Welcome! We’re delighted that you’re interested in hosting a Grateful Gathering! We look forward to answering your questions and helping you get started.
Hosting a Grateful Gathering will transform you. The energy you put into preparing and facilitating will come back to you many fold. Whether there are four of you, or fourteen, or forty, you will experience the power of grateful living revealing itself.
Lisa V., Grateful Gathering Host, United States
How it Works
Who Can Host?
We welcome anyone passionate about deep conversations that yield greater meaning, purpose, and joy in life and who would like to set the stage for others to do the same. We have a simple and inclusive registration process for all interested hosts. View more frequently asked questions below.
Orientation and Training
After completing the registration process, all new hosts participate in a required, four-part orientation & training program, offered twice a year. This series includes:
- Introduction to our organization’s mission, founder, and vision for Grateful Gatherings
- Examination of the core principles, practices, and outcomes of Grateful Living
- Logistics — from accessing the monthly resources to connecting with other hosts
- Facilitation guidelines, agreements, and strategies
- Support, camaraderie, play, joy, and connection!
Press play below to watch a recently recorded host information session.
Ongoing Resources and Support
In addition to the orientation and training, we provide:
- Robust monthly resources, rooted in spiritual wisdom, scholarship, and research
- A digital toolkit of resources for hosting and group facilitation
- Optional online meetings with the Grateful Living team and other hosts
- Access to our Community Platform where you can connect with other hosts and the Grateful Living team
Interested in becoming a host? Our next training will begin in fall 2024. Sign up to be notified when registration opens
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Frequently Asked Questions
Hosting a one to two-hour Gathering each month; length of time can vary depending on whether you host online, in person, at home, at work, etc.
One to two hours of preparation in advance of your Gathering to review all of the materials for the month, prepare your agenda, set the stage (if meeting in person), and maintain communication with the participants in your group.
Yes. Many people host on their own and many have a co-host. If you know you’re going to co-host with a specific person, each interested host should complete the registration form.
This is up to you. You can host a closed Gathering with an invited circle of friends, family, or colleagues, or you can open your Gathering to people in your community or beyond, if hosting online. We provide support for this in the orientation and training.
Gatherings take place online and in homes, workplaces, spiritual organizations, libraries, parks, and by the beach! You choose where to host your Gathering so that it sets the stage for the vibrant and engaging dynamic you want. It’s also fine to rotate your location.
We provide robust resources every month and offer a lot of guidance and suggestions for your agenda, but we encourage you to host your Gathering in the way that is most energizing and joyful for you and your participants.
Yes! In addition to the four-session orientation and training, we provide ongoing resources for all hosts, including facilitation strategies, tips for navigating difficult conversations, and easy interaction with the Grateful Living team and other hosts.
We require that all hosts complete the four-session training, and we also know that life is full and complicated. When you register to become a host, you’ll have an opportunity to let us know of any known conflicts. We will record and share all sessions.
Please join us anyway! We will share the session recordings directly with you each week and host two live, online check-ins during the four-week training. The check-ins are not a repeat of the recorded sessions but an opportunity to connect with one another and share questions.
They take place online, and we’ve designed them to be a vibrant mix of essential information, connection, and joy. They include plenty of interaction, reflection, practice, and opportunity to get to know other hosts as well as our team.
No. We offer the training at no cost so that it is accessible to all. Our only expectation is that participants enter the training with the intention of launching a group upon completion.
Grateful Gatherings must be offered free of charge. If you decide to pool resources with your participants to provide refreshments or rent a venue, that’s a decision your group can make together, but hosts may not charge for participation.
Our hope is that each new group takes on a vibrancy and energy that serves as the fuel for ongoing connection, but there is not a requirement on our end. Some of our current groups have been meeting monthly since the program was originally launched five years ago!