Some of the most beneficial aspects of Men’s work is the power of sharing honestly and vulnerable with other men who will actively listen to you in a non judgmental and attentive way. Often we don’t have the opportunity to be really heard. We either ruminate about issues in our life in our own heads or we speak to people that we have known for many years and who have known us for many years and have ideas about how we are and how we should be. By actively sharing in a group we can have an opportunity to get things off our chest and be able to hear our selves speak. This alone is a powerful tool self reflect and to see where we are possibly not living up to the best versions of ourselves or else where we can improve.
There is also a certain timeless power in sitting in a circle and receiving feedback from other men who have life experience that possibly can allow us to see other ways we can approach an issue. We can also get reflexions as to what we possibly are not seeing and not dealing with and increase or sense of accountability and responsibility. The practice of sitting in a circle to facilitate communication and understanding is a common practice in many indigenous cultures and has likely been a part of human society for thousands of years. Men have always bonded and supported each other in the tribe and something that our modern culture is deeply missing.
We have been raised in a culture that values competition over cooperation which has made many men fearful of appearing vulnerable among other men. Even though this is what the women and society says that they want. There is power in being truthful about what is actually going on in our lives under the surface and many men feel very honoured to hear what men are actually feeling. We are all emotional beings all going through the human life and need to feel heard, understood and seen to feel that we belong.