Group coaching is a powerful way to leverage your coaching skills, but There are some really critical mistakes that I see many coaches making that are creating an environment that is diminishing the result. And also just the rapport that exists inside of group coaching. And so today's episode, I'm going to talk about those specific mistakes and how to overcome them.
I'm Amanda and welcome to the best damn coach podcast where I will teach you how to coach yourself how to coach your clients and how to run your coaching business the number one goal of this show though is to Be the best damn coach you can be so your clients go out and tell the world about you. Let's do the damn thing.
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Welcome coaches to another episode of the Best Damn Coach podcast. I'm so excited you're here and today we are talking all about group coaching calls. And I don't want you to shut this off and be like, yeah, but I don't have a group coaching program. That's okay. Because I guarantee if you're doing this business thing at some point, a group coaching opportunity may come into your world. Whether you're going to lead a group coaching.
session of your own like your own group program or if maybe you're going to guest in a group coaching experience like somebody else's program or have an opportunity to teach I love that as an opportunity for coaches because it gets more eyeballs on your business you can borrow somebody else's audience But this episode, I was inspired by this episode because I've been in an opportunity lately to
be a guest in various programs, and also have the opportunity to be in some corporate experiences with coaching. And it made me like, oh gosh. there is some learning that needs to be had here because I think there's some really big mistakes that you could make in group coaching calls that you may not even know you're making that are going to lead towards a loss of effectiveness and also just a loss of safety and rapport with your group.
And so today I wanted to share more about some of those mistakes and give you the opportunity to really work in your group coaching sessions on them. I want to speak first to just group coaching in general. I've done a previous episode, which we can link in the show notes about like what's better for me, one-to-one or group coaching calls.
So I don't necessarily think, it's my belief that one-to-one coaching is the best way to start your coaching because it's much easier to facilitate results with one person than in a group. And some people love the idea of community and they want to get this group together and it seems like scalable and I can spend less time.
But it's often those experiences that lead to poor management of the groups, poor results, because there's a lack of experience or a lack of a framework driving the process. But honestly, one of the things I see is that people get gung-ho at launching a group. And so they do it the first time and they fill it with people, but they haven't really built like more people above their ecosystem that are viable leads into it. And so the few times after that, it's like cricket.
And so then like, oh, this group thing doesn't work. And it's actually not that. It's that you haven't really done the job of building an ecosystem that's bringing in fluent leads to go into the next thing. And so your audience isn't large enough to fill that program.
so i think there's this perception of like oh that's the next way to scale but i don't actually agree i think there's many ways to scale that don't force group coaching i personally love group coaching but i have a strong background in teaching and i feel really good in a group environment and so i've I have been in front of teenagers teaching, which I do think is one of the toughest audiences.
I've taught to thousands of teachers at the same time. I've taught to, you know, thousands, hundreds of entrepreneurs at the same time. I've taught virtually. So I've had a lot of opportunity to teach groups in different ways. And so I think there's a few... key things that you definitely want to do to host an effective group coaching session. And before you do that, I really think you need to have a readiness and an understanding
Of what it's going to take for you to facilitate results. Because you're going to teach this thing. And everybody's going to be moving at their own pace. And you have to have support mechanisms in there to make sure that they are supported outside of that. And I think obviously that's why a framework is really key. A roadmap is really key. But there's ways, of course, that you can facilitate that differently. So we'll drop that old episode in that goes more in detail to that.
because I don't want to be too lost in the weeds around that. But I'm definitely passionate about some key things because there's a lot of pop-up group coaching programs and people are like, I don't want you to be one of them. All right, so let's talk about some of the common mistakes I see and what to do instead. So common mistake number one is that you rush into the call and you have no time to build rapport.
So I just want you to think about your client as they're coming into a group coaching session. They've maybe just put a kid down for a nap or had a screaming tantrum. They maybe are just ended their work call from their nine to five and they're coming in hot. Maybe they have just been outside, you know, working out. They were cooking in the kitchen. So everybody's doing something different. And now what we've all got to do is bring everyone into the same energy.
So my first encouragement from you is like to create rapport around that. So one of the ways I like to do that, to be quite honest, is to create some sort of engaging question inside the chat box. And often how I do that is through like wins, depending on the call. Like, hey guys, tell me what's happened over the last week. in your business, tell me a specific win that you've had or in your personal life, tell me a specific win that you've had. Sometimes it's really fun questions that are like,
Tell me the best show that you're watching. But what we're doing is we're trying to unify the energy on a common goal before we move into the content, the thing that we're going to actually teach. Yeah. And so now I've got like energy. Now there's some space and time for them to kind of move past what they were just working on. And we're starting to create engagement inside of this. If I weren't virtual, I would do the same thing.
live I might have them like share with a neighbor like tell tell your neighbor like a win get in a group of three tell them like let's share a win for five minutes or answer the question so what we're trying to do is bring people together and crease the energy and the common mission that's happening. Another big mistake that I see is that I'm going to just call it like there's no expectation set. There's no forecasting for what the call is going to be about. So you just jump right into content.
Content can be more received. There's a higher level of reception when we have a vague idea of where we're being taken. It's like, hop in the car, we're going on a trip. You don't really feel safe. like in your body a bit about that or you're the whole time it's like but I want to know I want to know I don't like surprises but if my husband says hey we're gonna drive to Sedona we're gonna make a few surprise stops
of like your favorite places, then I have like a vague idea of what we're doing. So I want you to do the same thing on your call. Hey, today we're going to finish up our conversation around, I'll just use a recent BDC call. Show up rates and email post webinar emails. so that you have a really clear and confident strategy for your next workshop.
Okay, cool. Now I know exactly where we're going. In my BDC community, they kind of already know the titles of our calls, but I want to reveal to them exactly what's going to be like the takeaways. Think of these as the objective. I don't need to know 50 of them, but give me a couple of things that I know I'm going to walk away with to build excitement and clarity around what's going to be covered.
I want to stick to that kind of content idea. This particular call I was on, I have so much love. But the content was all over the place. And then they would be like, okay, we're going to come back to that. And we're going to come back to that. And I was like, ah, they were just like, idea, idea, idea, idea. What they were missing is the one thing you as coaches should be mastering. When you come into my world, you start to see this differently is your content should be reverse designed.
So you should know where you're going to take them before you build the content, which makes the mistake that I just said even easier. If I already know where I'm going to take them and the objectives, then I reverse design the content. there should be a tangible objective to each call. Even if it's a meditation that you're going to be leading, what is the tangible objective that that meditation is going to allow them to do? have or be.
And if it's inspirational content, that's fine too. But I want you to know what the objective is before you content it out. I think the problem is a lot of people are willy-nilly. They don't know how to reverse design. So this is a question you should be asking yourself. How do I want my client to walk away with from this call? If I've got 10 people, how am I going to unify them in an objective so that everybody gets some sort of result that is similar?
Awesome. Okay, mistake number four is that you just word vomit and you have no idea what the heck's happening in the group. This particular session, we were 45 minutes in and the person hadn't even come up for air. They hadn't engaged the chat box. They hadn't asked questions. They hadn't done anything. I felt like they were basically like, I've got one hour. I got to give them as much as possible. That is not an effective way to group code.
So as you are presenting, you should have regular intervals to receive feedback. So I'm going to talk about how to do this in two ways. One is pause and ask for the feedback. You ask specific questions to hit different learning styles. For those that are here, like hear best or receive learning best from Audible, it's like, how's that sound to you for people that need their brain?
How's that processing for you? For people that feel things, how do you feel about that? Is that making sense? How does that look to you? You can ask iterations of that question. So it gets them thinking. You could also be very specific. Hey, in the chat box right now, or with a partner, or break them into a breakout room. Like what's the one thing that's really resonated with you so far? Another great way I like to do this is with simple numer- numbers and abbreviations.
So I will say, hey, drop a one in the chat box if that's making sense to you or a two if you're feeling a little muddy still. Or drop a Y in the chat box if that makes sense to you or an N if you're feeling muddy. because that's easier, right, than writing out an entire novel. But great group coaching is going to have periodic check-ins, especially like after you've presented like a good chunky bit of content.
to make sure that your people are staying up with you, they're getting it, they're enthused, it's making sense, etc., etc. And so that's really the engagement piece is get the feedback and then also create engagement. I'll sometimes pull something like... you know have you ever tell me what the why in the chat box if you've ever felt really frustrated because you created a social media post and nobody said anything
why, why, why, why, why, right? Because now I know everybody's on the same page. What you're trying to do again is unify. And what this does is build rapport with the group. The other thing that I encourage you to do, no matter if you're in person or virtual, is one of the things I like to do at the beginning is I will set the tone I like people's cameras on. And the reason I like that is because I'm also looking for nonverbal cues.
I'm watching their faces like if they're all of a sudden like looking a weird look or they're totally deer in the headlights or they're shaking their heads yes or no. This is that nonverbal feedback that I thrive off of, which I've had to make adjustments when I'm not in person and I'm virtual, but I can still see it.
So something that I'll say at the beginning is, oh, I love you guys for having your cameras on. I love seeing your smiling faces. And I know unless you're eating or something, if you're able to, I'd love to be able to see your face. So I compliment those people that have committed fully. encourage people to be. I know there's some exceptions. But what we don't do in our community is set a standard of camera off. It's just not engaging and it's not.
It's creating a break in rapport in the community. And so I would encourage you to think about how that feels for you and if that matters or if it doesn't. But I definitely know that it matters for me as the presenter. Okay, so we set a tone of expectation, ask for feedback, create engagement, reverse design your content, look for feedback non-verbally. And then the final one before I get into kind of the biggest piece of all is...
When the call is coming to an end, think about it. They've just had all this information. They're processing for trying to apply it through their life. I think one of the most effective things you can do on a group session is create space for that integration and that next step.
So every time I host a call, our final five to eight minutes is that. Okay, guys, let's think about this. We learn lots of stuff, but like, what's your next best step? Or let's brainstorm steps one, two, and three from leaving this call. And I give them this space to actually do that so they don't have to be in overwhelm when they lead the call. Is it perfect all the time for them? No, but we're trying to create an easy integration.
And when you're facilitating results for a variety of people in one session, this is where they have to have some ownership. And then what I like to do is like drop your next step in the chat box. And then what this actually allows me to do is have a really good sense of where people are in their businesses in Best Damn Code. Or in some of my other group programs. I kind of have a great better idea because in the BDC they're in the program for a longer period of time.
And if I have a member say they're going to go do this offlandish thing that doesn't align with what they told me, then actually this gives me the opportunity to be like, hey, Susie, let's readjust. Is that really the priority for you? And so it's a secret way for me to be able to get the feedback to make sure everybody's on point and in a direction that I think is really effective for them.
Okay, the last thing is one that I feel like is the most important. And this is creating like a safe environment for people to share. And I don't think there's any one right way to do this. But I find that my people are pretty vulnerable and open and share. And I think there's two things that have to happen for this. To work.
One, you as a facilitator have to be open and vulnerable. If you're not saying the stuff that is really hard for you, then it feels like you're on this pedestal and they're not there. That's not what is really effective. You're just steps ahead. You're the same human that figured stuff out. And so if you want your people to feel safe to share things that are really on their heart, then you have to lead by example and create that authentic and vulnerable connection with them.
The second thing I think is necessary is when people do share themselves, that you validate and thank them for sharing and show empathy. Vulnerability and empathy in a group environment are so key because then I feel like I can keep doing that and people feel safe to do that. And then I encourage my community to do that. So when people ask questions, something that I always do is like, give so-and-so a hand. Thank her in the chat box for sharing.
I verbally will say, hey, like, Gina, thank you so much for sharing what's on your heart. Type a one in the chat box if you feel exactly what Gina is feeling too. We want people to feel seen and heard and safety is such an important part of a group conversation. If somebody shares something and then I just totally cut them off and move to the next, which has 100% happened to me.
I once shared something in a group coaching forum on Facebook and they shut off the comments. Did I ever show up to share anything again? Nope. Didn't feel safe for me. I didn't feel heard. I felt really upset. And so I just really want to encourage you that like be human, make connection, vulnerability and empathy are such a powerful way to just create such an awesome community. And that is something that you are going to have to lead as the practitioner as well.
So I hope the things that I hit on are ways that you can implement right now to improve the effectiveness. And just the morale and the excitement inside of your group coaching sessions. And if you have any follow-up questions to this or you have a hiccup that you keep happening, you know, you keep seeing happen. inside of your group coaching session, feel free to reach out to me directly over on Instagram at awalkmyway. That's the best place to connect with me.
And if you have a friend that's doing a lot of group coaching or in group coaching environments, then I would love for you to just send them the link. You can go copy link. drop it in a text message, drop it in a DM. That is how like more awesome listeners come to find us is because awesome listeners like you are sharing. So I hope this episode was effective for you. I am excited for you to put things into play. And until next week, go coach them up.
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