A Toolkit for the Heart and the Mind

Monday 2nd February to Monday March 23rd 2026

Join me for an eight week Mindful Self-compassion course that provides you with the resources to be the best possible version of yourself by embracing both the heart and the mind

Running Monday evenings online from 7pm to 9.30pm

£325 (concessions available)

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Eight Weeks to your Best Self

The Mindful Self-compassion course (MSC) was devised by and based on the groundbreaking work of Kristin Neff and Chris Germer. I’ve taught it nineteen times, I love teaching it and I love seeing how participants really benefit from taking part. They’ve given a 92% satisfaction rating, 98% satisfaction for my teaching and 95% recommend the course as worth joining.

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Hear from previous participants

  • Nick Williams, founder of The Leader You Were Born To Be, and author of nineteen books including The Work We Were Born To Do

    “ Initially, I was a little reluctant to sign up for John’s course, because I thought I already understood mindfulness and self-compassion. I was wrong. There was so much more depth than I realised, and so much of the power came from the practice of the ideas rather than simply knowing what they were.  I have now done the course twice and value the refresher sessions as well in order to deepen my practice. It is a great course – do it when you can!”

  • Kerry H

    “As a working single mother, I often find it difficult to carve out time for myself. Signing up for John’s Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) course was a deliberate act of self-care—a way to prioritize my own well-being. Throughout the course, I found John to be exceptionally warm, welcoming, and caring. From the very beginning, he made me feel safe and comfortable, fostering an environment where I could explore and develop self-compassion alongside a supportive group. The atmosphere he creates encourages everyone to try out new approaches to building compassion and to share their experiences openly. The group has been incredibly beneficial for me. I have learned to be more accepting of life’s challenges and to take intentional moments to show myself love and kindness, especially during tough times. As a result, I feel significantly more resilient and stronger, better equipped to handle whatever life brings my way. I highly recommend John’s MSC course to anyone interested in developing these important skills and nurturing a kinder relationship with themselves. “

  • Ian H

    “John’s Mindful Self-Compassion course has proved to be an important element in my personal transformation journey. I’m finding I’m calling on the various tools and approaches instinctively and, as a result, am a calmer, more positive, and self-assured person than I was when I joined the programme. 

    And being in the Learning & Development space, Mindful Self-Compassion is informing how I work with my clients. I’ve also made a few new connections from those attending the course, often seeing them on John’s refresher programmes.”

  • Nikki Y

    “Following my divorce from a 30 year relationship and some huge life changes, I was suffering from anxiety and punishing myself for my lack of confidence. John's course helped me to learn how to be kind to myself during difficult periods and lead from a place of self compassion rather than self criticism. I'm still a work in progress, but I now live from a place of acceptance rather than suffering and have finally been able to discover the confidence hiding within me.” 

Why wait to be your best self?

You may be in a great place already but, like many people, you’re just coasting along. You’re living but you’re not feeling fully alive. You may not be suffering with anxiety, stress or resentment but you are not experiencing life fully as your best self.

All emotions are part of our full and complete human experience, even when we experience them as negative. This approach helps you appreciate even the negatives as a learning opportunity. Through this course I will give you the additional tools to make better choices about living your best life and developing a healthy relationship with your emotions to be able to be with them when they arise..

How will MSC help you?

We all experience emotions, which can appear to be negative and overwhelming. Mindful Self-compassion doesn't try to fix this, instead it offers tools to acknowledge the negative and with self-compassion cultivate the gold.

This will help you handle stress and difficult emotions, increase kindness and acceptance of yourself and others, and build well-being.

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Eight weeks of personal growth and empowering practices

The eight week programme combines mindfulness, common humanity, and self-kindness, develops awareness of emotions and experiences, and offers practices for self-compassion, compassion for others, and better relationships.

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In this course you will learn

  • How to stop being so hard on yourself

  • How to handle difficult emotions with greater ease

  • How to motivate yourself with encouragement rather than criticism

  • How to transform difficult relationships, both old and new

  • Mindfulness and self-compassion practices for home and everyday life

  • How to become your own best teacher

Hear more success stories

  • “From the first introduction chat I had with John on zoom I had a very sure sense that I was in the right place at the right time for this journey. John's experience and warm, calm manner was evident immediately and the additional support offered during the eight weeks was way beyond and above anything I could have expected or hoped for. I am very grateful both to John and to the course.”

  • “This course was even better than I thought it would be and at an excellent price point. John is so caring and makes time to really listen to you. He guides the course beautifully and I particularly enjoy the meditations and poems John includes in every session. The MSC retreat at the end of the course was great as it gives you time to reflect on what you've learnt on the course and just be”.

  • “John was a fantastic teacher offering not just the well thought out and delivered lessons but also that extra help individually when things were more difficult”

  • “I took the course again because I was struggling during a very difficult period of my life. It gave me the tools to deal with difficult emotions and gave me some valuable peace and a safe space to explore and process everything that's been happening."

  • “Profound changes and my attitude to life... I have felt a significant 'shift' in my emotions, feeling, and wellbeing... I'm dealing with difficult emotions with ease and grace... an invaluable life-changing experience"... thanks for everything John, you are a rather wonderful man”

  • “I think everyone should choose to take this course. The re-framing from Self Critic to Self Compassion is life-changing”

  • “I found this course amazing. It came at the right time for me as I had started to think that there was something more than how I was living

Key takeaways

The course is full of practices and skills that will help you handle stress and difficult emotions, increase kindness and acceptance of yourself and others, and build well-being.

✓ Mindfulness

learning to notice what's happening and to be your own observer

✓ Self-Compassion

learning how to treat yourself with kindness, and from that grows kindness for others

✓ Common Humanity

learning that everyone struggles, which means you're not alone, and there’s nothing fundamentally wrong with you

Book a free discussion about the course

Course Format

To learn new skills takes time and practice; this is why the course is intensive, takes eight weeks at 2½ hours per session; there is some challenging material, and some wonderful practices to do together and to take away to use every day. I can support individuals between sessions to apply what the course teaches. Sessions are a mix of teaching, exercises, group discussion, and meditation practices. 

This is not group therapy, no one has to speak about anything they do not wish to speak about, and I am available in between sessions to use the learning to go as deep as is helpful for the individual. 

There’s an additional Retreat (half a day for the online course) to take some time out for you and to savour the experience of mindfulness and self-compassion; it’s also a chance to experience the power of a silent meditation retreat. 

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MSC Course Content

  • Session 1: Discovering Mindful Self-compassion

    Introductions, agreements, guiding principles

    What is self-compassion?

  • Session 2: Practising Mindfulness

    What is mindfulness?

    How do we cause ourselves unnecessary suffering?

    Putting a mindful approach into practice

  • Session 3: Practising Loving-Kindness

    Loving-kindness and compassion

    How do we treat a friend?

    Putting kindness and compassion into practice

  • Session 4: Discovering your Compassionate Voice

    Stages of progress as the course unfolds

    The self-critic

    Motivating ourselves with compassion

  • Session 5: Living Deeply

    Core Values

    Finding hidden value in suffering

    Compassionate listening

  • Session 6: Meeting Difficult Emotions

    Working with difficult emotions

    Guilt and shame

    Working with shame

  • Session 7: Exploring Challenging Relationships

    Pain of disconnection when relationships go wrong

    Meeting unmet needs

    Pain of connection and caregiving fatigue

  • Session 8: Embracing Your Life

    Cultivating happiness, gratitude and self-appreciation

    What would I like to remember?

    Tips for maintaining a practice

Who teaches MSC?

My name is John Quill. I’ve done a lot of work on myself throughout my life, and I now know what I wish I’d known when I was a much younger man!

I’m in my 70s with many years of life experience and I believe I bring the energy of an Elder to my support for others, whatever their age. Supporting others in turn supports me because it gives me a sense of purpose and makes my (older) life worthwhile.

I’ve worked on myself and with other men with the Mankind Project, I’m a Trained Teacher of Mindfulness in schools and a Trained Teacher of Mindful Self-compassion. I’m a husband, a dad, a grandad and a step-dad.

You can read more on the About me page.

Headshot of John.
Logo of the Center for Mindful Self-Compassion featuring a stylized lotus and waves.
Logo of Mindfulness in Schools Project with "MiSP" in bold letters.
The Mankind Project UK & Ireland logo

Join The Course from £325

If you’d like to join a course or learn more please fill this form to tell me who you are.

Soon after the details arrive with me I’ll arrange to discuss your interest by phone or Zoom at a time that is convenient for us both. Thanks and good wishes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Still unsure if the Mindfulness and Self Compassion Course is the right fit for you?

Below are answers to some of your most common questions.

  • The fee is £325 and fee includes up to four individual sessions if you want to go a bit deeper.

    I don’t want money to be an issue so please let me know if it is and we can discuss concessions if that will help make mindfulness and self compassion more accessible to you.

  • Yes - the first 20-minute call is free and without obligation. You can use this to learn more and confirm how the Mindfulness and Self Compassion course is right for you.

  • Yes. Sessions are via Zoom or in Essex; ceremonies across Essex (and nearby parts of the UK by arrangement).

  • Yes. Mindful Self-Compassion is an established, research-supported programme. You can find more info on the Mindful Self-Compassion Course page here.

  • No. Coaching and self-compassion training focus on skills for everyday life. If therapy seems a better fit, I’ll say so and point you to options.

  • No, this course works best with adults aged 18+. However, I do offer a short course called Breathe for you and your child. I also offer Mindfulness for Schools, if you would like to suggest this to your child(ren)’s teacher and you can learn more about both of these programmes on my Schools & Organisations page.

  • No problem, if you need to miss a session or two, I offer the chance for you to catch up with me after the session.

  • This course greatly benefits from being taken in a group format, however, if you would really prefer to do it individually your best bet would be to look at my one-to-one coaching services as they may be a better fit. You can click here to find out more, or you can book a 20 minute taster call absolutely free of charge to discuss in the course.

  • Payments are by bank transfer. If you would like to discuss a payment plan, please contact me.

Do you have a question that hasn’t been answered? please feel free to click here to contact me and ask away.