aggressive, it can be construed as being attracted to that person. Again, all the other stuff I talked about earlier in the video, that goes into factor here. So, if you're making eye contact, you know, with that beautiful girl across and you guys are looking back and forth two seconds, three seconds, she looks away, then you guys find yourself making eye contact. Again, that may be an invite to walk over there and just simply introduce yourself. Now, understand if you're making that eye contact with a guy and he is not interested and he feels, hey, this could be viewed as being aggressive especially if he said something to drink or he's under the influence. Now, what about half a second? What about like a millisecond? You make eye contact and you look away. This is what most people default to. And in my opinion and the research I've read, it can make you look relatively weak. And this is why I recommend that you practice making solid eye contact. Don't let bad eye contact sabotage the conversation. So, you're listening to her 70% of the time, you're looking right at her. What do you – where else is your eyes going? Guys, that 30% of the time in which you can be looking at pretty much anything doesn't truly mean you can be looking at anything. So, she's got – she's built well, she has good tracks of land. Don't find your eyes staring right down at those or, you know, she's got a cute friend that's sitting over there. Don't have your eye that 30% of the time looking at her friend. Understand where your eyes are focused because other people do look at where your eyes are focused. Now, let's take it to a business situation. You're engaged and you're talking with somebody about a deal and your eyes are darting all over the place. What does that – what signal does that send to somebody if you've got darting eyes? For most people, it says something is going on. I don't necessarily trust this guy. So, make sure that bad eye contact doesn't sink the conversation. Silence in conversation is perhaps what scares most amateur speakers, people that are nervous around other people the most is the awkward silence where, yeah, you just feel like you want to make yourself small, disappear because you don't know what to say because it just feels weird. But, here's the thing, flip it. Start to understand the power of silence especially when you say something and you're trying to make a point. Maybe you want to all of a sudden just let it sink in what you said. You want to give the other person the ability to go into the conversation or even play with it. Acknowledge the awkwardness. You know, you kind of make a joke about it like, wow, we don't have anything to talk about, do we? So, by acknowledging the awkwardness, by acknowledging the silence, all of a sudden, again, you're breaking the ice. And the point is simply to engage, to point out that I'm human. You're not to reveal a weakness like that you can't feel everything that you maybe aren't the loudest most talkative person. This isn't a bad thing. It may be that all of a sudden, you find out the person you're speaking with has a lot more in common with you. It's like, yeah, I'm pretty awkward at these type of conversations as well. All of a sudden, you've smiled. You've shared that and the conversation can keep going naturally. This is going to come up in the workplace. This is going to come up in your relationships. If something is bothering you, don't let it build up. You need to be able to pull that person aside and be able to have a conversation man to man, man to woman, whatever it is to be able to express what it is you're thinking, what bothers you, and how to be able to work together. Seriously, gents, this skill is so underrated. And one thing I think about here is to praise in public, but to critique privately. You don't want an audience when you're having this conversation because that other person is going to put on a front. When you can do this one-to-one, you eliminate – basically, you're able to be more vulnerable. You're able to say what you want to say and hear that person out and understand their point of view. The Heimlich Maneuver and CPR. And to be honest, these are going to take longer than a couple of minutes, but ten minutes, you can learn the basics of both especially with the Heimlich Maneuver actually learning how to perform the Heimlich Maneuver on yourself. You may find yourself in a situation in which you're choking. And, yes, you can do this on yourself to be able to get food out of your airway. And when it comes to CPR, guys, this is not as difficult. I remember when I learned it was a full day class, but nowadays, they've really broken it down into the basics of you just want to keep the heart pumping. Again, gents, you can pick up the basics in just a few minutes and this could save a life, possibly yours. It doesn't matter if you don't own a vehicle because you're probably riding in a vehicle, do you know how to inflate the tires? I think I read a study, 25% of people have no idea where to start when it comes to inflating a tire. Yes, sounds crazy, but don't be part of that 25%. And do you know how to change a tire? I think I read the opposite, like 75% of people have no idea where to start when changing a tire. And this can be something dangerous. So, there are basic tutorials out there and you're going to take the nuts off while the tire is still on the ground. Believe it or not, I've seen people lift up the vehicle and then think that they're going to, yeah, twist things off. No, do it while it's down, then you're going to lift up the vehicle, you're going to take it off, you're going to then put on the spare. And understand when you put on that spare, you shouldn't be driving more than 45 miles an hour or whatever that is in kilometers. Point being, don't be driving on a spare. This is not a normal thing. You want to get that regular tire in and get it fixed ASAP. Next up, let's talk about jumpstarting your battery. At some point, you're going to leave your lights on, the battery is just going to die, you're going to need a jump or more likely because you're prepared, somebody else around you is going to need a jump. Now, I do recommend that you carry a jump battery. That way, you don't have to hook up your battery and you're going to save the life of it and you can actually have – I think they're just easier to use and you can – more mobile. But, in the case that you are having to use your battery or you're getting your battery jumped, how does this work? Now, first up, understand you've got the red cable. That is going to be the first one you're going to connect. After that, the black cable. Now, I know some of you technicians, electricians, some of you hobbyists out there saying, Antonio, come on. That's horrible advice. Always make sure to ground it. Okay. So, that's what you're supposed to do according to directions. But, I don't know. What do you guys do? Let me know in the comments below. I want to hear from you. In any case, once the vehicle starts, immediately unplug. And going backwards, take off the black cable, take off the red cable. I just simply read the manuals, but I know so many guys skip this. Guys, if you don't read the manuals, you're missing out probably on more than half of the features, half of the capabilities of the item that you just purchased. You also risk damaging the item, so take a few minutes, read through the manual. And if that's too much, then take the manual basic information there, type it into YouTube. You'll find somebody has probably made a video that explains everything that's in the manual, so that you can just watch it that way. Let's talk quickly about sewing on a button. It's a basic skill that I think every guy should have. In fact, sewing, a lot of guys don't think it's manly. Guys, go watch Rambo, First Blood. What happens when he falls out of that tree, injures his arm pretty bad? He sews up his own wound. Guys, basically understanding the basics of being able to stitch things back together, it's about self-reliance. And that's why I always recommend starting with just simply sewing on a button. Once you get that and you understand those basics, you can move on to mending a hole, being able to go over and sew your trousers back together when you get a tear, little things like that. And, by the way, if you're staying at a higher end hotel, you're traveling, ask for the emergency sewing kit. They've got those things lying around. You've got the basics right there, a needle with thread, and you'd be surprised what you can get done with those. Take the time to think about where you're going in life and how you want to define your own success. Now, gents, I've heard back from thousands of you guys over the years and consistently one of the biggest regrets I hear is that somebody was living somebody else's dream. They saw a wall, something they thought they wanted to achieve. They put up that ladder, they spend all this time and energy climbing that ladder to get to the top of the wall to realize, hey, I actually don't want to be here. I'm on the wrong wall. Gents, this point applies to everything, your career, your relationships. What defines success? Because if you're going after what makes another man happy, you are never going to be satisfied. Yeah, you may see everybody around you getting brand new cars and brand new houses, but is that something you want? Seriously, maybe you want to just be out traveling the world. Maybe it's something that you don't want to be a doctor like your parents want you to be. I know that's what my parents wanted me to be and I started actually going down the med school route and I realized this isn't what I want. Have the courage to define what success is to you and then take steps in that direction to achieve it. Now, guys, really quick, a lot of guys make a mistake. They think that just watching a video like this on YouTube is somehow going to make them an expert. Straight up, gents, you have to take this information and put it into action. And one of the best ways to motivate yourself to take action is to put yourself in a community, in a group of like-minded warriors taking steps to improve their image, their presence, their presentation. And you can find all of that over at our community at School.com. Over in our school community, we've got detailed classes, we host challenges, and you can meet and engage with like-minded men taking steps on a daily basis to become their best self. So, gents, instead of saying someday, how about you say day one and join our community? I'm putting the link down in the description in the comments or you can just go directly to School.com. You don't have to apologize for saying no. You've got a limited amount of time, a limited amount of resource. And people – there's a lot of people out there that ask for a lot. Continuously try to take advantage of other people. If you say, you know what? I just can't give anymore of your time, of your resources. And you just simply put a barrier. This is going to be my boundary. Do not cross this. I'll give a bit, but I'm not going to give anything more. You don't have to apologize for knowing your limits. All right, gents. So, what video to watch next? How about eye contact skills that every man must master? Seriously, if you don't understand eye contact, you're, you know, you could get through life. But, it's so much better when you master eye contact and you understand these rules that I cover in this video right here. Where are they? Find out, guys. The video is right here. Yes. Click on it.