What the First 5 Group Coaching Sessions Were Like

How to reach your goals in a group coaching process.

When people come together — with each other and for each other — the impossible becomes possible.

Five weeks ago I set out on a journey I had no idea where it would take me… with emotions, doubts, but also with sooo much enthusiasm and a desire to do wonderful things together with great people. What I wanted was to bring together people who want to work on their professional goals and, together, draw on the group's wisdom, on coaching, and above all on the relationships between the members of the group.

What happened in between?

Well, after the first session I had a moment of pure panic, something like:

"and now what have I done? maybe I shouldn't have started this program?"

Lucky for me it was too late for that :))) So, after a few restless nights spent turning over every possible way I could guide the people in the group toward their most cherished goals, I remembered why I do all this.

Why did I want to run a coaching group?

And the answer came: because I want to help people access their full potential, by seeing themselves through the eyes of others who share the same challenges and the same life stories.

The energy of groups is wonderful: creative, resourceful, it helps you grow, stay open to new perspectives, and become a little better every day. It helps you challenge yourself, and you do it alongside great people who support you along the way.

The first sessions

In the first two sessions we got to know each other, set ground rules for how things would run, and each participant said out loud the goal they'd be working on for the next 10 weeks — making a commitment in front of everyone. Then came a process of exploration, where they tested how determined they really were on their journey. I was more than a little surprised to see how brave everyone was, and how they accepted their challenges as part of the process and part of the road to success.

One of the things that makes me happy is bringing a sense of play into coaching activities, so I challenged them to play and approach their challenges in a fun, creative way. Too often we're serious and forget to look for answers elsewhere too — with other people, or in our own bodies.
Speaking of which, how many times has your body sent you signals about certain situations or people? And how many times did you actually listen? We forget that our mind has its limits and that it isn't actually the only resource we can rely on in life. How often have you stopped to notice what you feel about a situation? What does your environment tell you about it?

The stories we tell ourselves

In one of the sessions, as a kind of conclusion, we saw that often the emotions we perceive — fear, for instance — feel much more intense in the head than in the belly, where we actually feel them. In other words, the mind exaggerates, and we'd do well not to always listen to it, especially when it comes to sensations, emotions, instinct 🙂 It's good at organizing, planning, strategy.

What if we used the whole body — together and its different parts — to guide us and help us make the decisions that are right for us? Even more, what if we used all of it together, as one system, to guide our choices and build the life we dream of?

In another session, I realized how important the relationship between people is. If you don't have the relationship, you have nothing. I realized how much people support one another, and that, in fact, they don't just want to succeed individually — they want to succeed together 🙂
It filled my heart with joy and gratitude, because at the start of the program I suggested we create together that space where each person brings the best and most beautiful part of themselves, to build a place you could later draw from to build your own path toward your goal.

While we explore various personal aspects, we don't forget to track progress, to see what blockages come up, and what we can do about them. One participant has actually already all but reached their goal 🙂

Unfortunately, words are too few to describe the magic of our Tuesday evening sessions. I'm constantly amazed by the way things flow and unfold, by the relationships and connections that form between people, and above all by the courage and strength they show when they open up and make themselves vulnerable, knowing they're in a safe space and that it's part of the process — the process through which they access their inner strength and arrive at the place from which they can see, and act toward, the goals they've set.

Below is a photo of me, happy after one of those wonderful Tuesday evenings:

You can see how the second part of the program went here: Shifts in Perspective and Strategy

If you're curious too about what a group coaching process involves, how it can help you, and how you can join the next group, I invite you to a 30-minute conversation. You can pick a time slot in the calendar below:

Have a lovely day,

Raluca