What is a coach?

Coaching is set apart by the way a coach approaches a conversation with a client. Coaches do not teach but help you through a process of discovery by using active listening skills, asking powerful questions, expanding thought processes, identifying limiting beliefs, designing action steps, and following up.

Keith Webb, a leading expert in the field of coaching says it this way:

To most leaders, professional coaching practices are counter-intuitive. Take a look at these characteristics:

• Coaches don’t talk, they listen.
• Coaches don’t give information, they ask questions.
• Coaches don’t offer ideas, they generate ideas from clients.
• Coaches don’t share their story, they tap into the client’s experience.
• Coaches don’t present solutions, they expand the client’s thinking.
• Coaches don’t give recommendations, they empower clients to choose.

You can read more about coaching from Keith here.

Why it matters to find a certified coach

The leading credential authority in the coaching profession is the International Coach Federation or ICF. They have set standards for training in the core competencies and ethics. I went through a training program that required many hours of training, practice and mentoring. My coaching calls were reviewed and I was mentored on how to improve. Once I completed that and received my certification, I had to take a 3 hour test and have over 100 hours of coaching clients before they would give me the credential of an ICF coach. It’s a major time and financial investment as well.

Sadly, there are programs out there that promise to certify people as a “coach” but don’t actually follow the ICF standards. I’ve had friends pay a lot of money to become a coach, only to find out they took classes from an organization that didn’t have their curriculum approved by the ICF. They had to start all over again. So if you want to find a coach, look for someone that has certification from a program with ACSTH (Approved Coach Specific Training Hours) and who has an ICF credential. In other words, be careful of the folks who say they are credentialed from an organization that doesn’t have any coaching affiliation at all. These organizations just decided to join the trend, without putting in the work, and then train others to do the same. Do your research.

 

Read more at: https://www.jillmonaco.com/how-is-coaching-different-than-mentoring-consulting-and-counseling/?gclid=CjwKCAjw-e2EBhAhEiwAJI5jg0ZA00yMtPUZqhjiG4QxjrXQqf8-GHuku-l40RjTk02cn1lVzEm08xoCwjMQAvD_BwE