> At a Glance
> – Tony Hawk wrote the foreword for Sean Mortimer’s Misfit: A Survival Guide, out Jan. 20
> – The book compiles advice from self-described misfits on turning rejection into success
> – Hawk tells readers to lean into being uncool and use failure as fuel
> – Why it matters: Offers a real-world playbook for anyone feeling pressure to conform
Tony Hawk wants 2026 to be the year we stop trying to fit in. In the foreword he penned for pro-skater Sean Mortimer’s upcoming book Misfit: A Survival Guide, the 57-year-old legend argues that embracing your weird side is the fastest route to genuine success.
From Outcast to Icon
Hawk recalls skating in the ’70s and ’80s when the sport was “neither cool nor encouraged.” That outsider status, he says, forged resilience, creativity and lifelong friendships that still shape his career. Mortimer chased the same feeling, asking fellow nonconformists how they flipped social rejection into personal wins.
Contributors include artist Shepard Fairey and musician Mark Mothersbaugh. Each chapter pairs hard-won stories with practical takeaways aimed at kids, parents or anyone tired of chasing “normal.”
The Core Message
Mortimer’s mission started at home.
> “The overwhelming pressure to conform coming from so many areas of their world really freaked me out,” he told News Of Los Angeles.
His solution: collect lessons from people who turned fringe passions into mainstream success. The result is a manual that treats “misfit” as a badge of honor rather than a scarlet letter.
Hawk distills the philosophy in three steps:
- Accept failure as a teacher
- Convert discipline learned on a board (or any niche pursuit) into life skills
- Keep pushing because progress compounds
Key Takeaways
- Misfit: A Survival Guide lands Jan. 20, 2026, and is available for preorder now
- Hawk’s foreword champions the power of “facing the strange” instead of hiding from it
- The book positions outsider status as a training ground for innovation, not a sentence to mediocrity
Skateboarding, punk music, early snowboarding-all once dismissed-now drive global industries. Hawk says the pattern repeats for anyone willing to ride the wave of their own curiosity rather than the crowd’s approval.
