Why you should hire a coach if you want to become a coach
There’s an adage in the professional coaching community: “Every good coach has a coach.” It’s both about “walking our talk” as well as being committed to on-going growth, self-awareness, and skill-building—cornerstones for the work of professional coaching.
Since the start of this new year (driven by a new-found energy for latent goals?) I’ve been approached by several eager career-changers wanting to enter the coaching profession seeking my advice on becoming a coach.
“Should I be a life coach or a career coach or an executive coach?”
“Which coach training program should I enroll?” (I have lots of opinions on this one, including which to avoid.)
“What should be my *first* step?”
I usually keep my “coach hat” on and start asking questions to explore their interest and goals in coaching in the first place: “What's important to you about being a coach? Which of your values would you be honouring?”
But to this question of "first step", I take off my “coach hat” and give advice: “Hire a coach.” Full stop.
I am amazed at how many people want to join the latest craze and become coaches, yet never have hired a coach themselves.
It would be like “I want to be a yoga instructor, but I have never taken a yoga class.” Or “I want to be a therapist but never enrolled in therapy.” Or “I want to be a leadership coach but have never been in a leadership position.” Or… You get the point.
Since coaching involves (among many things) deepening one’s self-awareness, engaging in deep reflection to gain new insights, being willing to be fiercely challenged, learning to ask powerful questions, taking on new actions outside one’s comfort zone—and most importantly for all of these to stick—a commitment to keep going when the going is tough, including doing the hard work when those saboteurs (self-critics, self-limiting beliefs) find all their ways to interfere with your success and prevent you from moving forward in the direction of your new goals and desired behavioural changes.
As a client myself, I have hired 3 different professional, certified, credentialed coaches over my 6-year-long professional journey as a leadership and executive coach (in addition to my mentor and supervision coaches that were required of my certification). Each coaching contract was for a minimum of one year. Each coach brought a different methodology, style, experience, and perspective—yet each one kicked my a__ when needed for me to grow personally and professionally as a coach.
And that angst I felt deep in my belly when it was time to handover hard-earned cash when I didn’t exactly “like” what my coach was asking or doing, (proof that my saboteurs were temporarily winning), is *exactly* what every wanna-be coach needs to experience. Until you have experienced all of this yourself, you really won’t fully embody nor appreciate what professional, certified, credentialed coaching entails.
So yes, I do want to see more professional coaches out in the world! We need the ability, skills, expertise, and multiple perspectives a coach brings in support of empowering, developing, and growing individuals, groups, and teams —in respectful and non-attached ways—more than ever.
So, you want to become a coach and fulfill that New Year’s resolution and take your first step?
Hire a coach. Go to the International Coach Federation (ICF) “coach finder” https://www.experiencecoaching.com/find-a-coach to find a certified, credentialed coach anywhere in the world.
Most of us coaches work virtually in addition to in-person, so it’s really about the connection, approach and style which most resonates with you.
Enjoy your journey. And remember, it’s not just a destination.
Karen du Four des Champs, PCC, CPCC, ORSC, COF is passionate about transforming “good into great” leaders and thrives in coaching across cultures. Currently based in the Middle East, Karen has lived and worked across 3 different continents and her coaching clients represent almost 40 nationalities. Besides loving mentoring new coaches entering this field, she’s excited about her work with interculturalism, expanding her own cultural worldview, and collaborating with Professor Philippe Rosinski, author of “Coaching Across Cultures”, “Global Coaching” and founder of the Cultural Orientations Framework (COF) assessment tool. https://philrosinski.com
