I’ve been a Jordan Peterson fanboy for the last couple of years. Ever since I first started listening to him I’ve been hooked.
His insights are profound and his passion is genuine. This are a rare combination, especially when used for good.
So, when his book came out I bought it right away. And when I found out that Peterson was doing a book tour, I jumped at the chance as well.
I attended the event in Washington D.C. this past Friday night (May 4th) and had a great time! Here are a few thoughts on the event:
Expectations vs. Reality
I wasn’t expecting too much from the in-person event. I thought a bunch of 20-something men were going to show up and listen to Jordan lecture for a little bit.
The event definitely surpassed my expectations.
Walking up to the theater I didn’t see what I was expecting. The crowd was as lot more diverse than I thought.
Yes, it was predominantly white. But there was diversity in terms of age, in particular. There were also a lot more women than I expected (I was expecting close to zero…). And they were pretty!
The crowd was very clean-cut, good-looking and well-behaved. This is not too common in DC, except for the Republican crowd. And I suspect that is what the crowd was. People that want traditional values and wholesome families. Can’t argue with that!
In terms of crowd size there were well over 1,500 people. Maybe closer to 2,000 actually (The building’s capacity).
I was also excited to learn that Dave Rubin would be hosting the events. Dave won’t be at all the events, but will be hosting many of them. Dave was hilarious in opening the show, and definitely livened up the event from Peterson’s more serious tone, although Jordan cracked a few good jokes too.
When Peterson came out he got a very warm welcome and a standing ovation. It was really cool to see such a big crowd showing Peterson love when I had just been watching these YouTube videos alone.
The Lecture
Listening to a Jordan Peterson lecture is definitely different than watching on YouTube. Online there are so many distractions. Honestly, I can’t say I’ve ever just sat down to watch one of his videos and do NOTHING ELSE. I doubt most do either.
In person, you’re highly focused on what he’s saying. This really helped me internalize a lot of the concepts he talked about.
I don’t think I will get too deep into the subjects he discussed. I could fill a whole blog post on a few minutes of his talk.
But a few subjects he touched on were archetypes in religion and film, finding a purpose in life, and drug use and addiction.
My main criticism of Peterson’s 12 Rules for Life was that the book is too scatterbrained and unstructured, with long-winded tangents. Even Dave Rubin joked at the end that ,”Only Jordan could speak for an hour and a half and only get to three of the twelve rules.” But it makes sense now why he does that. He really does get to the point, but just has a very roundabout way of getting there. But the long ride is well worth it.
Why You Should Attend the Jordan Peterson Book Tour
Not only do I recommend 12 Rules for Life, but I recommend attending the Jordan Peterson Book Tour. The event was a great experience, and it will help solidify what you read in the book.
I don’t get any commission if you buy a ticket, I just sincerely recommend you go.
The tour is something like 30 cities in 45 days. Here is the full list of tour dates. There’s a good chance if you live in the USA or Canada, or even the UK or Ireland, he will be coming to your city.
If you go or have been to the event, feel free to share your thoughts!
The post I Attended the Jordan Peterson Book Tour: Here’s What Happened appeared first on Masculine Books.