Together, We Rise!
Meetings Every First Monday of the Month
Our Monthly Circle is Always Free.
Every Man is Welcome.
Leave Your Egos & Masks at the Door.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What Are the Rules / Regulations?Here's what we check in with before the start of every circle.
Confidentiality: Share your own experience all you want. Do not share another person's vulnerability or experience that was expressed or experienced at the circle.
Not Therapy: The Utah Men's Circle can feel therapeutic, but it is not a substitute for therapy. Participation is an invitation, but we invite each man to be responsible for his or her experience.
Photography: We want to celebrate and normalize Men's Work. So we take pictures. Anyone that doesn't want to be featured or photographed need only talk with one of the facilitators.
Speak in "I" statements: Ownership is a big part of the work in the Men's Circle. Speaking from a generalized "you" perspective doesn't invite ownership and casts generalities and projections. Speaking in "I" statements is a motion of empowerment and ownership and leaves room for others to have a different experience.
Interruption: It's easy to resonate with another man's story. It's also easy to let verbal approval break a train of thought or otherwise affect the sharer's experience and share. We invite gestures like hand to the heart instead of outward expressions or words of approval when someone is sharing.
Members Don't Speak for the Group: While each attendee is a member of the Utah Men's Circle, any one opinion does not speak for the group. We endorse attitudes of inclusivity in all aspects, including, but not limited to age, sexual orientation, occupation, religious belief, creed, race, etc. Any opinion expressed within the group contrary to those views will be addressed immediately.
Why Only Men?Men Sharpen Men.
Relationships between men have been dwindling at an epidemic rate. Many men in the group have complained about not being able to be vulnerable and real with the men they call their closest friends.
Toxic Masculinity is a word that gets thrown around a lot, and the common expression in the group on check-ins is, "I don't have any real male friends." Developing relationships with other healthy men doing their work is the key to overcoming this issue and reprogramming the narrative and condition.
What's A Typical Circle Like?1. Part One: Meet and Greet. We socialize for 15 minutes as people arrive. Sometimes this is the most uncomfortable for new comers and the best time for our seasoned veterans.
2. The Check In: The way we check-in varies from circle to circle, but we usually include our name, where we are from, and something that is present in our lives. Usually an emotion. Length varies dependent on circle size.
3. Grounding: An exercise or series of exercises to get men to focus on the present moment and let the day fade away.
4. Workshop activities: These vary wildly from month to month, but always involve something about seeing one's self, and seeing other men in the same light. This removal of the mask helps acceptance and bonding.
5. Sharing Circle: Experiences from that night, from the past few weeks, or from overall life in general.
6. Socialize: Unstructured time for the group to dive in deeper with moments or situations that resonated with them.
Is There Any Obligation?There is no cost.
There is no membership.
Once you attend a circle, you're a member.
There's no requirement for how many circles you attend, or how infrequent someone attends. You make the group what you want.
We do ask that no selling take place in the circle, or no announcements of offerings and things being sold happen on Men's Circle time.
How Often Do You Meet?We have two defined meeting times:
First Monday of Every Month is a regular circle.
Third Wednesday of Every Month is a circle combined with the Founder Joe Speredon's Algiz Guard group. Many men are members of both. The Algiz guard is just a deeper, customized version of men's work.
We also do regularly announced events outside of these two times, including meet-ups, service projects, special events, etc.
How Many Men Attend?Our Biggest Group was over 80 men. Our smallest groups have been 6-8. Joe ran many circles with 1 or even zero people showing up. Since February of 2022, we average about 30-40 men at each gathering.
While these numbers are unverified, we estimate between 300 - 500 different men have attended at least one Utah Men's Circle, with over 100 men able to claim that they attend or have attended on a somewhat regular basis.
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