The British School of Meditation Blog

07Dec

December's Member Appreciation - Ali Cutler - How to be Happy Coach

In October, we celebrate our amazing register member Ali Cutler, ‘How to be Happy Coach’.

Ali lives in Scarborough. As well as teaching meditation she is an ICF trained coach and uses meditation and mindfulness within her coaching as well as teaching weekly classes, courses and workshops. She is passionate about supporting people in their meditation journey and dispelling some of the myths around meditation which often convince people to believe it’s not for them.

We asked Ali to share some information about her business, her teachings and her own meditation experience, so that you can get to know her better.

Here is what Ali told us about her own meditation experience…

“I’ve been practising meditation myself for almost 8 years now. I started out using breath work to help me feel calmer at work. I was then invited to take part in a transcendental meditation course by a friend. I would say this was where my curiosity was pricked further. I started a journey to learn more about different types of meditation and practice a more varied range”.

Ali trained with BSoM to become an externally accredited meditation teacher because…

“Having done a lot of research around who to train with I decided to choose the BSoM because of the thorough nature of the course and the external accreditations it came with. It was important to know that I would be well trained with experienced teachers and have the support and CPD available afterwards. Mary Pearson’s experiences in teaching resonated with me as well. From the initial conversations I had before signing up for the course I felt very at ease that I was in good, knowledgeable hands for the course ahead. The new community app is a fabulous addition too.

My motivation for taking the course was that I wanted to be able to share the benefits of meditation with others. My aim was to share meditation with those working in education to help support their wellbeing, focusing on relaxation and reducing stress”.

What she loved about the training was…

“It’s hard to pinpoint one aspect! I like that it covered all aspects from the science, different meditation methods and starting out in business aspects. I really enjoyed reading up on the science around meditation and researching journals and studies around meditation. I was surprised by how much research had been undertaken on varying aspects of meditation”.

About Ali’s business, Ali Cutler - How to be Happy Coach.

Ali set up her business in 2021 and ran it alongside teaching part time. She had always wanted to offer solutions to support busy people to manage their wellbeing alongside their workload. She says that the pandemic made her decide to just go for it and see what happens. Although she does run classes and courses for those in education, she has found that she does a lot of work with local charities supporting their service users. This was an area she hadn’t really considered before starting. Ali mainly works with children and young adults.

Ali offers the following services and sessions:

A weekly meditation class at a local yoga studio.
Meditation Recordings online.
A number of courses and workshops over the year.
Short courses in mindfulness for busy people too.

In addition to teaching meditation…

Ali also offers mindset coaching 1 to 1 or small groups. She uses mindfulness and meditation as tools within her coaching to help build awareness of habits and unhelpful thoughts.

Her favourite aspect of teaching is…

“Without doubt the best bit of teaching is the lovely people you meet and the connections you make with them”

How you can work with, or find out more about Ali Cutler - How to be Happy Coach.

On 14th January, Ali will be offering a full-day event, exploring goal setting and ending self-sabotage by increasing self-compassion. The day will be a mix of coaching, mindfulness, and meditation. Check out her website for more information.