No, we’re not handymen. But we sure as heck are building something.
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Back in the day, when we had just launched The Good Men Project, the folks at Google took one look at our name and put us in some sort of vast internet directory under the category of “handymen.” I never found out if there was a description of our services or if they just left it to people’s imagination, but for the longest time, these were the kind of calls I’d get:
“Heya, can you send over a handyman?”
“Hi, we’re redoing the inside infrastructure of the Abercrombie & Fitch store in Quincy Market. Complete gutting, install floor to ceiling shelving. What sort of team can you pull together?”
“Do you do demolition?”
“Can you give me a quote for 2,000 square feet of aluminum siding and a carton of screws?”
We were the go-to guys for anyone needing a team of good men to build, fix, or take down something.
Inevitably, when I told the person on the phone that we couldn’t help them because we were, in fact, a media company, they always sounded crestfallen. There simply was no other Good Men Project for them to call.
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Despite the fact that we haven’t built physical structures, we most surely have built something.
We’ve built The Good Men Project – story by story, pageview by pageview, tweet by tweet – into the only international platform of its kind discussing what it means to be a man in the 21st century. We’ve built a network of people that is now at 26 million unique visitors from every country in the world. We’ve put together teams – dozens of editors, hundreds of writers, thousands of evangelists – working together to make this conversation what it is today. We don’t put shelving into Abercrombie & Fitch stores but we’re the first to comment on their portrayal of men in the media. When we do demolition work, it’s demolishing the stereotypes that hamper men’s progress.
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We’re still the go-to guys.
We’re the go-to guys when the NFL wants to talk to bloggers about what they are doing about concussions in football. We’re the go-to guys when HLN TV wants to start a new parenting show so they can know what it’s like to be a dad in these modern times. We’re the go-to guys when the Justice Department changed its definition of rape to include men and CNN needed an opinion on what that meant and why it mattered. We’re the go to-guys when Dad 2.0, the largest Dad conference in the US, needed a keynote speaker. We’re the go-to guys when major media wants a progressive guy’s POV on just about anything.
And we’re the go to guys for thousands of writers and millions of readers when they want to be part of the conversation of what it means to be a good man in the 21st century. We think that what’s been built here at The Good Men Project is pretty great.
So for those of you who want to be charter members of this organization—those of you who want to be the go-to guys with us in this conversation—come join us as Premium Members of The Good Men Project.
We’ll give you things back right away. For starters, you won’t have to see the banner ads. As soon as you sign up to pay a small amount ($2 per month, or $20 per year)—you’ll log in and the ads will be gone. You’ll also get cool extra stuff—invites to exclusive online video chats, a copy of the original Good Men Project Anthology that put us on the map, and more. Find out more details of the offer here.
And as charter members you can help us figure out what other benefits you would like. Tell us what would make the conversation better for you, and we’ll work to make that happen. We work hard. We get things done. And we’re delighted to have you part of the team.
Ready? Sign on up below.
Register New Account
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Payment is by PayPal. Your membership will begin once you receive the welcome email and click the link to return back to The Good Men Project.
Thank you for being a part of the largest worldwide conversation about what it means to be a good man in the 21st century. Your support of our work is inspiring and invaluable.
Questions or Feedback? Email [email protected]
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photo by wordjunky / flickr
LOL at Google. I guess if you have no context around the name a Project by Men could be assumed to be a structural project, but then that would be a stereotype wouldn’t it?!