Coaching is an extremely rewarding profession on so many levels, and it’s also one of the fastest growing industries in the world. Through this sequence of short videos, I’m going to teach you the key fundamentals you need to know to get started as a coach, and to create a fun and thriving coaching practice that’s in perfect alignment with who you are, what you value, and what you most want to contribute to others.

In today’s short video clip, I want to distinguish two important factors to consider when weighing all of the various coaching methodologies that you could choose to be trained in. The first is making sure you have a good understanding of the general philosophy of the coaching organization that you’re considering. The second is factor to consider is how the organization is structured, and what – if any – guidelines or restrictions it imposes on how its coaches can use what they’ve learned.

You want to learn as much as you can about the particular techniques that each organization trains its coaches to deliver. If it’s a reputable organization, their website will provide enough information to give you at least a basic sense of its philosophy on coaching. But you’ll also want to read between the lines: If you get trained in their methodology, will you come away with a skillset that allows you to coach people who come to you with a wide spectrum of goals they are looking to achieve, or will it equip you only to work with a small subset of people? Is the coaching approach based solely on motivation and accountability? Is there a spiritual component to the training you’ll receive, and if so, does it jive/resonate with your own understanding?

For example, all of the tools and practices we teach through the Quantum Success Coaching Academy are focused around giving our coaches a firm understanding of how to apply the Law of Attraction to reliably effect change – first in their own lives, and to then guide their clients to do likewise. What makes us distinct in this industry is our belief that our clients already have all the answers they need within them; that there is a natural process of evolution that is at work in their lives, and that once they learn to listen to and cooperate with that process, the outcomes they desire unfold naturally and effortlessly. In our view, the role of a coach is not to offer guidance or give advice, but to simply teach our clients how to reconnect with the source of their own inner wisdom.

We also believe that who you are as the coach – meaning the unique set of life experiences that you’ve had, and the wisdom you’ve accumulated as a result of them – is a vital part of the coaching relationship that shouldn’t be left out of the equation. In other words, we encourage each of our coaches to add their own spin or perspective on everything we teach them. Not all coaching organizations share this view, however. And this brings me to the second factor that it’s important to consider.

Some training programs will only certify coaches who agree to agree to stay within a very limited repertoire of coaching processes, or to follow a script that’s been pre-written in a kind of “one-size-fits-all” style. If this is the program’s philosophy, one of the first things you’ll be asked to do is agree that you will follow their processes exactly as they are written and without deviating from them at all.

The downside of choosing a program that asks you to remain within the limits of their particular coaching “brand” is that your ability to carve out your own niche will be drastically limited. You are basically promoting their brand, and in return for this, they may promote you, along with other coaches they’ve certified, under their umbrella. If you want to make a name for yourself, or if you’re someone who enjoys modifying and adapting what you learn so it’s reflective of your own experiences, it’s important to choose a program that allows you some discretion as to the range of coaching methods and processes you can choose from in each session – as well as the freedom to decide how to market yourself.

I’m proud of the training offered through the QSCA, because we deliberately provide what I think is the best of both worlds: you get the confidence that comes from working from a well-thought-out, pre-existing curriculum that delivers consistent, reliable results, and you also get the freedom to be who you are, to make your own choices, and express your own creativity.

We train our coaches in all the basic skills they will need to support people in achieving their goals and objectives in any aspect their lives, but we also give them the freedom to adapt those processes, to add to them, or even to combine them with other techniques they’ve found valuable. We don’t limit them as to how they can use the information we provide nor insist that they deliver it exactly as they learned it, because even the most valuable insights will fail to inspire our clients if they are delivered by rote. As coaches, we create the space for our clients’ transformation by being attentive to the present moment, by bringing all of ourselves to the conversation, and by listening from the perspective that anything they desire is possible. That’s part of what makes this profession so amazing!

I’d love to hear your thoughts or questions about the information covered in this video, so please write to me in the comments below.

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