Catching The Arrow
Discover why certain criticism pierces you and learn the first steps toward catching it sooner.
A practical & inspiring workshop for men who
take criticism harder than they wish.
Maybe your partner says something and you’re defending yourself before you even realize it.
Someone questions your work and you replay it for hours.
You get a look, a tone, a comment — and suddenly you’re explaining, shutting down,
snapping, pleasing harder, or quietly turning against yourself.
You know you shouldn’t take it so personally. But somehow, it lands anyway.
What if you could learn to catch the arrow before it runs the show?
Live & online. Maximum 12 men.
Click below to find out upcoming dates.
What kind of king are you?
We each react differently ~ in different contexts ~ but know that taking it personally is not your fault.
Keep reading...
The arrows don't come from just one direction...
Your partner: “You're not really present.”
Your child: “You never listen to me.”
Your boss/client: “This isn't good enough.”
Someone online challenges or dismisses something you put into the world.
A friend: questions a decision.
Your own mind: “You should be further ahead by now.”
The arrow can come from anywhere. And yet your reaction is the same. Sometimes it grazes past, and other times it lands, hard.
And suddenly ~ despite knowing better and your best efforts ~ you get flooded with this terrible feeling...
Never enough?
Why some arrows pierce deep
and you can't just brush it off...
You can be doing a lot…
and still feel like it’s not enough.
You handle things. You try to be steady. You carry responsibility. And yet somehow, the feedback keeps coming:
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“You’re not really present. Always on your phone.”
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“You don’t help unless I ask.”
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“Why are you so defensive? Why can’t you just…?”
The problem usually isn’t criticism itself. It’s what the criticism seems to mean.
Underneath the words, you may hear:
I’m a failure and fraud.
I’m weak and selfish.
I’m disappointing people.
I’m not enough.
If they really saw me, they might not respect or want me.
That deeper sting is what makes certain arrows so hard to shake. You can be intelligent, self-aware and genuinely caring ~ and still get hooked. You can know the feedback is exaggerated or unfair ~ and still lie awake replaying it.
You can even know there is something useful in what someone said ~ and become too defensive or ashamed to hear it clearly.
The workshop helps you discover the root cause of why certain criticism is so painful and personal ~ and the missing keys
to begin freeing yourself from it's grip.
Not becoming bulletproof.
But more skillful
The goal isn’t to stop caring what anyone thinks ~ becoming cold, indifferent or impossible to criticize. And it certainly isn’t learning how to win arguments.
It is about becoming better able to:
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Notice when you’ve been hooked and understand why!
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Separate useful truth from distortion
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Distinguish what is yours to own from what isn’t
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Recover your footing and choose a cleaner response
So rather than criticism automatically becoming defence, shutdown, pleasing or self-attack, it can become useful information.
Sometimes that means making a repair. Other times, setting a boundary. It may lead to making changes or even coming to accept, "That arrow isn’t mine to carry.... any more."
This is a guided process. Structured and respectful.
Not group therapy
No forced sharing
You can participate quietly or speak --> you decide.
We’ll use a short mythic story as a mirror, pausing at key moments for reflection and practical skill-building you can use immediately.
Most men leave feeling: more calm, more clear, and more confident in how they handle criticism — at home and at work.
What you'll walk away with...
1. Identify your personal arrow
The particular criticism or judgment that tends to pierce you most deeply.
2. Map your reaction
You’ll see what you tend to do when it hits — attack, shut down, appease, overthink, explain, withdraw, or turn against yourself.
3. Understand why it has so much power
Including the deeper meaning or shame-story that gets attached to the criticism.
4. Learn a method for translating criticism
So you can begin sorting truth from poison and choose what ~ if anything ~ actually needs to happen next.
5. Discern your next best step to grow...
You’ll assess how skillfully you currently handle criticism and where you most want to grow next...
CAVEAT EMPTOR
Buyer Be Aware!
You will not leave this 75 minute workshop
magically immune to criticism.
You should leave with significantly more clarity about
why it affects you the way it does and a method
you can begin practicing immediately.
Bonus Side Effects:
Relief and realness with other men
What is often reported as a surprise is men hearing
one another describe what they thought was “just me.”
This is a space for men ready to get real. There will be no posturing.
No fixing. No performance. Just honesty and respect.
DETAILS
Upcoming live date(s)
Thursday, April 2nd,
7:30-9:30pm EST
Online
Tickets
$33 for one
$50 for two
There will be no recording. If you sign up and miss the live experience, you will get a credit to join another telling.
More questions...?
Who am I...?
And why I care so much?
I am David Jurasek and I've spent close to three decades working with men as a therapist, mentor, Sensei and group leader.
I also know this territory personally ~ 20 years ago standing on a rooftop and wanting to let myself fall over the edge.
For many years, criticism and it's impact had far more power over me than I wanted to admit. Learning how to understand and work differently and more deeply with shame has become the core of my own work ~ and now what I am most passionate about teaching other men.
"Catching The Arrow" brings together what I’ve learned clinically, relationally and through years of working directly with men AND in my own life and puts into a process that is clear, fun and deeply empowering. I hope you join us!
What shouId I expect, really?
An evening of Story + Skill = deep growth + fun!
This is not another lecture full of communication tips. We’ll use the story of a wounded king as a mirror for something very ordinary and human.
At key moments, I’ll pause the story and invite you to look at your own experience:
What is your arrow?
What happens when it hits?
What meaning do you attach to it?
What would a more skillful response look like?
The process is structured, practical and respectful.
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No forced sharing
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Not group therapy
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Participate quietly or speak — your choice
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No need to be “good at emotions”
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No performance of vulnerability
You just need some curiosity about your own pattern.
What comes after the workshop?
For men ready to go beyond understanding it...
For some men, one evening of insight is enough.
For men who want to actually "practice the skills", with my seasoned guidance daily accountability from a small committed group, workshop participants will also have the option of continuing into Catching the Arrow: 30-Day Adventure Training
Thirty days of practical reps and progressively challenging dares designed around three abilities:
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Catch the arrows more quickly
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Translate their message more clearly
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Respond more wisely
There is no obligation to continue. First come discover your arrow.
You just need some curiosity about your own pattern.
