We cannot choose the original family we are born into but we can choose the life tribe we create.
I have always loved and benefitted from the power of being in a positive, supportive group setting. I grew up in a family with three older sisters, who loved and supported me. I have had the same group of friends since grade school. To this day my preferred form of exercise is in groups whether it’s Zumba, kickboxing, or yoga. I have run therapy and life-coaching groups for many years, and the transformations I have witnessed from supportive group dynamics are nothing less than astonishing.
Choosing to get involved with group coaching work can be an emotionally corrective experience. Although we cannot choose our family, we can choose our “life tribe” (friends, significant others, work environments, religious institutions, community organizations). Unfortunately, many of our personal relationships and “bad relationships habits” are the result of unresolved issues from our family of origin that we are trying to rectify.
In a group-coaching program, you find yourself with like-minded people who came to the program to receive positive support and tools to achieve stated goals just like you. Unlike group therapy, whose purpose is to recognize and re-create the dynamics in your family of origin so you can change dysfunctional patterns, group coaching focuses on providing problem-solving tools and action-oriented steps to achieve stated goals right now.
In my coaching groups, I have seen the simple act of speaking truthfully in a supportive environment create a door to possibility where one did not exist.
One benefit of being a therapist and coach is that if you, as a participant in the program, are stuck on an issue from the past, I have the skills to help you clear that experience and continue moving toward your goals. I can see your highest potential, even if you cannot. Part of my job is to hold that space until you can see it for yourself. The power of the collective intention in a healthy group is mind blowing.
Some of the other benefits of group coaching are:
- Daring to declare your dreams and desires with compassionate witnesses. This is the beginning of making them manifest in your life.
- Sharing your struggle = lightening your load. Many times, you believe you are the only one to ever experience something or to feel a certain way. Not only do you feel supported by sharing an issue and discovering others are experiencing the same, but you are offered the opportunity to test several approaches and review the results based on what you and others have tried and what the coach might recommend based on individual circumstance.
- Groups keep you accountable. In our over-scheduled lives, it is common to have the best intentions with no follow through. Group coaching keeps your goals present and inspires action. You don’t want to be the one who shows up without your homework!
- Shared energy accelerates growth and results. Since we are all made up of energy, getting a weekly shot of super-positive energy is extremely powerful. Many successful friendships and business relationships are born in a group coaching setting.
- Everyone needs a chosen life tribe. Spending time with caring people who are invested in your goals and dreams is healing, liberating, and effective.
My excitement about group coaching and living authentically drew me to my soul sister, Los Angeles-based yoga psychotherapist Ashley Turner. When we met, I felt like we were long-lost sisters from the same psychological family tree. We are both completely lit up about helping clients live, speak, and love authentically. We put our brains, hearts, and years of clinical work together and birthed a group coaching program Live Your Truth Love Your Life. We have spent the past year creating content and have invited our nearest and dearest inspirational super star friends to share their wisdom.
ENTER TO JOIN OUR POSSE (FREE)
This Positively Positive family has inspired me so much, and I am so grateful for you, that I am holding a contest to give away five spots in our new three-month group-coaching program, which starts on May 9, 2012. Special guests will include New York Times best-selling author and wellness warrior Kris Carr; best-selling author, Positively Positive contributor, and fierce entrepreneur Danielle LaPorte; award-winning producer from The Tapping Solution Jessica Ortner; yoga rock star Seane Corn; money magic maker Kate Northrup; and the queen of pleasure Mama Gena.
To enter the contest, all you have to do is finish this statement in one hundred words or less:
“I want to learn how to Live My Truth and Love My Life so I can…”
Post your response in the comment section below by Wednesday, May 2.
The top five winners will be announced on Thursday, May 3 in the space below:
We are honored and overwhelmed with your responses and read every single comment (which is why it took so long to get this up!) It was too difficult to pick 5 so we decided to give away 10 spots!
The winners are listed below, but since all of you are a part of our Live Your Truth Love Your Life community, we are offering a special discount for you in hopes that all of you will join our powerful posse of truth seekers!
Everyone please email our assistant Marie (marie@terricole.com or info@liveyourtruth.tv) with your full name and email address so she can register you for the course or send you the promotional code to register using the discount.
Thank you again. We love all of you! Terri + Ashley
Here are the winners of the group coaching contest:
1. Jennifer Raine Kostel
2. Kirby
3. Erica
4. Samantha Banton Smith
5. Briezy Shay
6. T Money
7. Harmonygirls
8. Joeycradio
9. Aly
10. Yeoh Ee Ping
Also, feel free to join our OPEN Facebook Group and check out the tons of free content on our website.
Terri Cole, founder and CEO of Live Fearless and Free, is a licensed psychotherapist, transformation coach, and an expert at turning fear into freedom. Recently, Terri released her first CD “Meditation Transformation”. She is now in the process of writing her first solo book “Flip Over and Float—Transform Fear into Freedom in 6 Simple Steps for Sustainable Change” and co-hosting Live Your Truth Love Your Life, an online group-coaching program, with yoga psychologist Ashley Turner. Terri is set to appear in Lifetime Network’s new show “The Conversation,” executive produced by Demi Moore, airing April 2012. In addition to her website, Terri can also be found on Facebook and Twitter.