The Bind with Greg Flynn

I was a bit surprised that a rom-com would help me frame up this week’s episode. But I couldn’t stop thinking about it after watching it last week. It was an obvious way to move from last week’s topic: Foundation #2 - We can’t escape these tiny boxes alone, to this week’s.

Foundation #3 is a edgy one for me. For most of us, probably. In fact, it feels a bit edgy to put this one out there. But that’s probably appropriate. Why? Because Foundation #3 is: Vulnerability is the strength we need.

How do you work on building this muscle? I’d love to hear!

As I always say, it’s my hope that this is just one side of a conversation. Please hit me up - [email protected] or @men.connecting on IG - with your thoughts, questions, challenges. Let’s get into it together!

Links for things mentioned in this episode:

bell hooks - Author and activist who wrote a lot on issues of race and social justice. 

The Will to Change, by bell hooks - hooks’ seminal book on masculinity. A must read for anyone engaged in this work.

Alok Vaid-Menon - Artist, activist, and performer that is taking the gender binary head on. 

Alok on the Man Enough Podcast - This is a great example of their POV on masculinity and gender in general. Highly recommend.

Terry Real - Therapist and coach who has done some great work around masculinity.

I Don’t Want To Talk About It by Terry Real - A must read for anyone working with men (as well as for men in general).

Ijeoma Oluo - Author and activist who’s voice is making a huge impact on issues related to race.

Mediocre: The Dangerous Legacy of White Male Identity - Oluo’s amazing book on the white-male identity in the the US and the West in general. A must read.

Bros - Rom-com staring Billy Eichner and Luke Macfarlane, two gay men on their falling-in-love journey. 

Credits: 🎶 by Alex Weinstein at Alex Weinstein Music

Let’s continue down the path of exploring the foundations of this work, shall we? Last week we talked about foundation # 1 - We’re conditioned to live in tiny boxes.

That brings us to foundation #2 - We can’t escape these tiny boxes alone; aka: we need each other.

I bring in some questions that feel important, as well as share some (likely familiar) ways that the tendency for men to try to go it alone shows up. And boy does it show up.

As I always say, it’s my hope that this is just one side of a conversation. Please hit me up - [email protected] or @men.connecting on IG - with your thoughts, questions, challenges. Let’s get into it together!

Links for things mentioned in this episode:

December Workshop - My good friend Jordan Ferretti and I are hosting this in-person workshop in Seattle on December 11th for men who could use a break during the holiday season. Info (including registration) in in the link!)

Holistic Resistance - amazing folks whose facilitator training I mentioned. Great group. I recommend all their work.

Men Connecting: Understanding Whiteness - my 10-week program for white-bodied men interested in being better anti-racists. Stay tuned for info on 2023 cohorts!

Man Park, SNL Skit - it’s only funny because it’s true

The Mask You Live In - I called it ‘The Mask We Wear’, which is wrong! Great documentary from the Representation Project, directed by Jennifer Siebel Newsom. Very, very good.

The Work - A powerful documentary about a program at Folsom State Prison. Highly recommend this as both a view into men’s work.

bell hooks - the will to change (if you want to read more about what I’m talking about)

The Will to Change by bell hooks - I wanted to share this because it’s so influential on me. Much of what I’ve talked about in the last two episodes is heavily influenced by Dr. hooks. This is something I’ve overlooked, and will rectify in my next episode.

Credits:

🎶 by Alex Weinstein at Alex Weinstein Music

Ep. 2 - Walking up to the edge

This week I wanted to dive more deeply into the first foundation of this work as I see it – that we’ve been conditioned to live in tiny boxes. What does that mean? How do we see the boxes we live in? And what, exactly, do we do about it?

As men, we often believe that there’s only so much that’s available to us. We may not even realize that we believe that. If you’re feeling stuck, limited, isolated, unsure of where you fit in the world, this first step might be for you.

It’s my hope that this is just one side of an ongoing conversation. So, with that in mind, please let me know how this lands with you, what it makes you think about, what questions arise, where you disagree - all of that.

I’d love to get your emails - [email protected] - or connect on Instagram - @men.connecting

Thanks for taking the time to listen!

Links for some things mentioned in this episode: 

Alok on Instagram 

Alok on the Man Enough Podcast 

Terry Real 

Terry Real on Insights at the Edge

Credits:

🎶 by Alex Weinstein at Alex Weinstein Music

Welcome to The Bind with Greg Flynn (that’s me!). It’s a podcast for men and the people who love them. It’s all about helping men untangle the beliefs and behaviors that keep us stuck, stressed, and in shame.

In this inaugural episode, I wanted to give a little context about why I’m calling this The Bind, and to introduce you to what I think of as five foundations for this work (well, six, really. I like an odd number though). I’ll be diving into each of the five foundations in future episodes, but hopefully, this gives you a bit of a map of what we’re going to explore together.

It’s my hope that this is just one side of an ongoing conversation. So, with that in mind, please let me know how this lands with you, what it makes you think about, what questions arise, where you disagree - all of that.

I’d love to get your emails - [email protected] - or connect on Instagram - @men.connecting

Thanks for taking the time to listen!

Links for some things mentioned in this episode:

Disrupting our Practice - another podcast with myself and Shannon Patterson from Connection Works (this is the Apple podcasts link - you can find this podcast on all streaming platforms, however) 

Men Connecting - the men’s group that I started at the beginning of the COVID pandemic. It’s still going, and we’ve got a few spots if you (or someone you know) are interested.

It's all about helping men untangle the beliefs and behaviors that keep us stuck, stressed, and in shame.

Expect new episodes every Thursday starting 11/17/22.

Hit subscribe, and you’ll get each episode as they come out!

Thanks for joining me!

Credits:

🎶 by Alex Weinstein at Alex Weinstein Music