David Fabricius
May 11-13, 2012 | Petaluma, California
Boldly Venture into Your Authentic Masculinity
The Shift Men’s Initiation, led by world-renowned speaker and trainer David Fabricius, offers you three unforgettable days to boldly venture into your most sacred, authentic and powerful masculinity in the company of other remarkable and committed men.
IF YOU ARE...
- Ready to be a better leader, partner, dad, entrepreneur, friend, community member and citizen
- Willing to step into your full manhood in the boardroom and the bedroom, the marketplace and the family room, and beyond
- Prepared to have your life’s purpose revealed and manifested
Then you have found the right place. We invite you to join us for this rare opportunity to ignite your as-yet-untapped potentials.
You will be tested, stretched and challenged to go beyond false limitations into a fuller-spectrum version of yourself. It will not be an easy journey, but you will emerge stronger, more open and more courageous.
Raw, undiluted adventure at the cutting edge of 21st century masculine initiation
Here, you’ll meet – and be challenged by – extraordinary men: trainers, speakers, men’s circle facilitators, coaches and other men from around the world who are also seeking an advanced initiation experience.
Built upon 30 years of initiatory work with top business, military and human growth leaders, this intense three-day journey provides a powerful context in which to tap new levels of courage, compassion, courtesy and capability.
A profoundly gifted men’s initiation leader, David Fabricius is sought by many of the world’s elite men for training, initiation and coaching.
In the Shift Men’s Initiation, he will offer a powerful experiential journey like none other, building from “Black Book for Men, “Vital Seven System” and other potent methods and insights that will help you be a better man-and a better provider and protector for the people you love.
Join David Fabricius and his team and help us raise the bar on what it means to be a man at this critical time for humanity and the planet.
The world needs great men who are also heartfelt and humble to help lead the way forward. If you aspire to be such a man, this initiation is designed for you.
Starts 4 pm Friday, 5/11 – 4pm Sunday, 5/13
Earthrise Retreat Center
at the Institute of Noetic Sciences
Petaluma, California, USA
Experience Levels of Courage, Compassion and Capability You Never Thought Possible
Initiations are meant to be tough, demanding and mysterious. This one will test you like no other.
Expect an undiluted masculine adventure as you learn practices that will significantly improve your quality of life and strengthen your resolve to be a positive force for change.
This initiation was designed to help meet the deepest needs of today’s man.
This is your opportunity to...
- Become a more authentic, inspired and integrated 21st century man-no more excuses or apologies
- Awaken to your sacred nature and activate your courage, compassion and potency in the “Vital 7” areas of your life
- Reveal and begin manifesting your life’s purpose and your leadership role in your family, work and community
- Embody new definitions of masculine courage and compassion in keeping with the planetary shift
- Collaborate with other men and help accelerate the shift from an imbalanced, conflict-ridden world to one based on equality between the masculine and feminine and principles of sustainability, peace, health and prosperity.
Deepen your connection with yourself and other men through powerful processes and ritual
The Shift Men’s Initiation will help redefine what is possible for you, bond you to your fellow participants, and empower you with philosophies, strategies and techniques for stepping up in every vital area of your life.
You’ll activate many faces of your full masculinity, from the noble Warrior to Magician, Lover and King. This activation will not be an armchair psychological exercise, but take you into the grit and guts of what you are really made of.
Simulated disaster rescue exercises, mission quests and other tests of courage, sacred ceremony, grief work, and exploring ancient warrior traditions will deepen your experience, revealing new aspects of yourself and fellow participants.
An Important Message from David Fabricius
Men, ask yourselves:
What level of peace, prosperity and sustainability do I want to see in my community, nation and our world? And what am I personally willing to do to help cocreate this, now?
Ask yourself what is at risk in your personal life at this time. What experience, conversation and exposure or skills do you need for going forward with more hope, confidence and certainty?
What inner work do you still need to do?
During these three days, we’ll dig deep into our own hearts, souls and minds to clear the stuff that is holding you back – emotionally, mentally, physically, spiritually, sexually, socially and financially.
Then, we will explore the cultural pathologies and other causes of our planetary crisis – without paranoia – and what it will take for us men to cocreate a more enlightened society and future for all.
Will you join us for this unique graduate initiation and training for conscious men?
Can the woman, children, elders, mother earth and I rely on you to provide for and protect them?
Now is the time.
Our world is in peril, yet opportunities to serve, to build conscious enterprises, to prosper, to make a difference and to rejoice abound.
Brothers, the facts are stacking up, without a global shift in human consciousness we may be heading for very tough times as a species.
For almost three decades I have had the incredible privilege of training billionaire industrialists, maverick entrepreneurs, Fortune 500 CEOs, world champion strength athletes and tier one asset Special Forces soldiers.
My travels took me across America, Africa, Asia, Australia and Europe and beyond, to more than 140 nations. Now, for the first time ever will I share some of the processes and practices I’ve created over the past 30 years with a broader group of men.
If you are an initiated in MKP, MDI, Men of the Code, Tribe of Men, Sterling Institute, Young Men’s Adventure Weekend or a similar men’s experience, you are especially welcome to the Shift Men’s Initiation.
Our mission is to elevate the consciousness of men so that we may experience a more enlightened society and a more sustainable, peaceful, healthy and prosperous world.
If you care about the state of our world and the condition of masculinity, then the Shift Men’s Initiation weekend is for you.
Please join me.
Your brother,
What Others Say About David Fabricius
The Shift Men’s Initiation Long-Term Vision
Our long-term goal with the Shift Men’s Initiation is to train many men to offer this initiation worldwide so that it becomes a source of livelihood, mission and service for them. We therefore especially invite leaders of other men to attend, men who may carry this work forward as we hone the systems, training and outreach to reach a critical mass of evolutionary 21st century men.
We began this work last year in collaborative partnership with leaders from The Mankind Project, Tribe of Men and Men’s Division International.
Now, with David’s leadership, we have created this shorter, potent, focused, streamlined Shift Men’s Initiation that integrates the best of what is known about activating men’s full potential in just three days. We see this as highly complementary to the programs of these respected allies.
The Location
EarthRise at the Institute of Noetic Sciences (IONS) is housed on 200 acres of beautiful rolling hills of Petaluma where hiking trails meander through pristine native live oak woodlands, and the surrounding open space offers panoramic vistas of the California landscape. It is located just forty-five minutes north of San Francisco. It is easily accessible from the East Bay and North Bay, as well as from San Francisco, making it one of Northern California's premier retreat sites.
Special features at EarthRise include a beautiful vegetable garden that provides fruits and vegetables for our kitchen, a labyrinth, a meditation hut nestled in a peaceful oak grove, a tepee for group rituals and classes, and sitting areas for quiet contemplation.
The Institute founded a transformative learning center that provides a gathering place to explore ancient wisdom traditions, supports experiential learning, and engages in modern scientific inquiry.
EarthRise on our campus has become a space where psychologists, educators, leaders, philosophers,frontier scientists, and spiritual masters conduct their work. We support intrapersonal and interpersonal consciousness work in a gorgeous natural setting.
At EarthRise -- where cutting-edge scientific research is studied and conducted-guests can commune with the land and experience ecological awareness and transformational programs and practices that foster self-reflection and personal growth. The campus is a place where we integrate theory and practice, science and spirituality, as well as renewal and retreat.
Dining: The dining hall at EarthRise provides indoor as well as outdoor garden dining. Local ingredients are the inspiration for our cooking and include luscious organic fruits and vegetables, free range poultry, hormone-free meat and dairy products, and extraordinary cheeses. We use organic produce from local farmers whenever possible and draw upon flavors and techniques worldwide to create a diverse cuisine.
Ready to Register?
During this advanced men’s 3-day initiation experience, you’ll have the opportunity to:
- Discover and begin manifesting your life’s purpose to the benefit of your family, community, the marketplace and the planet
- Learn practices that help optimize your health and emotional and sexual bliss.
- Become a better leader, partner, dad, entrepreneur, friend, community member, and national and global citizen
- Step into your full authentic power in the boardroom and marketplace, the bedroom and family room-and beyond so that you can contribute to your own growth and the world’s evolution to a higher level of consciousness
About Your Program Leader
David Fabricius, Director of Men’s Programs at The Shift Network. Founder of Men Of The Code, World Renowned Speaker and Trainer for Elite Groups, Former Special Forces Instructor, JCI Senator, Recipient of the Key of Freedom from the City of Miami. Author of Power to You; The Daily Seven; Heart of the Leader; Fear Not, and The Black Book for Men.
Our Honored Elders (Wisdom Council)
James Williams is president of Bugei Trading Company. He has been studying martial arts since 1960 and teaching since 1975. James has trained, competed in and taught a number of different martial disciplines: Japanese, Okinawan, Chinese, Filippino, as well as the Brazilian system of Jujitsu as taught by Rorion and Royce Gracie. A certified instructor of the ancient Russian martial art Systema, James also teaches a close-quarters method of combat to policeman and military personnel around the world. James developed the Hissatsu, a close-quarter battle knife produced and marketed by Columbia River Knife & Tool.
Tim Ballingham is a 35-year practitioner of Native American ceremonies and the former Native American Projects Director of the Cross-Cultural Studies Program. A skilled ceramicist, Tim’s work has been on exhibit at Smithsonian’s Renwick Gallery and appeared in popular professional and international publications. Tim is also vice president of Earth Mother Productions, which produced the acclaimed series, "Earth Mother Lullabies from Around the World.”
Emmett Miller, M.D. is one of the fathers of holistic and mind/body medicine. His multicultural heritage has given him a unique social, medical, and spiritual perspective. He is founder of the world’s first Cancer Support and Education Center in Menlo Park, CA, and the author of Deep Healing: The Essence of Mind/Body Medicine. Leading hospitals and health professionals, performers, and Olympic athletes use Emmett’s pioneering deep relaxation and guided imagery audio recordings for mind/body healing and performance enhancement.
Other wisdom keepers (elders) present may include Howard Spierer, Charles Gjers, Bill Kauth and others.
Frequently Asked Questions
I’ve already been initiated. Why should I be interested?
In tribal cultures around the world, men go through five or more initiations and rites of passage during their lifespan before their final initiation of death. Dr. Bill Plotkin identified eight initiatory stages in his acclaimed book, Nature and the Human Soul.
We believe in spiritual and psychological cross-training. We encourage every man who has been through any single initiation to go through every other available program as they are called. We learn more at each stage of life – we’re not the same man as we were when we went through the earlier initiation. This is the next step for already initiated men.
Are scholarships available?
We have set aside a small number of partial scholarships, partly funded by men who attended last year’s Shift Men’s Initiation. Inquire with full details of your situation and background at http://support.theshiftnetwork.com.
How will I stay in touch with men I meet in the program?
Our private social network, Shift Movement, will have a group available to all participants in our Initiation. You can share your insights with others, engage in lively discussions, network on projects and exchange information about events, resources and activities. Discuss your ongoing experiences, practices and growth, and stay connected with an incredible community of men.
What about follow-up?
All participants will be encouraged to join an existing men’s group if they don’t already belong to one. Men are welcome to network and start their own groups, but our goal is to support the growth and development of existing men’s teams. We are working closely with MDI, MKP, the Global Men’s Network and other men’s organizations to provide information about groups that welcome new prospective members. We will also recommend that men register for each organization’s events as a way to cross-train and cross-fertilize the men’s movement.
I attended a previous version of the Shift Men’s Initiation. Will this have a lot of overlap?
No. This is a fresh approach with different experiences and exercises – it is shorter, more streamlined and new. While we got high ratings for our first two, the structure proved to be a bit too long and complex for other men to be trained to replicate, which is part of our goal in developing this program.
We are looking at how the two designs might best complement each other in the future. So we can say that this will be a new experience for you, with unique insights, openings and practices that derive from David’s 30 years of experience in training and initiating men.
Can you share more about the train-the-trainers program?
Not at this time, except to say that we are looking forward to partnering with the best men’s trainers in creating a form for this work that can spread. We’ll announce more as it develops.
What is your refund policy?
We guarantee that you will experience a significant transformation if you complete the course. If you don’t, we will refund your program fee (room and board costs are non-refundable). If you notify us that you cannot attend after registering and before April 25, we will attempt to fill your place. If we are successful in doing so, we will refund your fee minus a service charge of $200. You are welcome to sell your reservation to another person, however. Just let us know to whom you have transferred your registration.
If I have any further questions, how can I reach Customer Support?
Please visit our Customer Support Center, where you should be able to find the answer to your question or the solution to a problem. And if you can’t, you can submit an online request form and we’ll get right back to you.
