Coaching/Support Group

Hi Everyone,

My name is Jo and I'm a Weight Loss & Happiness Coach. I'm looking to start a Coaching/Support Group for people considering, or who have had, lap band surgery. I'm wondering if you could help me out by telling me if this is something you would be interested in and if so, what kind of things you would want from a group like this.

This is really just to find out your thoughts… it's honestly not a sales pitch!

First a bit about me:

My background is in psychology (but I'm not a psychologist, I just happen to have a psychology degree), I spent 12 years working in large organisations coaching and developing people in leadership and management jobs. I got a bit frustrated with this because you can only go so far in helping someone achieve their real potential because ultimately people are not their jobs and that's where my scope ended. During this time I got really interested in Happiness and Wellbeing and helping people achieve this (because I believe this is really what we all want). It's amazing what you can do if you set your mind to it! And I'm all about mindset, and helping people get the right one so that they can achieve anything they want to, including lose weight. To cut a long story short I am now helping individuals lose weight through coaching and behaviour change techniques. I am looking to set up a group because I realised that I can help more people in a group setting (there are only so many hours in a week!), and I also believe that in a group, participants can gain a huge amount from each other as well as the focus, learning and structure I can provide.

If you're interested please could you complete the Topic Poll attached and/or post any comments you would like to make. (If you're not interested I'd really like to hear about that too… your reasons for not wanting to join a structured group and any other thoughts you might want to share.)

Probably most importantly, what topics would you like to cover in this type of group? – go crazy here, anything goes (I have my own ideas but I'd like to hear yours first so that I don't steer you in any particular direction.)

Thanks for your help with this!

Jo

Ps. Even if you don't think you would join this kind of group I'd love to hear your ideas.

If you're still reading I'm guessing you're interested so I'll tell you a little bit about how I define a Coaching/Support Group...

The Coaching part is specifically about me helping you to;

1. Set yourself goals (firstly about weight but also about any aspect of your life if that's what you want),

2. Identify milestones,

3. Take actions to meet those milestones,

4. Celebrate when you reach those milestones and goals.

The Support part comes from all of the group members (and me), in sharing experiences, challenges, successes, and generally cheering each other on. I will also offer support through bringing specific behaviour change techniques and discussion points to motivate the group members achieve their goals.