Before starting my business in October 2020, I worked for Lincolnshire County Council in a Child and Adolescent Mental Health Hospital, Ash Villa. Throughout my time at Ash Villa I did a lot of exercise with young people and helped them understand the importance of exercise and mental health and how these go hand in hand.

In August 2020 I was made redundant and after applying for several jobs and not getting anywhere, I knew I had to think outside of the box. I initially thought I would just do Personal Training, however, after speaking with a previous colleague, a Consultant Clinical Psychologist, she suggested I may be able to support her therapeutic work with clients who have Eating Disorders and body image difficulties. As I spoke about this side of my coaching work on social media, more and more people began to contact me for help with their body image and relationship with food. I now work with a range of women from 15 to 60 years old.

As I mentioned earlier, I knew I wanted to be a Personal Trainer to engage people with exercise which wasn’t just focused on losing weight, however, a real passion of mine is coaching women to improve their relationship with food, exercise and their bodies. Ultimately, shifting the focus from ‘diet culture’ and placing emphasis on the importance of mental health and well-being. Therefore, there are two sides to my business: the Personal Training side which is face to face in a private gym in Lincoln and the other more predominant half is online coaching via zoom sessions, for which I have clients all over the country. I was able to use my experience and knowledge from working in Mental Health at Ash Villa for 8 years to start my business ‘Coaching with Alicia Tetley’.

I was first told about Phil Means when contacting the council about Covid-19 grant funding. I was advised on how to find out about support available such as through the newsletter and website and was then introduced to Phil. Phil instantly advised me on going to an accountant; supported me with new business requirements and helped me start to see a bigger vision for my business.

After speaking to Phil Means I have really focused on what area I want to work on within my business and where I can upscale. Prior to conversations with Phil I was happy to continue with what I was doing, however he helped me think bigger and reflect on the last year of business. In doing so I realised I want to focus more on coaching women through their insecurities and expand on this aspect of my online business, making it more accessible as I go into my second year in business. I work with the majority of clients on a 1-2-1 basis, which has the highest price point so I am looking at expanding into coaching small groups of women and then on a larger scale creating a membership style platform for coaching with a wider community. Phil has been a great support in helping me to see the bigger picture.

I know that I can go to him if I have any problems and he’ll be able to help, and if he can’t help he will know someone that can. It’s been really useful to speak to Phil about my business and moreover the future of my business. I’ve been recommending him to all of my local friends that have their own businesses.

Alicia Tetley, Coaching with Alicia Tetley
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