I'm starting a men's live journal club

Come journal with me (and many others)

Do you see the benefits of a regular journaling practice, but struggle to start or stay consistent?

Do you have a consistent practice but want to connect with other guys facing similar challenges?

Join me for a live journaling club!

Men’s Live Journal Club

No other habit has contributed more to my life than regular conversations with myself on the page. It’s no exaggeration to say that I created myself within my journal. I don’t know who I am without it.

One of the things I’m always trying to sort out is what it means to be a good man in the modern world. This questions has new meaning for me as I’m only a few weeks away from becoming a father.

Manhood and masculinity are in a massive cultural re-shuffling. We’ve been tasked, for better or worse, with re-defining ourselves and our roles in the family, the workforce, and the culture. Let’s figure it out together.

A live journaling club is my best idea to solve this problem.

The Details

• Join one or more live journaling session per week.

• There is no homework and no need to commit to an on-going course schedule. You will get the full value within each 60-minute session and you can attend session as your schedule permits.

• Just show up with a journal and something to write with. Digital journaling is fine too, but I always encourage putting pen to paper.

Weekly Schedule

• Tuesdays at 4:30 pm Pacific Time

• Thursday at 6:00 am Pacific Time

• Each session will be the same format but you can definitely attend both can get a different experience. I’ve tried to capture as many times zones as possible and plan to alter the schedule and add sessions as the need arises. If you would like to join but cannot make these times, please reply or comment with a time that suits your schedule.

• First sessions begin next week:

Session Structure

• Meet and greet + Introduction (5-8 minutes): We’ll spend a few minutes getting to know each other then I will introduce the prompt.

  You can also skip the prompt and journal about something thing else that’s pulling at you.

• Live Journaling (10-20 minutes): We will all write silently on our own. The time will depend on the prompt and the groups needs.

• Breakout Discussions (10-15 minutes): After we write, I’ll send you into private breakout rooms in groups of 2-3 to discuss what came up for you.

  You’ll be matched according to which topic you chose, either the session prompt or your own.

• Closing Group Discussion (10-20 minutes): The whole group will come back together for the remainder of our 60 minutes. This is my favorite part!

• Bonus Group Discussion (up to 30 minute and beyond): You will always get the full session value within the scheduled 60 minutes. But I also make myself available to stay on at least 30 minutes extra for those who would like to continue the discussion.

This structure is based on the writing group calls from Write of Passage. I’ve felt the magic of this format both as a student and a coach leading them. I’m constantly amazed at both the insights and relationships that can blossom in 60 minutes of focused introspection.

The Vibe

There are no “rules” other than to be respectful to others, but these are the guiding principles that will shape our time together.

• You get out what you put in.

• Vulnerability begets trust, not the other way around. We often feel that we need to trust someone before we open up to them but this is backwards. When we open our heat to a person that we don’t yet completely know, in almost every case, they rise to the occasion.

• Nothing is too petty. Nothing is too serious. Our problems and our wins are always relative.

• I’m creating this for myself as much as anyone else. I’d love for it to blossom into a business, but mostly it’s a way for me to have more of the type of conversations and relationships that I want to have in my life.

The Cost

Name your price. I’ve set the suggested fee at $15 but you can pay more or less depending on your situation. Even if you cannot pay at all, I want you there (I have used this pricing option to pay $0 plenty of times myself).

Full transparency: As this club grows as I believe it will, I plan to launch a recurring subscription model with single session drop-in fee. Your participation in the name-your-price system will help me set these.

You can expect several posts from me over the next few days about journaling. I’ll share more about my personal practice and some of the proven ways that journaling can improve your life.

And as a reminder, please let me know if another session time works better for your schedule.

Hope to see you in a session next week!

Justin