Workshops

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Why “Workshop”?

A workshop is interactive, experiential, and it takes work. The extended workshops run 2-3 hours per class. The first three gateways will last six weeks each. The last two may take much longer… like the rest of your life.

There will be homework which can take many forms. Some homework will require reading or watching videos and documenting what you learned. Some homework will require you to interact with other people, often people you don’t know.

You can choose to be overwhelmed, angry, sad, or motivated. Choose wisely.

Why “Gateways”?

Most gateways are usually closed. They require some amount of effort to open. How much effort depends on how you perceive the gateway. Your assignment, “should you choose to accept it” is to grow, mature and integrate the lessons of each gateway.

The ordering of the gateways implies that each gateway is distinct, and that you cannot skip any. You may not have to fully master each gateway to begin work on the next gateway. For example, you can begin the process of self-acceptance while you are still examining who and what you are. And becoming self-aware is really a never-ending process. There is always some dusty corner that hides some suppressed belief or some untouched shadow.  The sooner you begin work of self-acceptance, the easier it will be to deepen your self-awareness.

The Role of Coaching

My job as a coach and teacher is to help you navigate each of the five gateways. The first three gateways have interactive as well as structured teaching. There will (probably) be topics that take a while to integrate.

For example, one of my students told me that he understood the patterns of the four masculine archetypes, but did not understand how to apply that awareness to his life. That became both a teaching and a coaching opportunity, but our conversation took less than 30 minutes. As a student, you can schedule short amounts of time if you reach an agreement with one of the instructors. This will be one of your early homework assignments.

The last two gateways do not lend themselves easily to structured training. Instead, they will both require that you develop your own goals and plans. This is when your relationship with your coach(es) will become essential.

Self-actualization, the 4th gateway is something that arises in you. You will recognize it, but gaining clarity on the details of your process will be accelerated based on the support structure you surround yourself with. This is one of the essential roles of the creation of communities within the overall process.

Ultimately, the 4th and 5th gateways will arise within you, if they haven’t done so already. Or, maybe they won’t. It will be your responsibility to use your self-awareness, self-acceptance, and self-confidence to choose the best path for yourself.

What About Zoom?

All of our workshop sessions will take place on Zoom. And I can hear your groans loud and clear. And the reality is that Zoom allows me to connect with men all over the world without spending any time in the car I can no longer drive. Yes,  I am going blind from Macular Degeneration. So I really am some sort of degenerate.

Yes, I miss the wonderful hugs I both give and receive, but we are going to be spending lots of time on Zoom, so deal with it.

The Role of Community

Most human beings are wired to need community. Without it, we can feel lonely, depressed or even suicidal.  As children, we learn basic socialization skills. We cluster into cliques. We choose our friends. For some people, this is quite difficult. Children can be quite cruel, and if we don’t have healthy and nurturing parents, we can get easily wounded. Then we spend the rest of our lives carrying these wounds.

Many men find great value in sitting in circle with other men and going deep. In the Mankind Project, we call these circles “Integration Groups” or “I-Groups” for short. I have sat in one I-Group for over 20 years and this circle was essential to my growth.

Over the years, I realized that something was missing. Outside of I-Group, I seldom saw and almost never socialized with the other men in my I-Group. I wanted more contact with other men to have unstructured free time with. I wanted more real friends. Occasionally, a man would show up in circle that I would be instantly drawn to. Like Lenny Baugh.

Lenny showed up in Bellingham in around 2015 as the minister of the local Unity church. He had done his NWTA and PIT about ten years before then, so our MKP background formed a good foundation for a deep friendship. We would have amazing conversations. We played with Legos together. We played golf for the sheer whimsy of it. We could get goofy or go deep three times in three minutes.

When Lenny’s wife left him, he got quite lonely. He finally decided to move back to San Jose, where his daughter was living. Shortly after he moved, she moved to Texas. Lenny’s cancer returned and he died on the beach in Santa Cruz, playing with his singing bowls. Damn, I miss Lenny.

Community is where we can find connection with each other at a level deeper then we can find it elsewhere. It’s where we go to hangout between trainings, between jobs, between relationships and whenever we simply want to hang out.