What is a Coach

Coaching is partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential.

team_2Professional coaches provide an ongoing partnership designed to help clients produce fulfilling results in their personal and professional lives. Coaches help people improve their performances and enhance the quality of their lives.

Coaches are trained to listen, to observe and to customize their approach to individual client needs. They seek to elicit solutions and strategies from the client; they believe the client is naturally creative and resourceful. The coach’s job is to provide support to enhance the skills, resources, and creativity that the client already has.

WHAT CAN I EXPECT?

Individuals and organizations who engage in a professional coaching relationship will experience fresh perspectives on personal challenges and opportunities, enhanced decision-making skills, greater interpersonal effectiveness, and increased confidence in carrying out their chosen work and life roles. Consistent with a commitment to enhancing their personal effectiveness, they can also expect to see appreciable results in the areas of productivity, personal satisfaction with life and work, and the achievement of personally relevant goals.

WHY HIRE AN ICF CREDENTIALED COACH

Certification from the International Coach Federation (ICF) is extremely important when considering which coach to hire. It means the coach:

  • Has received professional training from a program specifically designed to teach coaching skills in alignment with the ICF Competencies and Code of Ethics
  • Has demonstrated a proficient understanding and use of the coaching competencies as outlined by the ICF
  • Is accountable to the ethics and standards set forth by the ICF

The ICF is a consortium of professional coaches and organizations that have joined together under its auspices to shape and govern the profession of coaching. The skills sets, competencies, ethics and standards are a collective agreement between coaches from all over the world who have made the commitment to maintain the very highest standards you would expect from any other profession.

Since coaching is a new profession (about 10 years formally) and certification and licensure are not yetteam_3 required in most states in the U.S. or in other countries, there are many individuals who are calling themselves coaches today. Many who call themselves coaches have not been formally trained in specific coaching skills and are transferring skill sets from other professions into their coaching. Often this results in an inadequate or ineffective coaching experience for clients.

Coaching has its own unique skills it employs and for many coaches “unlearning” old skill sets from other professions has to occur before they can competently pick up the new skill sets used in coaching.

There are three levels of Coach Credential from the ICF.

If you are considering hiring a coach, be diligent in asking the coach if they have been specifically trained in coaching skills and currently hold or in the process of acquiring an ICF credential. Don’t be misled to think a coach is a competent coach because they have other professional credentials or set high fees.

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NAPO National Association of Professional Organizers   |

NASMM National Association Senior Move Managers

CTA Coach Training Alliance   |   ICF International Coach Federation   |

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