ABOUT US
We're the coaches we needed at your age.
Built Different is a Seattle nonprofit. We run free training, mentorship, and outdoor trips for guys 10 to 20. We started it because a lot of us went through our teens with nobody checking in, and we know how that goes.
Mission & vision
Help young men build strength, confidence, and connection, at no cost to them or their families.
We do it through training, mentorship, and time spent together, because that reaches guys who would never walk into an office and ask for help.
Our visionA Seattle where no young man goes through it alone.
Where the weight room, the field, and the trail take the place of isolation, and every guy who needs someone in his corner has one.
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Show upWe keep the same time and the same people. Consistency is the whole product.
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No barriersFree, no experience needed, no paperwork asking you to explain your situation.
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Earned trustEvery adult is background checked and trained before working with anyone.
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Honest about limitsWe're not treatment. When someone needs more, we help them get to it.
Why training
Sitting in a room and being asked how you feel is a lot to ask of someone who doesn't want to talk yet. Moving is easier. You show up, you do the work, and the talking happens sideways, on the walk back or over food, when it isn't the point of the whole thing.
Training also does something real to your head. Hard effort changes how you sleep, how you handle a bad day, and how you feel about yourself. But the training is the doorway, not the answer. What actually changes things is having people who notice when you don't show up.
- You never pay. Not for sessions, gear, trips, or food.
- You come as you are. Any size, any fitness level, day one is fine.
- Nobody makes you talk. Show up and train, that's enough.
- Miss a week and you're still in. There's no strike system here.
- Every adult in the room is background checked and trained.
Who runs it
The people you'll actually meet
Three of us started this in Seattle. You'll see us at sessions, not just on a website.
Jan Konrad
Runs the day to day and shows up to most sessions. Start with him if you have a question nobody else can answer.
James Nam
Handles the field days and tournaments, which means he is the reason there's always food at the end.
Erik Nielsen
Looks after mentor training and safety, including the background checks every adult goes through before they meet anyone.
Nobody trains alone
There's a spot for you here.
Parent, coach, or want to support this? Start here.
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