Book Review | Can't Hurt Me By David Goggins

When I picked up Can’t Hurt Me by David Goggins, I thought I was just getting into another motivational story, something inspiring but easy to take in. But this book doesn’t pull any punches. Right from the start, Goggins opens up about his brutal childhood, facing abuse, racism, and poverty that seemed impossible to escape. He paints a picture of a life filled with barriers and challenges so intense that most people would’ve cracked under the pressure. Yet somehow, instead of letting these experiences break him, he used every ounce of that pain to push himself harder.

One of the biggest wake-up calls in the book was what Goggins calls the “40% rule.” He says that when we think we’re done—when we feel like we can’t take another step or do another thing—we’re really only at 40% of what we’re capable of. It’s easy to read something like that and think, “Sure, sounds good,” but as he kept hammering home the idea with example after example, I started to take it seriously. I thought about how many times I’d given up on something because it felt like too much, like I’d reached my limit. But the truth is, I hadn’t even scratched the surface. Goggins made me see that I’d been settling for comfort over growth.

Another part that hit hard was how he turned discomfort into his greatest tool. Goggins isn’t shy about the brutal things he’s put himself through, from punishing runs and grueling Navy SEAL training to brutal ultramarathons. This guy is always pushing to the edge, going far beyond what most people would think of as sane. But there’s something about the way he describes pain—not as something to avoid but as something to embrace—that completely shifted my perspective. He taught me that pain and fear aren’t there to hold us back; they’re there to help us grow.

Each chapter of Can’t Hurt Me includes challenges, pushing the reader to put these ideas into practice. They’re not just fluffy self-help tasks, either. These are deep, uncomfortable exercises that make you really face yourself and ask hard questions. Goggins doesn’t want readers to just read his story; he wants us to take it as a personal challenge to stop making excuses and to start owning our lives. There’s a part where he says, “You are in a battle with your own mind,” and it stuck with me. Most of the limits we face, the ones that feel impossible, are ones we’ve put on ourselves.

Another thing that makes Goggins’ story so powerful is his relentless commitment to bettering himself, not for anyone else but purely for himself. He talks about going through multiple Hell Weeks as a Navy SEAL and pushing through injuries that would’ve sidelined most people for months. He describes how he taught himself to study and passed the test to join the Air Force Pararescue, even though he’d struggled in school his entire life. Reading about his drive to overcome his past and take control of his future was like a gut-check moment for me. It was a reminder that true transformation doesn’t come from waiting for the “right time” or “right circumstances.” It comes from deciding that you’re done accepting anything less than your best effort, every day.

There’s something incredibly authentic about Goggins’ voice in Can’t Hurt Me. He isn’t trying to sugarcoat his journey or make it sound like he’s some invincible hero. He talks about his failures, his weaknesses, and the times he felt like giving up. But what sets him apart is that he’s brutally honest about the fact that greatness comes from grit and from pushing past our most uncomfortable moments. Goggins could’ve easily given up at any point, and no one would’ve blamed him. But he chose to keep going, to find strength in every hardship, and to rewrite his own story.

In the end, Can’t Hurt Me is more than just a book. It’s a challenge to stop holding yourself back. It’s a reminder that resilience, toughness, and greatness are things you build one choice at a time. David Goggins shows that no matter where you start, no matter what cards you’re dealt, you can always choose to be more, to do more, and to push yourself further than you ever thought possible. For anyone who’s ever felt stuck, held back, or unsure of their own potential, this book is a wake-up call that’s impossible to ignore. Goggins’ journey proves that the human spirit is far tougher than we realize—if we’re willing to put in the work.