Tomorrow's Life Coach
Volume 5 Issue 6 – August 2006

In This Issue:

Tomorrow's Life Coach (TLC) is a monthly online journal from the Institute for Life Coach Training (ILCT) that nourishes the intellect, intuition and inspiration of the personal and business coaching community.

Pat's Ponderings:

This month I write from my dormitory room at the campus of the University of Wisconsin (Stevens Point). I am attending my fourth consecutive National Wellness Conference with 1000 other health and wellness professionals. At my first conference, coaching was barely mentioned. At this conference, coaching is at the forefront and my keynote address was well received. Other experts in the field presented exciting and innovative ideas for individuals and communities. If you have an interest in wellness, consider the National Wellness Conference (www.nationalwellness.org) for next year.

Coaching applies to many specialties and the number of coaching specialties has grown over the years. However, it is not enough just to call yourself a coach in your counseling or consulting practices. Quality training is the hallmark of a good coach and someone seeking a coach should verify the training of those coaches under consideration. What new skills do you need to learn to add to your repertoire? We have greatly improved our advanced classes by creating a Wellness Track, Executive and Leadership Coaching Track, Relationship Coaching and other courses that can give you the edge in a new niche or specialty area.

I would love to hear from our readers who are coaching in other niches – how did you acquire your training? What do you see as the benefits of coach training? How did you get started in your specialty or niche? How have you stayed up-to-date? Please send your thoughts and stories to me at Pat@lifecoachtraining.com

Until next time, be well and prosper.

Pat

Patrick Williams Ed.D., MCC
Chief Energizing Officer, ILCT
Director of Coach Training, Fielding International University
Department Chair, Professional Coaching, International University of Professional Studies
http://www.lifecoachtraining.com/about/pat_williams.shtml

Announcements

Introduction To Coaching As A Profession
Are you thinking about becoming a coach? Would you like to add coaching to the services you offer? Pat Williams, MCC, Founder and CEO of the Institute for Life Coach Training, is now teaching this regularly scheduled four-week teleclass, "Introduction To Coaching As A Profession."

This group will meet for 60 minutes a week for four weeks on a teleconference line. All you will need is your telephone and a quiet place to listen. Upon registration you will receive a special telephone number and access code.

During this class the following topics will be discussed:

Week 1: What is coaching? Why now? What are the current trends and growth of the industry related to professional standards, ethics, and best practices.

Week 2: Coaching skills: A six-step coaching model, TGROW coaching model, and key coaching skills with demonstrations.

Week 3: Your marketing engine and creating niche visibility.

Week 4: The future of coaching; training opportunities; your next steps.

Fee: $99
Date: September 6th or October 4th
Click to register

Pat's Coaching Forum
The monthly call for August with the founder of the Institute for Life Coach Training, Patrick Williams, MCC, will be held on Tuesday, August 22nd. During this call he will discuss emerging coaching trends, interview guest experts, and have open discussions about the coaching profession.

This free call is open to all individuals and we invite you to share this invitation with others. The call will last 60 minutes.

Date: August 22nd
Time: 4:00 p.m. Eastern (3:00 p.m. Central, 2:00 p.m. Mountain, 1:00 p.m. Pacific)
Click to register

A Seminar At Sea For Coaches, Consultants, Therapists and Aligned Professionals with Patrick Williams and Lynn Meinke

 

Plan now to join Patrick Williams and Lynn Meinke for an educational cruise experience in February, 2007. This is the perfect month to escape the dark and cold months of February and come to have fun in the sun of the Caribbean, and take the trip as an educational expense. Come learn and relax at the same time...our class time will only be while at sea and will not interfere with opportunities to visit the beautiful ports of call.

(CEU's for mental health professionals and certified coaches pending)

Read more!

Coming This Fall - A Supervision Practicum

A Supervision Practicum for coaches who want to more fully develop the art of coaching by focusing on their own coaching process with clients. In this Practicum, participants will have the opportunity to bring their own case materials for examination and exploration. Using their cases as stimuli, participants will role-play and coach each other. There will also be time for feedback, reflection and discussion. Outcomes from this approach allow participants to refine their coaching approaches and skills to fit their own unique coaching style while more fully embracing the artful, non-directive, client-centered, creativity of coaching.

Read More / Register

ILCT Alumni Success – Spotlight on Cindy J. Bitter

Cindy J. Bitter is a Professional Life and Career Coach specializing in coaching individuals in career transition and those working on recovery from eating disorders. Cindy is a trained Graduate Coach of the Institute of Life Coach Training and the State University of New York, College at Brockport. She is a professional member Coach of the International Coaching Federation. Cindy has been in private practice since 1993. In 1998, she published her first book on eating disorders and today is a well-know support coach and mentor to women struggling with eating disorders. In addition to her coaching and consulting services, Cindy presents often at national, state and local professional conferences.

Successful Coaching, My Way
When I mentioned to my husband, Tom that I was asked to write an article on my successful coaching practice for this month's ILCT newsletter, he threw back his head and roared—with laughter! "You?" he sputtered incredulously, nearly choking on his words. "And what makes them think you have a successful coaching practice?" he chuckled. Apparently, my dearly beloved was of a differing opinion than I. "Well, because I told them I did." I answered, slightly hurt that he could even consider my work anything but successful. For a brief moment, I debated refusing the article request. After all, it was obvious, at least to my husband that my definition of successful coaching might not be quite what it was to everyone else. Yet the more I pondered, the more I realized it was exactly the reason why I should write about it. Because just three short years ago, my definition of what a successful coaching business was supposed to look like and what I thought I wanted turned out to be exactly the opposite of where I am today. While much of what I learned may be quite obvious, perhaps awfully simplistic, or heck, just plain common sense, it wasn't at all apparent to me. And it's for this reason that I knew I wanted to share what I learned, albeit the hard way---through making mistakes, dumb decisions, and failing a few times to the point of almost walking away---that resulted in my current steady flow of clients, increasing business and therefore, my successful coaching practice.

1.

Go for the coaching training. Yup. Big mistake #1. Believe me; I learned this one the hard way. I resisted coach specific training for five years, as I was firmly (and possibly a bit stubbornly) entrenched in my belief that I was already a coach by the mere fact that I counseled and supported individuals who were in transition and/or making changes in their careers and life. While I had admirable skills, knowledge and great training in my field (vocational rehabilitation counseling and consulting for individuals with mental health and cognitive disorders) I was not coaching in the true sense of the coaching word and profession. Yet I hung on to the belief that being a coach was as simple as adding a line in my brochure. Wrong.

Just because I knew how to help individuals through supportive counseling and offering expert advice, counseling is not coaching. It was one of the first things I learned when I finally took my first coaching classes. (Admittedly, prompted by the quickly changing coaching environment in which I realized I was going to be left behind before I even started!). Getting the right kind of training for the type of coaching I wanted to do is one of the best business decisions I've made.
2.

Put your policies and procedures in writing. This was my second biggest and most frustrating lesson learned. It was also the hardest transition for me to make. Even though I already had an established consulting business, I again resisted basic business sense. I was used to contracting with and being paid by agencies and businesses rather than direct from individuals. I was simply uncomfortable and unfamiliar with asking for (and receiving) payment up front, before I even provided a service.

Like most coaches today, I have no brick and mortar office for meetings, yet many of my clients prefer an in-person session, which means we meet in a public area in the community. I can't tell you how many times clients would come to meetings, be coached for the hour than tell me they had forgotten their checkbooks (truly!), or would actually get up and leave without paying, and the most frustrating of all---not even show up to begin with! I often ended up not only with no payment, but also feeling I had wasted my time and had no guarantee the client would pay at their next coaching session. I spent way too many stamps and paper sending out statements to those one-time clients. I am happy to report that I did succeed in getting those payments but not without a lot of stress, grumbling to my husband and swearing that I was never going to let that happen again. And of course I did do it again (and again). So I changed my policy. And I put it in writing. It is now a standard part of my consultation and welcome packet information.
3.

Let go of the money. I don't want to burst your bubble or downplay the importance of getting paid what you are worth, but the one thing that got me nowhere fast was starting out asking for top dollar. Whenever I received a phone call of interest and I mentioned my fee, I usually never heard from the person again. Not that my coaching service wasn't worth it. It was more that I needed to better understand what my market (moms and individuals without jobs) could bear and would pay (see number 4). And $100.00/hour was not it. Better to start out small and grow. Remember the mustard seed? Well, this well-known bible story kept me going all those time I continually lowered my rate, almost desperately so.

On the flip side, don't sell yourself (or your coaching services) short. I went from setting my rate too high to setting my rate way too low. I found it hurt my credibility (not to mention my ego and frustration level) when I didn't charge enough. Why? Too low of a rate cheapened the value of what I had to offer as a coach. You know, kind of like you get what you pay for. It took me a full 2 ½ years to settle on my current rate (still low according to industry average), but now fair and reasonable for both my client and myself. I can actually pay my bills without borrowing from my husband, and my clients are getting a valuable service without having to sacrifice buying groceries that week.
4.

Have a passion? It could be your niche. When I first entered into the coaching profession back in 1999, I never even thought of whom my clientele would be or the area(s) I would coach in. I naively assumed I'd coach to the same population that I had been providing my vocational services. Again, it didn't work out that way. Surprisingly, none of my then clients wanted private career coaching services. Not when they could continue to have vocational services the traditional way (with the contracting agencies and businesses paying me). While I was striking out in getting career clients through the same door as my vocational caseload, there was another area that I was heavily involved in that I never even considered being a possible coaching focus. I had been mentoring and supporting adult women in eating disorder recovery for 15 years, often getting phone calls from doctors, therapists and the patients themselves requesting my support and encouragement. I willingly and lovingly volunteered my time, my energy, my knowledge, and my sincere belief in their efforts to recover. I ran support groups, co-facilitated therapy groups, and developed and presented workshops for the public. I loved guiding and cheering them on. It was my husband and my own coach who kept pointing out to me that this was my calling and where I was best-suited and really needed. My passion was obvious. To everyone but me.

After all, I could never charge for what I loved to do, or so I stubbornly thought. Once again, true to my core, I resisted what was right before me. I continued to go after the career clients. And I continued to not make much headway…until I took a group coaching course. And the light bulb went off, in the middle of learning how to coach in a group setting. This was exactly how I wanted to help the women I was already supporting. From that moment forward, I put together my first paid life coaching group for women in eating disorder recovery.

Today, I run three weekly life coaching groups, have several paying individual clients and I'm presenting my first life coaching workshop this fall at an international conference. I was even able to re-negotiate my old vocational services contract and turn it into a true career coaching one. But my main coaching work is with the women I have always supported and encouraged to move forward in their lives. I am using the tools and techniques taught in my foundation class, listening to my intuition, and watching my clients grow and achieve the goals they set for themselves.

So why did my husband laugh at the idea of my belief that I have a successful practice? Well, I don't make a six figure income (more like four figures). And I only work an average of 2 to 8 hours a week. I take time off whenever I need to and want to. And did I mention my morning staff meeting? Every day from 9:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. with my faithful four-legged golden retriever, Trever.

Success. It's however you want to define it for yourself. For me, it's not about making a lot of money or having a huge number of clients. I am finally where I want to be (home), doing exactly what I love (supporting women in their recovery and life), coaching in the true sense of the word and my heart.

Cindy J. Bitter
HopeLines Coaching and Consulting
P.0. Box 306, Penfield NY 14526
cynjoy@rochester.rr.com
(585) 377-0079

Spotlight On Classes - Foundational Competency Practicum & Assessment Process

The Foundational Competency Practicum was designed to provide students with three of the observed coaching sessions as well as provide a forum for students to practice coaching with a focus on the ICF eleven core coaching competencies.

There are three components: a Practicum Class related to eleven core coaching competencies, observed coaching by instructors with written and verbal feedback, and successful completion of a role play oral assessment demonstrating coaching competencies with instructors who teach this class (Lynn Meinke, Lisa Kramer, Jim Vuocolo, Marilyn O'Hearne and Sherry Lowry).

Read More / Register

Free Informational Calls
 For the conference call number, please send an email to the contact addresses listed. For more information or to register, click the class name.

Practice Made Perfect:
Wednesday, August 16th at 12:00 p.m. Eastern (11:00 a.m. Central, 10:00 a.m. Mountain, 9:00 a.m. Pacific)

As the ILCT Director of Practice Development, I'd like to invite you to join me in a FREE 60 minute call for an open discussion about Marketing YOUR Coaching Practice!  I will address the "7-Layer Cake" of Coaching Business Success! -- and then have a Q & A to address what is working/not working with regard to your marketing  efforts, field as many of your questions as possible, and create a great experience!  I also will have a brief "commercial" to explain the  "Practice Made Perfect" course (see below) that starts again on Wednesday, September 6th -- and I promise "no selling" will be involved!  I hope you will join us on Wednesday, August 16th for this FREE offering!
Email Jim@Soulbusiness.com for the bridge number.

Business Development Mentor Group:
Wednesday, August 23rd at 12:00 a.m. Eastern (11:00 a.m. Central, 10:00 a.m. Mountain, 9:00 a.m. Pacific)

Dr. Jim Vuocolo, MCC will be leading a free call on to ask for input and feedback
from students regarding a BIZ WIZ MENTOR COACHING GROUP he plans to offer this fall.  If you want group support and assistance in developing a personal business plan, marketing plan and action steps to take your coaching biz to the next levels, this might be a terrific opportunity for you!
Email Jim@lifecoachtraining.com for the conference call number.

NEW Supervision Practicum:
Wednesday, August 23rd at 1:00 p.m. Eastern (12:00 p.m. Central, 11:00 a.m. Mountain and 10:00 a.m. Pacific)

Lynn Meinke will provide information on the Supervision Practicum for coaches who want to more fully develop the art of coaching by focusing on their own coaching process with clients. Learn how the class will work and what the requirements are on this call.
Email Lynn@lifecoachtraining.com for the conference call number.

Relationship Coaching:
Monday, August 21st at 1:00 p.m. Eastern (12:00 p.m. Central, 11:00 a.m. Mountain, 10:00 a.m. Pacific)

Come and join ILCT faculty member, Lisa Kramer, MSW, PCC for an introduction to relationship coaching with couples. Relationship coaching, a growing niche in the coaching profession, assists couples in creating extraordinary relationships. Whether you have worked with couples in the past or you are just curious to learn more about relationship coaching, this call will give you an overview of the eight-week course that begins on Tuesday, September 19th at 3:00 p.m.. Email Lisa@lifecoachtraining.com for the conference call number.

Body-Mind Coaching:Using the Body to Deepen Awareness & Forward the Action
Tuesday, August 29th at 7:00 p.m. Eastern (6:00 p.m. Central, 5:00 p.m. Mountain, 4:00 p.m. Pacific)

This six week class is from September 19th – October 24th, 7-8:30 p.m. Eastern, 10 credits. Come and join Lauree E. Moss, Ph.D., CLC, to discuss this advanced course designed to provide coaches with tools to work with the powerful non-verbal messages of the body. Whatever your coaching niche, this course will teach you how to access the wisdom of the body.

The call will be divided into two parts: In the beginning, Lauree will provide a brief description of the Body-Mind Life Coaching process and give a case example to illustrate the work. In the second part, she will demonstrate a technique that you can immediately integrate into your life and work.
Email Lauree@lifecoachtraining.com for the bridge number.

Expand Your Business! Deepen Your Coaching Skills!
Register For Upcoming Classes at ILCT

Foundational Courses

Coaching Skills

Coaching Tools

Practice Building Courses

Coaching Applications & Specialties

Additional classes, details and online registration at our course section. Some schedules may change; check listing or contact Edwina Adams, Administration/Registration, at edwina@lifecoachtraining.com.

Where In The World Is Pat Williams?

July 31-Aug 4, 2006
Cape Cod, MA
New England Educational Institute
Therapist As Life Coach: Transforming Your Practice. This symposium has been designed to provide participants with an understanding of the theory, historical perspective, and practical methodology of the profession of personal and professional coaching and how it has evolved. This symposium will clarify the distinction between therapy and coaching. Participants will learn skills that are transferable from the field of therapy and skills that need to be "unlearned." This symposium has been designed for participants who would like to understand further the field of coaching and how they may incorporate it into their practice or evolve their practice into one entirely of coaching.

Live coaching demonstrations, practical experience, and interactive worksheets will be utilized to illustrate coaching principles and techniques.

For more information: www.neei.org

August 9-13, 2006
Vancouver, BC
Future of Coaching Summit 
Pat's brainchild three years in the making - with 50 invited coaches from around the world.  Funded by the ICF as an important conversation.

September 7-10 , 2006
Santa Barbara, CA
Fielding Institute
Guest speaker for coaching students on Advanced Coaching Skills: Wit and Wisdom.
www.fielding.edu

October 4-6, 2006
Nashville TN
EAPA Preconference Training with Dr. Doug McKinley.
EAPA's 2006 Annual World EAPA Conference.

November 1-4, 2006
St Louis, MO
11th Annual ICF International Conference:
Quantum Thinking on Human Potential, Tools For The New Frontier
Join Pat, Edwina, and many of the faculty!
Read more about the conference or register now.

Coaching Publications

Law and Ethics In Coaching: How To Solve And Avoid Difficult Problems In Your Practice by Dr. Patrick Williams & Sharon Anderson

Law And Ethics In Coaching is co-edited by Patrick Williams and Sharon Anderson. With contributions from a dozen academic, legal, and coaching professionals, this book is a must for anyone in the field of coaching or whose organization uses coaching as a service. Sure to be a classic!

 

Total Life Coaching: 50+Life Lessons, Skills, And Techniques To Enhance Your Practice...And Your Life by Dr. Patrick Williams MCC, Dr. Lloyd J. Thomas

Total Life Coaching is more than just a book. It is an interactive experience in which you will find recipes for living your life more authentically, as well as master time-honored lessons that you can bring to your coaching clients [or can incorporate in your own life]. Regardless of the personal coaching techniques or skills you may have learned, you may still not be the most effective coach you can become. This book will help you move closer to that goal.

Therapist As Life Coach: Transforming Your Practice
by Dr. Patrick Williams MCC, Deborah C. Davis

At last, a book for mental health professionals considering a transition into the new and dynamic field of life coaching! Therapist As Life Coach explores life coaching as a profession, examines the relationship between life coaching and therapy, and details the variety of options for professionals considering either a transition into coaching or expanding their practices to include coaching.

 

News

The Foundation of Coaching Names Patrick Williams First Global Visionary Fellow in Initiative to Support High-impact Social Change

New York, New York, July 17, 2006 - The Foundation of Coaching announces the selection of Dr. Patrick Williams, president and founder of the Institute for Life Coach Training, as its Founding Global Visionary Fellow.

"Coaching changes lives, and Dr. Williams has a global vision to bring the life-changing process of coaching to people around the world who need it the most," says Ruth Ann Harnisch, founder of The Foundation of Coaching.

Dr. Williams introduced the concept of his visionary project, "Coaching the Global Village," on his blog. His idea is to train volunteers in a group coaching process that will help people to combat hunger, poverty, lack of education, and other challenges to which a professional coach approach could be applied. More

ILCT is proud to offer a Corporate and Leadership Coaching Track.
For nearly a decade ILCT has been providing coach training for health care providers and that remains our primary focus of our foundational training. We have realized that some of graduates are using their training in small and large business settings. In February of 2006 we decided to expand our foundational course program by providing Leadership Coaching Training for coaches who want to work with corporate clients.

For more information

Expanded Wellness Niche at ILCT

For those individuals interested in Wellness Coaching, we offer several innovative classes. Each is designed to enhance your knowledge of the wellness profession and provide opportunities for the expansion of your coaching skills in this area.

Tomorrow's Life Coach™

Patrick Williams, Ed.D., Publisher
© 2006 Institute for Life Coach Training
www.lifecoachtraining.com
Phone: 888-267-1206
info@lifecoachtraining.com

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