The Connection Dojo

The dojo is an online space where we meet to practice the way of connection.

With ourselves. With each other. With the moment.

We learn about the nuances of social interactions, the balance between authenticity and relationship, and give each other the grace to practice all of it without needing to get it perfectly. Especially where it challenges us.

It’s both an oasis from and a training ground for daily life and relationships.

Inside the dojo, we learn through games, exploriments and real interactions.

There is a library of video courses you can dive into at your own pace, to ensure everyone has the foundations.

But while the courses offer understanding, the real magic starts to happen when we play with these topics in a session, through real relationships with real people.

Like a martial artist hones their skills by play-fighting with people who hold a similar degree of reverence for each other and the practice, we hone the skills of self-acceptance, relating and communication in such a context.

That’s why it’s called “dōjō”, a term borrowed from martial arts which means “place of the way”.

In Judo, the “way” is about working with the energy already here instead of against it. In The Connection Dojo, that’s exactly how we approach the art of relating.

Every week there’s a skill-building session where we immerse ourselves in the aforementioned games and exploriments, and share with each other what we learned from them.

Our second weekly call is a relational mindfulness session, which can best be described as “conversational meditation” and builds our capacity to be with anything that can happen in relationships.

The dojo draws on—and builds upon—many different lineages exploring connection and social reality, integrating all their lenses to transcend them rather than inherit their biases or downsides.

But the core approach is rooted in Authentic Relating (as taught by ART International), and what used to be called “European Circling” (but now goes by many different names).

The intention is for you to be able to walk out of the space and embody connection without having to fall back on frameworks or formulas, or needing connection to look a certain way.

Dojo spots are kept to a limited, intimate number.

This allows the group to build genuine relationships with each other that offer a base solid enough for risk-taking, yet soft enough to rest in.

That’s why I don’t have a join button here.

When spots are open, I mention them on the Pep Talks mailing list. From there, you can start a conversation with me to see if it’s a fit. 

(If there are no spots open but you’re excited to join, you can still start the conversation and I’ll let you know when one opens up.)