Basecamp for Men E13: The Hero Within

E13: The Hero Within with Special Guest  Carol Pearson

 

E13 Introduction

One of my favorite books about archetypes and the Hero’s Journey is Carol Pearson’s The Hero Within.  Carol writes,

 “When the heroic journey was thought to be for special people only, the rest of us just found a secure niche and stayed there. Now we have no secure places in which to hide and be safe. In the contemporary world, if we do not step out on our quest, it will come get us. We are being thrust on the the journey. That is what we must all learn the requirements.”

This statement (and book) resonate with me deeply. There is an awakening happening in people. Staying in your routines and habits will blunt your sensitivity to the messages that are trying to stir and awaken you. Each one of us has a unique journey and a unique contribution to make in this movement.

I see people from all walks of life living heroic lives. I see it in a thousand quiet ways….people in meditation and contemplation, people learning to love one another (and themselves), people being honest about how they have been hurt or wounded and doing the important work to move through that hurt.

The whole thing leaves me with immense gratitude. Gratitude for people,  gratitude for our earth, gratitude to be given a chance to exercise our courage on such a wonderful stage. And gratitude for the Divine. I will leave you with one last quote from Joseph Campbell, who knew a thing or two about the Hero’s Journey:

 “Heroes are agents of change. The hero’s task always has been to bring new life to an ailing culture. The dragon to be slain is precisely the monster of the status quo. Holdfast keeper of the past.”

Thank you for listening!

Tony

Basecamp for Men E12: Firestarters for Men-Compassion

E12: Firestarter for Men-Compassion

 

E12 Introduction

Pema Chodron, the great Western Buddhist teacher, writes “Our personal attempts to live humanely in this world are never wasted. Choosing to cultivate love rather than anger just might be what it takes to save the planet from extinction.

What is it that allows our goodwill to expand and our prejudice and anger to decrease? This is a significant question. Traditionally it is said that the root of aggression and suffering is ignorance. But what is it that we are ignoring? Entrenched in the tunnel vision of our personal concerns, what we ignore is our kinship with others.

One reason we train as warrior-Bodhisattvas is to recognize our interconnectedness- to grow in understanding that when we harm another, we are harming ourselves.

So we train in recognizing our uptightness. We train in seeing that others are not so different from ourselves. We train in opening our hearts and minds in increasingly difficult situations.”

In today’s episode, we introduce Firestarters for Men, our new short format segment. This will be used from time-to-time as a break from our standard interview format and to offer something to listeners that is short and sweet. These Firestarters will tend to be 8-12 minutes instead of our usual 30 minutes or so.

I hope you enjoy this first one about compassion and the story by the late Aikido master Terry Dobson.

Enjoy and thank you listeners!

Tony

 

Basecamp for Men E11: Building Boys

E11: Building Boys: A Conversation with Nicky Wilks

 

E11 Introduction

The topic of  boys and how to best set them up for optimal emotional well-being is a topic that is near and dear to me. With a twelve year-old son of my own and what I see as a woefully inept narrative when it comes to the inner lives of our boys, I have more than a passing concern with how we get our sons to healthy adulthood. What can a parent do to make sure our boys have what they REALLY need?

My guest today is an exceptional young man. Nicky Wilks has built his life’s purpose around providing training and resources for boys through his organization: Journeymen.

These trainings are powerful, inclusive, and help teen boys bridge the gap from confused, isolated, and hormonal young people to emerging young men with purpose, a budding emotional intelligence, and a community that supports and understands them. This is a noble mission and my conversation with Nicky is insightful and timely.

As a parent of a young boy, I am grateful to Nicky and the team at Journeymen for providing safe spaces for our boys to take their Hero’s Journey.

These types of trainings set a firm foundation for these boys to start their journey into adulthood. In today’s world,  a true rite-of-passage for boys is a rare thing. Join Nicky and I as we look at Journeymen’s high-quality outdoor adventures, what parents need to know about them, and what the boys get out of their participation.

Thank you listeners!

Tony

Basecamp for Men E10: Inside the Men’s Circle

E10: Inside the Men’s Circle

 

E10 Introduction

One of my intentions in creating BASECAMP FOR MEN is to give the listeners a sense of what the conversations are like inside of men’s wisdom circles.  I thought that if I could shed a light on the types of conversations that happen inside these groups, that more men would get curious and start to look for one near them.

Men inevitably find these groups inspiring, authentic, and uplifting. And they really are for everyone!

This episode addresses this intention and marks the introduction of a segment that I am calling The Warrior Dog Council. This means that each time we do this segment, we will have a small group of men on to answer questions, have a dialogue, etc.

This will give fresh perspectives to our Basecamp listeners, adding more voices on these important topics. We will be adding a Q & A segment to the show where listeners can email in their questions and The Warrior Dog Council will address them. That way the listener will hear multiple insights about a particular challenge that is brought to light.

Thank you for listening and enjoy E10: INSIDE THE MEN’S CIRCLE.

Basecamp for Men E3: Know Your Mission

E3: Know Your Mission with Special Guest Dr. Bob Beare

 

E3 Introduction-

“Your mission is your priority. Unless you know your mission and have aligned your life to it, your core will feel empty.”

David Deida, author and teacher

Nothing in life is quite so invigorating for men as living a purpose driven life. When a man’s internal compass is oriented towards a mission that excite him, he is accessing powerful masculine energies. These energies are called to the man and resonate within the man. He is, in every sense, in alignment.

And let’s face it, society sells a monotonous vision of masculinity: get a job, save and provide well for your family, try to take care of yourself, etc. It’s an uninspiring vision……and it creates men that play it too safe.

Join us for a lively discussion with Dr. Bob Beare as we talk about mission and purpose, men and their development, and golf!

Dr. Bob Beare Bio-

Dr. Beare is an industrial/organizational psychologist and has been a clinical psychotherapist and executive coach for over 20 years, working with individuals, couples, families, leaders, and organizations. He was a long-time instructor at the C. G. Jung Center in Houston and a certified leader with the ManKind Project International where he led more than 85 of MKP’s New Warrior Trainings.

Bob is also the founder of The Brave Heart Experience, an intensive 2 1/2 day workshop for men, women, leaders, and people in recovery who are ready to dive deeply into self-empowerment.

“There is no moment more satisfying than to watch a person discard the negative messages they have been carrying for so long…and choose to live boldly and authentically”

Bob Beare, Ph.D.