Why can’t coaches get certified?
As you know, I’ve been on the certification team at the International Association of Coaching since 2003. I love this part of what I do! It’s great to be a part of helping coaches make their mark in the world by claiming the excellence of their skills – and it feels great to give back to the coaching world in this way.
I’ve been surprised at how many coaches talk about wanting to become certified, yet how few actually apply. A year ago the IAC began using the 9 Coaching Masteries™ as the standard of excellence. Given how simple and straightforward they are, I thought many coaches would rush to apply for certification, but that hasn’t been the case.
I wanted to understand why, so I began my own “study” to see what was going on. (I use the term “study” loosely because I’m sure my method would not pass any academic scrutiny.) I have talked with about 100 coaches – coaches like you – to figure out what the biggest obstacles are to getting certified. I thought Personal Growth Professionals might be interested in what I’ve learned, as well as some resources that can help – some at no cost at all.
When I began, my hypothesis was that coaches would say the biggest obstacle to getting certified was their coaching skills. What I found out is that while coaches may need to improve their skills -hopefully we’re all on a continuous path of improvement! – the 2 BIGGEST OBSTACLES to getting certified were actually:
1. Not knowing IF their skills were good enough.
2. Not knowing what the certifiers are really looking for.
What that tells me is that it’s not that coaches think they need to work on their skills, but rather they don’t KNOW if they need to work on their skills or not. They may, in fact, be masterful coaches, but aren’t sure if they are ready for certification, in part because they aren’t sure what the certifiers are looking or listening for.
In other words, the biggest obstacle to getting certified is CONFIDENCE about APPLYING for certification.
Make sense?
I was actually pleased to discover this, because there are some great resources to address this very issue, and because it can be addressed quite easily.
Below are some resources I encourage you to consider,or share with someone you know who is considering certification. A couple are free, and a couple have fees.
Use what works for you – and let me know what you think.
Nina’s Recommended Resources for Becoming A Certified Coach:
1. Two articles on working with a mentor coach. If you work with a mentor coach, you want to know how to evaluate the mentoring you are getting, and what you should be able to expect.
Working With A Mentor Coach – What To Expect
Working With A Mentor Coach – how to build a strong and effective mentoring relationship
2. An audio recording that explains each of the 9 Coaching Masteries™ – with valuable nuggets about each one. (select the third recording to hear about the Masteries, specifically.)
3. Pre-Certification Critique - a chance to have your coaching evaluated by an IAC certifier PRIOR to applying for certification. While no one who is licensed to teach or mentor using the Masteries can tell you whether a particular session will “pass” or not, you can get detailed, specific feedback about how your skills as measuring up with the Masteries.
4. Coach Camps - a 7.5 hour audio download program chock full of coaching demonstrations, critical coaching lessons, and some secret techniques Marion Franklin and I use with our own clients. Plus a super-discounted opportunity for your own private session with Marion.
The coaches who participated in this program experienced dramatic leaps in their coaching skills – and in their confidence about their level of coaching. This is one of my favorite coach training programs – not just because I participated, but because it really is top quality, and because Marion Franklin is an outstanding mentor coach.
5. Barbra Sundquist’s program, Become A Certified Coach
Barbra is another of my all-time favorite mentor coaches. She understands what masterful coaching is and can help you know whether you are there or not. She also shares a way of breaking the Masteries down into 4 chunks, so they are a lot easier to remember and use.
Here’s a short audio where she talks about how she works with coaches.
If you are a coach, but aren’t certified yet, take a look at these resources and see which ones might help you eliminate your obstacles to getting certified.
If you are a certified coach, please help another coach out by sharing this information with them.
And let me know how it goes for you. I’m always curious about what’s going on in the minds of today’s
coaches!
Happy Coaching!
March 18th, 2009 at 8:57 pm
This is a great resource, Nina! And I agree, confusion is the biggest obstacle for coaches who want IAC certification. Sometimes coaches think they’re ready and they’re not. Other times, they are more than ready, but don’t realize it. Most often, they are 90-95% ready, but just need some help tweaking a couple of things – and then they are truly masterful and breeze through the certification process! I’m looking forward to more coaches getting IAC Certification. At SCM, we’ve noticed an up tick in interest in getting certified by the IAC.