FOUR PILLARS OF CREATIVE CHANGE™
At our core, we believe that effective coaching stems from a foundation rooted in genuine connection, psychological safety, and transformative growth. Our curriculum is built on four pillars—Human Wholeness, Cultural Responsivity, Creative Solutions, and Invigorative Leadership—which guide our approach to nurturing well-being, creating meaningful connections, and encouraging creative problem-solving. These pillars are designed to prepare coaches to navigate the complexities of the human experience with compassion, cultural awareness, and innovative thinking, ultimately cultivating leaders who inspire positive change in themselves, their communities, and the world around them.
Coaching Specializations
Specializations are woven into the program in five ways: through specialized textbooks, coursework assignments, independent study hours, practice coaching sessions, and one-on-one mentor coaching sessions. Each is targeted to the trainee’s area of focus. For the Create Your Own option, applicants must have a consultation conversation with one of our mentor coaches to develop a topic and curriculum plan. Up to two specializations are permitted.
Note: The Academy of Creative Coaching provides one specialization book. If other books are desired, they must be purchased by the trainee. Click on specializations of interest below to see the related book list.
- Spiritual Coach – life purpose, finding peace, self-awareness, belief
- Creative Arts Coach – creative performance, creative life change, overcoming limiting beliefs, creativity and the brain, empowerment coaching
- Executive School Leadership Coach – leadership development, organizational goal attainment, career mapping in the school environment
- Relationship Coach – intimate, parent, friendship, professional
- Health and Wellness Coach – nutrition, exercise, body image, mindset, physical health
- Executive Coach – leadership development, organizational goal attainment, career mapping
- Educational Success Coach – educational success, higher education attainment, career identification
- Life Coach – life transitions, goal attainment, life satisfaction
- Cultural Competency Coach – social justice advocacy, cultural awareness, diversity appreciation
- Create Your Own Specialization – Because our specializations are primarily initiated by the student through course assignments, textbooks, mentor coaching, and practice coaching, with the assistance of our faculty experts, students can create a specialization that best fits the vision for their coaching careers.
MODULE 1 – COACHING FOUNDATIONS
This introductory course covers the International Coach Federation Code of Ethics and Core Competencies, developing a coaching agreement, and the key elements of establishing an effective coaching relationship. This course also focuses on the critical components supporting the coaching profession including the definition of coaching, its boundaries, and how coaching intersects with other helping professions.
MODULE 2 – RELATIONSHIP BUILDING
This course focuses on the importance of self-awareness and creating a coaching presence that facilitates effective relationships. Areas of focus include establishing a foundation of trust, building strength-based relationships, recognizing the existence of implicit biases and blind spots that negatively impact relationships, and developing essential cultural competency skills.
MODULE 3 – COACHING FOR EMPOWERMENT
This course covers the Academy of Creative Coaching’s Creative Approach and the Invigorative Leadership Model as frameworks for change and empowerment. The focus of this course relies heavily on positive psychology concepts and presents strategic coaching techniques such as motivational interviewing and action plan development for client growth and improvement.
MODULE 4 – TRANSFORMATIVE DIALOGUE
This course focuses on communication techniques essential to the coaching relationship. Specific areas include powerful questioning as a means to increase awareness, active listening and communication skills, navigating through difficult conversations, and resolving conflicts. This course also covers the dynamics of group coaching and mastermind group facilitation as a leadership tool.
MODULE 5 – PRACTICAL COACHING TECHNIQUES
This course revisits some positive psychology concepts that introduce the philosophical underpinnings of effective coaching strategies and transitions into introducing the power of storytelling and public speaking and how to connect these skills to coaching. Trainees will prepare to deliver their own talk as it relates to their coaching specializations during the last week of class. The class concludes with a coach supervision lab that enables trainees to practice the coach supervision technique.
MODULE 6 – RESTORATIVE COACHING
Trainees are challenged to delve more deeply into coaching strategies by exploring human dignity, identity, and overcoming trauma. Topics include our identity informed coaching model, trauma informed coaching, mindsets around ability and disability, understanding the unique experiences of marginalized communities, and the power of transforming toxic environments.
MODULE 7 – MINDSET COACHING TECHNIQUES
This course is a deep dive into the dynamics of the coach and client mindset from both a neurological and practical lens. Topics include the coaching with compassion model, intentional change theory, the creative brain, and emotional agility.
MODULE 8 – BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
This course offers trainees key skills to begin building a thriving coaching business. With the intent to prepare and transform from the inside out, the course begins by exploring money mindsets and branches out into the crucial art and science of marketing, and more specifically, social media marketing. At the end of this course, trainees will deliver a short speech using the TedTalk model.
ACC Independent Study
Drawing from the discipline of positive psychology, this course focuses on the concept of happiness and what it takes to curate our own experiences of fulfillment and life satisfaction through specific mindset and emotional intelligence strategies. Key elements include stress management, shifting vantage points, and sifting through the noise to focus on what is most valuable to attain happiness.
Join thousands of successful coaches from around the world who have earned certifications in professional coaching. We have everything you need for a successful career from education to business development and unlimited support!
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The Academy of Creative Coaching mission is to offer the very best in training with a flexible and adaptable curriculum that enables our graduates to make an impact in the discipline that best reflects their strengths and purpose.
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