A Night With the Blokes is a workshop for men that holds a casual and honest conversation about what tomorrow's man may look like. It will be held from 7pm to 9pm at the Armidale Bowling Club on Tuesday, August 27.
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Brought to you by BackTrack Youth Works and supported by Beat the Breakdown and Gotha4Life. The night is presented by Tomorrow Man and facilitator Ryder Jack said it was an opportunity for men to gather and look at just what it is like to be a bloke in 2019.
"So, we unpack a bit of the male stereotypes. What's working for us, what are some of the good masculine traits that we have," he said.
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"And then, some of have these traits that are not helping us out that much. Stuff about not being able to talk or ask for help.
"Basically the night is about trying to expand on what it means just to be a bloke. Provide each other with skills and tools to be able to look after our mates better and look after ourselves a bit better too."
Wow.
"The beauty of these nights is that we go to a lot of remote rural and regional communities where a lot of guys want to know what the night's about," Ryder said.
"But as soon as you have a room full of men together, we can have a yarn, and men have got these amazing experiences and life skills and defining moments. And to be able to share some of them with each other can be really empowering.
"The beauty of the night is that no-one is forced to do anything they don't want to do. Basically, opportunities are thrown out. Some people take them others just sit back and observe."
Ryder said it was a great opportunity for men to talk about what was working for men and what needed to be worked on for a healthier and happier lifestyle.
He said men had been conditioned not to speak about things that were a bit uncomfortable.
"Women are far better at it than us. We kind of think that actions speak louder than words, so men need the environments to have the chat and still feel masculine in doing so," he said.
"The other issue is that most blokes want to be there for their mates, and help, but they won't receive help themselves.
"So, we just need to let guys know that if you're concerned about someone, you might need to be the first one to be a bit honest, and that makes it easier for your mate to be a bit honest too."
Ryder said the workshops were not telling men they needed to make big changes.
"We're great when things are going well, but we need a little bit of practice of not isolating ourselves when it all hits the fan," he said.
