About Chris Forrester

I’m Chris Forrester, an Executive & Leadership Coach and Solution Focused Hypnotherapist, and the founder of The Wingman Project.

I know what it feels like to question who you are, where you belong and whether you're living up to your potential. I was adopted, lost my father when I was 12 and later developed PTSD following the Hillsborough disaster. I also grew up with undiagnosed ADHD and dyslexia, which left me feeling different, frustrated and often unsure of myself. Looking back, there was a common thread running through much of my early life.  

I didn't feel like I belonged.

I lacked positive male guidance at an important stage of my life. I struggled with confidence, particularly in relationships, and like many men, I wasn't equipped with healthy ways of understanding or dealing with difficult emotions. At times, I relied on coping mechanisms that gave me confidence in the short term but didn't address what was happening underneath.

This isn't a sob story. It's simply my story. And it's part of why I understand that sometimes what looks like a lack of confidence, motivation or direction on the outside has something deeper going on underneath.

As I got older, became a father and progressed through my career, I became increasingly fascinated by how people think, behave and change. I immersed myself in personal development: meditation, mindfulness, therapy, NLP and coaching. Each gave me something valuable, but I was still looking for a deeper understanding of what was happening inside the brain and why some patterns seemed so difficult to change.

That changed when I discovered solution focused hypnotherapy and the neuroscience that underpins it. For the first time, I wasn't simply learning how to manage difficult thoughts. I was beginning to understand how the brain responds to stress, how patterns of thinking and behaviour develop, and crucially, that those patterns can change.

That knowledge changed my life. It also changed the direction of my career.

Alongside my own journey, I spent more than 30 years in the commercial world, including over 20 years in senior leadership roles within media organisations.

Leading teams gave me a different perspective on what sits behind professional success. I saw first-hand how men who appeared confident, capable and successful on the outside could be privately dealing with anxiety, stress, self-doubt, imposter syndrome or the feeling that they were never quite enough.

Coaching became one of the most rewarding parts of my leadership career. Helping people grow, overcome obstacles and realise what they were capable of was ultimately more fulfilling than hitting commercial targets.

Eventually, I realised something. 

I no longer wanted my legacy to be the revenue I'd generated. I wanted it to be the lives I'd helped change.

That realisation ultimately led me to create The Wingman Project.

Qualifications & Professional Training

• Barefoot Professional Coaching Programme 
• Hypnotherapy in Practice Diploma — National Council for Hypnotherapy 
• Diploma in Solution Focused Hypnotherapy — Clifton Practice Hypnotherapy Training 
• Master Practitioner of NLP — The Society of Neuro-Linguistic Programming 
• Life Coaching Diploma — IAPC&M 
• Men’s Health Awareness — CT Skills 

Professional Memberships

• International Coaching Federation (ICF) — Member 
• National Council for Hypnotherapy (NCH) — Member 
• Association for Solution Focused Hypnotherapy (AfSFH) — Member 

I’m committed to continuing my professional development and maintaining high standards of ethical practice across my coaching and hypnotherapy work.

People often ask why I chose to specialise in men's mental fitness. I didn't build The Wingman Project because I believe men are more important than anyone else. I built it because I believe men are often underserved when it comes to understanding how they experience pressure, purpose, identity and mental fitness.

Throughout my own life and more than 20 years of leading teams, I've seen a familiar pattern. When life becomes difficult, many men don't stop—they cope. They work longer hours. Stay busy. Distract themselves. Push things down. Find ways to take the edge off. These strategies can help in the short term, but they don't always address what's really going on underneath.

And asking for help doesn't always come naturally. Sometimes it's not even clear what kind of help would actually make a difference.

At the same time, the expectations placed on men are changing. Many of the traditional pressures haven't disappeared, while the path forward can feel less clear. More men are asking questions that don't always have straightforward answers:

What does it mean to be a good man?
Where do I fit?
How do I balance ambition, family, relationships and wellbeing?
How do I stay strong without pretending everything is fine?

For some men, those questions can create uncertainty around identity, purpose and direction. Others are navigating fatherhood, relationships and careers without the positive male guidance or sense of community that previous generations may have taken for granted. In many ways, we're making it up as we go.

I don't believe the answer is to tell men how they should think, behave or feel. It's to give them the tools to better understand themselves, strengthen their mental fitness and make changes that support the life they want to lead.

That's what The Wingman Project is here to do.

Mental health matters. But I believe we should also be talking more about mental fitness.

Just as we train our bodies, we can train our minds. Understanding how the brain works gives us the opportunity to think more clearly, respond more calmly, build resilience and make better decisions under pressure.

But knowledge alone isn't enough.

Mental fitness is built through understanding, practice and consistent action. The patterns we practise become stronger, and with the right approach, those patterns can change.

That's why The Wingman Project isn't simply about helping men through difficult periods. It's about helping men Recover when life has knocked them off course, Grow into more of who they're capable of being, and Perform when it matters most.

I don't believe most men need fixing.

I believe they need better understanding, practical tools and someone in their corner who will challenge, support and encourage them along the way.

When men become mentally fitter, the benefits extend beyond the individual. It can change how they show up in their relationships, their families, their work and the people around them.

Because every man deserves a Wingman.