The world is certainly full of material possessions on which you can easily blow your hard-earned cash. And you’re more than welcome to do so if they’re things you want to have around. But there’s a difference between things you really want and things that could actually make you go farther in life, whether it’s helping you stick out from the crowd, give you more confidence, or create more everyday convenience to your schedule. When it comes to improving your life, these five items are key in making you an even cooler dude than you already are.
Grooming kit
It’s time for you to get serious about your appearance. You can’t just shower every day and think that’s enough. You have facial hair to corral, body hair to manscape, nose hairs to shorten. Things are happening as you get a little older, so now’s the time to invest in a great grooming kit that includes such necessities as a cuticle trimmer, an ear cleaner, tweezers, and manicure scissors. Go to town on yo’ bad self.
Cast iron skillet
Whether you’re a gourmet chef or still haven’t figured out how to boil water for Ramen, a cast iron skillet in a must for your kitchen arsenal. This thing is pretty the Iron Man of cooking equipment. It’s big, it’s heavy, it can be used both with the oven and the stovetop, it never needs to be cleaned (i.e. all of the things you cook in it slowly enhance flavors of future meals), and its heavy-duty persona will ensure you keep it for pretty much the rest of your life. You can’t go wrong with this thing. You just can’t.
Tailored suit
While it’s indeed true that every man needs at least one suit in his closet, it’s further true that he needs at least one tailored suit. The difference between a tailored suit and one you find off the rack is pretty much sorcery. With a tailored suit, you’re getting something that not only makes you a dapper gent for all occasions, but also is specifically altered to show off the best features of your unique physique. A man in a tailored suit can pretty much take on the world.
Toolbox
You don’t need to be a handyman by any means, but it’s important to always have a place where you can get to a hammer, screwdriver, and wrench at a moment’s notice. Little things sometimes need to be done around your place—such as hanging a picture or tightening the screws of a door latch—and having at least some basic tools around will greatly enhance your oh-so-masculine self-reliance. Bonus points if you also have duct tape, measuring tape and WD-40.
Pocketknife
A bit like having a toolbox, you don’t need to be an outdoorsman to carry around a good pocketknife. Having one on your person is easy to do and makes you more capable in many quick-fix situations from helping someone at the office open a shipping box to cutting free a snared human during the zombie apocalypse. And while we hope you’ll never need to use it for defense, it can also be useful to have around when you’re walking home late at night from the local queer club. Just be careful to not take a pocketknife to places where weapons aren’t allowed!
