A living laboratory for shared growth, cultivating the inner maturity and outer commitment needed for our collective future
Groups & Trainings:
Consciously Becoming Together
Work in Practice
Since 2000, I have been convening groups that integrate the inner work of healing with the outer work of justice. These gatherings bring together community leaders, activists, psychotherapists, organizational development professionals, students and engaged citizens who recognize that our personal transformation and collective challenges are inseparable.
The work proceeds through developmental stages: first, establishing genuine belonging; second, supporting shared becoming; third, directing participants toward self-determined forms of community engagement. Rather than focusing primarily on solving specific problems, groups develop the capacities needed to address whatever challenges arise.
This isn’t traditional psychotherapy, though it draws on therapeutic practices. It isn’t conventional activism, though it supports more effective engagement. It’s something between and beyond. It is a space for consciously participating in our collective evolution.
What Participants Experience
Participants report developing greater emotional resilience and confidence in their leadership capacities. They describe increased compassion and decreased reactivity toward people with different ideologies. The groups themselves become sources of shared meaning, purpose, and enjoyment. We are responding to the loneliness crisis while creating opportunities for responsive citizenship.
As one participant noted: “This group has helped me to be a more confident and effective leader in my community work and personal life.” Another observed: “It’s abundantly clear to me that raising the psychological awareness of leaders is a cornerstone of their effectiveness.”
Practical Details
Format & Cadence
Monthly or bi-weekly meetings of 2-3 hours, with ongoing groups maintaining consistent membership while remaining open to new participants at natural transition points.
Location
Currently, groups meet both in person and online via Zoom. The benefit of the in-person format is that it supports local community building, while the benefit of the zoom format is that it enables participation from diverse geographic locations without sacrificing intimacy.
Active Groups
- In Person: Men’s leadership group meeting every other Wednesday evening in Santa Rosa CA. There is currently a short waiting list for this group.
- On Zoom: Flagship Belonging, Becoming, and Engaging group (BBE). This group meets once a month on Fridays and has openings.
Quarterly Training
- In Person (January, April 25th, August 15th, and November in Petaluma, California): Trainings currently on Saturdays. Forming BBE groups and becoming a psychocultural practitioner (See PDF flyer for details and dates).
Coming Soon
- In Person: Monthly group for therapists interested in advanced training in group leadership and/or becoming psychocultural practitioners.
- In Person: We are also preparing to convene an in-person BBE group in Sonoma County California and are considering starting a similar in-person group in either Marin, San Francisco, or Oakland, California.
- On Zoom: Convening new BBE groups on Zoom.
Investment
Fee structures vary based on group composition and format. Contact for current details. Fees are sliding scale with participants asked to self-select somewhere between a “pinch and an ouch.”
Confidentiality
Groups establish clear agreements about confidentiality while supporting members to share their learnings as part of extending the developmental work beyond the group itself.
