I thought I was managing. Turns out, I was preparing for something deeper
Dear Radical Honesty community and curious newcomers,
Jesper here. This post is a personal reflection on the past 1.5 years — a journey through service, challenge, and recommitment inside the Radical Honesty Institute (RHI).
The last 18 months have been some of the most challenging of my life. They’ve given me time to pause, reflect, and grow.
Cleaning house — closing all longstanding accountability cases — together with the creation of our new Code of Ethics, led to a cultural shift: no new accountability cases have emerged. This was a long-overdue healing process that made the community safer and more aligned with our values.
Reading the heart-wrenching witness statements left a permanent mark on my soul. The stories, and the courage behind them, will inform my actions for the rest of my life.
During my 1.5 years as Managing Director, I had the privilege of building bridges between the Institute and our trainers.
I served as glue within the Owners Circle and became a lightning rod for frustration — caught between those pushing for faster reform and those concerned about the pace and direction of our change.
I also made mistakes — some of which cost me sleepless nights and required some deep reflection.
It’s not the mistakes themselves I grow from, but what I do with them.
Alongside many dedicated collaborators, I helped bring the long-running Taber Shadburne and Brad Blanton cases to resolution.
I co-created our new Code of Ethics and the accompanying trainer education program, which now includes real-life role-play scenarios for ethical learning.
I filed timely trademark paperwork to protect our brand, helped bring the company out of delinquent status in Colorado, and contributed to drafting the Institute’s first formal bylaws — foundational work that now supports the health and integrity of the organization moving forward.
Behind the scenes, we’ve done the essential organizational cleanup to ensure the Institute is legally sound and can support future growth. Along the way, I identified root causes of some of the challenges we’ve faced — and in my view, we’ll need to completely reinvent our "New Trainers Recruitment and Training Program" to better support the next generation of trainers and participants.
It is with great humility that I have accepted the invitation to become a co-owner in the Radical Honesty Institute — a gesture of trust that I receive both as recognition for past efforts and as a calling to keep serving.
I feel honored by the faith placed in me, and I carry the weight of that responsibility with care.
A positive side effect of this transition to owner is a much-needed cash injection for the Institute.
Shortly afterward, the other owners entrusted me with a seat on the Board of Directors, where I’ll continue to stay involved in the day-to-day work of the Institute.
I’m stepping down from the Accountability Circle and the Training Program Circle and turning my attention toward stewarding the Marketing Circle — supporting our trainers and trainer candidates by growing our pipeline of aligned participants and bringing Radical Honesty to a wider audience.
In my heart, this shift — from Managing Director to Owner and Board Member — feels like a promotion. It’s a deepened commitment. A move from implementation to co-creation.
And I look forward to continuing to serve the community in even more meaningful ways.
A Second Development: A Personal Dream in Motion
Beyond my work inside the Institute, I’ve also been quietly working on something deeply personal — a vision I began shaping in 2018 that’s now coalescing with my work in the Institute.
Back in 2018, as part of a Radical Honesty Workshop, I made a life plan for the next seven years. Some of the key items were:
Locate a place for a healing nature retreat
Quit computer security to pursue mentoring full time
Make a mentoring website to consolidate and share the knowledge I’ve accumulated over a lifetime, using my decades of tech skills
Hold workshops and retreats at my nature retreat
Here’s where I stand:
✅ I now have a large, beautiful nature retreat property in the Sierra foothills, just a few hours east of San Francisco
✅ With the exception of occasional consulting gigs, I’m now mostly focused on helping and mentoring people
🔄 I’ve been building websites, writing articles, and slowly sharing what I’ve learned
🔄 In progress. Since my first weekend workshop with Taber and John in 2017, through 8-week retreats and advanced intensives with Brad and Taber in 2018–2019, and into the online advanced training of 2020 — I’ve been slowly building toward this dream.
From July 2020 to December 2023, I led 175 weekly Radical Honesty fellowships for a private group focused on practice and healing codependence.
More recently, through the Radical Honesty Institute, I’ve hosted free webinars, contributed to Trainer Training, and supported 2 8-week courses with Christoph Fink.
It felt like a dream come true when the Board and Owners’ Circle made an exception — welcoming me into the Radical Honesty Trainer Candidate Program, even though the program was technically closed to new applicants.
I’m grateful for the trust, and I’m looking forward to continuing my learning with my mentors, deepening my skills, and growing into the trainer I aspire to be.
I’ll be offering my Radical Honesty practice under the name Radical Sincerity, at RadicalSincerity.org — a space I’m building with an ethical, compassionate approach to healing codependency, recovering from family dysfunction, and practicing honesty with care, clarity, and courage.
With gratitude,