Something rotten in the State of Denmark.

No, not the country, but an entire generation of young men.

Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men. – John F. Kennedy

In Shakespeare’s 'Hamlet', two men stand on the castle battlements and stare into the darkness as Hamlet disappears in pursuit of a ghost.

Turning to Horatio, Marcellus could have been speaking for many today as we contemplate the fate of our young men:

‘Something is rotten in the State of Denmark,' he said

Something rotten, indeed. Shakespeare's play on words in this scene alludes to an interesting fact:

Not only did the actual 'State of Denmark' appear to be suffering from some unseen malevolence, but the state, or moral condition, of the country itself seemed similarly afflicted. I know that feeling only too well.

As we marvel at the unprecedented freedoms being carved out by our most recent generation of young men and women, I cannot help but worry over the state, or condition, of the male half of that equation.

Something is amiss. What exactly it is, I struggle to articulate.

Like Marcellus suggests, everything appears to be normal on the surface, but a shadow looms over the landscape that bodes ill, I feel, for our young men.

Nor am I the only person to feel this way. Many point to soaring suicide rates, plummeting academic performance and increasing difficulties forming relationships as symptoms of a more pervasive malaise.

But instead of describing the water as our young men drown, I want to jump in the water and help. Not at a societal level: this is a greater issue than anything one person can tackle, but at a personal level. How?

After my motorbike accident last year, that left me in a metal body-brace, I was unable to stand for long, so my consultancy work in factories was curtailed. I turned to my coaching experience and put together a coaching programme that was modestly successful. All the clients were men. It seemed to strike a chord.

I was thinking at the time that a book built around the material might be useful, and I mentioned the idea to a few friends. One of them is visiting the UK at the moment and, over a pint last week, asked what happened to the book.

Nothing. I said.

Pfft. She said.

Yes, I know. Another beer? Suitably chastised, I was mulling over the need to find a consistent source of material for this Substack account, when a thought occurred:

I need an ongoing series of articles that won't have me sitting with my thumb up my arse figuring out what to write. Something my subscribers might find useful. So, over the months ahead, I'll be writing the material for the book that never happened in serialised form.

It'll be written as and when I'm able because, you know... life (and other writing commitments). I'm also going to stick it behind the paywall while leaving everything else available for free. It would be nice to think that by the time there's enough to put together for a book, it will be paid for and I can offer it to those who need it for a nominal amount.

So. Yeah... watch this space.