Compass Session 2: Friendship and Flourishing COURSE FULL

This session is full for those who have booked and paid in advance. Please contact David for any late availability.

Compass is an 8-week series of discussions which will explore, and put into practice, the humanist values and virtues which underpin human happiness, resilience and flourishing. Exclusively designed and hosted by Dorset Humanists. No essays or exams or prior knowledge needed! All you need is a curious mind about human life and its challenges.

Session Two - Friendship and flourishing
Friendship is one of life’s greatest rewards — but also one of its greatest challenges. In this session we’ll explore what makes friendship so valuable, and what modern research (including Robin Dunbar’s work) tells us about how friendships form and why they matter. We’ll also acknowledge the difficulties — from loneliness and ruptured friendships to the habits and traits that sometimes get in the way of connection.

Together, we’ll map out the virtues and vices of friendship: what strengthens relationships, what weakens them, and how we can each practise the art of being a better friend. Friendship doesn’t just happen by chance — it’s something we can cultivate through attentiveness, reciprocity, kindness, and care.

Compass is about bringing humanist values to life. In this session we’ll ask: how can we grow as friends, and how can Dorset Humanists become a place where the art of friendship is truly practised?

• From Tuesday 23rd September 2025, 6.45-8.45pm, for 8 consecutive Tuesday evenings
• Priority given to those who are able to attend all or most sessions
• Coffee/tea at 6.45pm for prompt start at 7.00pm
• Booking fee £15 includes complimentary membership of Dorset Humanists for one year. £10 booking fee for existing members. Free for those on very low income. Pay cash at the first session you attend.
• Facilitator is David Warden. David has degrees in theology and human resource management & development, and a diploma in humanistic counselling. He is an experienced trainer and course leader.
• Comprehensive course notes will be emailed after each session
• Email chairman@dorset.humanist.org.uk or WhatsApp 07910 886629 for any late availability

The whole course in outline

1. The Human Quest: What does it mean to be a good person today?
2. Friendship and Love: Why we cannot flourish alone
3. Thinking Well: How to seek truth with humility in a polarised world
4. Personal Growth: Virtues for self-understanding and fulfilment
5. Courage in Adversity: How to face life’s challenges with resilience
6. The Good Society: How to live well together beyond individualism and tribalism
7. The Good Things of Life: Beauty, pleasure, and the art of living well
8. Carrying the Compass: What this journey means for us and our humanist community