The other day I was watching a trashy low-rent early-evening cookery programme on Channel 4 (yes, that one) and it included a man from Wigan. He refused to eat several meals that were put in front of him for no apparent reason, but at the end of the week he revealed that he would not eat anything that was on the ‘Wigan List.’ This turned out to be a list of 50 foods that ‘Real Men’ don’t eat. “At the top of the list is quiche, and it also includes hummus and couscous.”
I have come across this ‘Real Men’ nonsense many times over the years and mainly it is in the form of some sort of joke, but this guy was serious about it. As a coach, I am struck by the fact that pronouncements about real men always relates to something they won’t do or won’t eat. I cannot ever remember seeing or hearing anything about what real men will eat or will do. All negatives, no positives.
SO, I hear you asking, how is this relevant to anything? We all have beliefs or taboos or perceptions that hold us back and prevent us from achieving our full potential. I expend a great deal of effort with clients trying to help them overcoming these limitations and establish new, positive beliefs so that they can move forward in their lives and become more successful.
Generally these beliefs come from childhood and are embedded in our subconscious by parents, teachers, siblings, classmates and bullies. I therefore find it sad that a person would deliberately sit down and compile a list of limiting beliefs.
SO, now I hear you asking, how does refusing to eat quiche hold you back and stop you reaching your full potential? In itself it probably doesn’t, but what it does do is embeds the belief in your subconscious that it is OK to reject new experiences and to refuse to change. And we all know that if you do what you always do, you get what you’ve always got.
So come on all you real men out there, get a life, get a life coach! Give me a ring and I will help you to move past all this nonsense.
What can we learn from this?
• Nobody needs unnecessary restrictions on their development
• Labels (like real man) can hold us back
• Live dangerously – eat couscous
thinklifecoach 
My brother recommended I would possibly like this website. He
used to be totally right. This publish actually made my day.
You can not believe simply how a lot time I had spent for this information!
Thank you!
Thanks for your comment.
Interestingly I have just watched this episode of ‘Come Dine With Me’, and my overwhelming feeling about the Wigan guy was “What an insecure and pathetic little man”. His sense of self appears to be based on avoiding certain foods that he percieves as challenging his masculinity because of what his friends might think. What on earth’s a “real man” fgs? This guy just struck me as an incredibly insecure person with traits of homophobia and sexism. Very sad in this day and age.
I totally agree with you on all points. I wasn’t sure whether I should detest him or pity him. As for what is a real man..? As a man myself I don’t feel inclined to comment, though I am, on the whole, real! Thanks for the comment, much appreciated. Clint