Max Leslie-Smith

31/03/2026

Be more cringe!

Full video over on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQdJkxZJTcI&t=76s

31/03/2026

At some point in your life, you probably realised that work gives you more than just money.

As a young guy, I know it did for me.

Working hard made me feel:

Competent
Needed
Disciplined
Like I was actually going somewhere

It gave me confidence.
And for a while, work became a safe place to grow.

But there’s a point where, if you’re not careful, it becomes your only source of meaning.

And that’s where things start to go wrong.

You’ve probably seen it:

The guy who can’t say no to his boss.
Always working late.
Always “busy”.

Not because he loves it…
But because he doesn’t really know what else he’d be doing.

Work becomes the default.

And without realising it, you become dependent on it to feel good.

You take on more work to avoid being alone.
You don’t take time off because you wouldn’t know how to spend it.
You keep pushing forward… without ever stopping to ask why.

I’ve been there.

Last year, I was growing my marketing agency by default.
Not because it felt meaningful — but because I didn’t want to admit that it didn’t.

So I kept working.

Because facing that truth felt harder than staying busy.

But here’s the risk:

If your entire sense of self comes from work…
what happens when it’s gone?

This is why so many people reach retirement and feel completely lost.
Or worse - they never really live outside of their job at all.

This year, I’ve taken a step back.

I’ve been:

Learning Vietnamese
Playing piano
Writing
Creating content
Exploring what I actually enjoy

And honestly, I’m still figuring it out.

But that’s the point.

You have way more sides to you than you realise as a man.

But you won’t find them by staying busy all the time.

You find them by:

Trying things
Disliking some of them
Sticking with others
And slowly figuring out what actually matters to you

Life can’t just be work.

At some point, you’ve got to explore what else is there.

31/03/2026

Weekly men's group, 6pm every Sunday, Thong D**g Coffee Da Nang

In terms of how the sessions work:
· We have 3-4 structured sharing rounds in the group - this is an opportunity to get anything off our chest, get accountability on our goals and get feedback from other men
· We then have more open, unstructured conversations once the structured rounds are completed
· The group is for any man looking to build deeper friendships with like-minded men in Da Nang, develop self-awareness and live a life that is more closely aligned with their values

Full details below:

The Male Brotherhood: Da Nang is a personal development tribe for men who are determined to lead lives of meaning, purpose and growth. For those on this journey, building close friendships with other men in Da Nang who are also passionate about self-development is essential in helping us progress an