menu
~
~
|
Top 14 Myths About Coaching
By
Terri Levine, Comprehensive Coaching U
1. A coach is a motivator equipped with a
whistle and "you can do it" attitude that gets you going.
A coach can't motivate you - only YOU can motivate you. The coach gives
you honest feedback, holds the mirror up so you can see YOU, and helps
you motivate you.
The
coach keeps you accountable and moving forward. The inspiration comes
from within YOU. Enthusiasm means "God from within." You can motivate
and get excited from the inside out.
As in
the case of hiring a coach to work through a life or career transition.
A client said to me, "Wow, I didn't know I had the answers in me;
coaching allowed me to tap into my own answers."
2. People can live their lives
just fine without a coach, thank you.
Certainly, they can, and they can live them BETTER, BIGGER, EASIER and
more JOYFULLY with a coach - aren't you entitled to that? Before one of
my clients hired me, she was very successful in her business - she just
worked, 50 hours a week on her business, thought about it, felt stress
and couldn't completely relax when at home and with her family.
Coaching
allowed her to find ways to work only 36 hours a week, make more money,
feel little stress, and spend more time with her family. She thinks she
lives her life much better after coaching.
3. Coaching is a fad and will go
away.
The profession has been around for years - it's the number one home
based business to start according to Entrepreneur Magazine, and Money
Magazine ranks it as the second fastest growing business. It is booming
and growing and has sustainable outcomes that stick.
Coaching
works and is here to stay. When I started coaching, I attracted 15
clients in 30 days... they couldn't wait to get started. I continue to
attract individual clients and corporate clients with great ease
because of the high demand for coaching.
4. Coaches give you an ego boost
- full of phony praise and false inspiration.
Coaches speak the truth, without judgment, an agenda, or attachment to
the outcome. Certified Comprehensive coaches adhere to a code of ethics
that is all about honesty and integrity, period. As I said to one of my
own coaches, "Hearing you tell me how I just sounded felt a bit harsh,
and at the same time, I want to say thanks, I needed to hear that."
5. Coaches are a combination of
therapist and personal trainer.
They don't engage in any fixing behaviors or looking at past behaviors
and the whys of them... so, coaching is NOT therapy... they are like
personal trainers for your personal and professional excellence.
Clients
who have come to me who have had therapy often say coaching is more
beneficial than therapy, because it allows them the energy of moving
forward and not looking back... it creates momentum, like a magnet, and
pulls them to create what they are wanting vs. feeling bad about
themselves or past experiences.
6. Friends and family make great
coaches - that's what they are for.
Mostly they have their own agendas and want certain outcomes. They may
feel they know what is best for you or right for you. They may have a
vested interest in a certain outcome or behavior and they may not want
to be truthful and hurt your feelings. They aren't trained to be
objective. Why not have a best friend AND a coach?
When I was considering leaving my corporate J-O-B and trading a 6
figure income to start a coaching business... boy, did my family and
friends have opinions! My husband, loving and supportive, was fearful
we'd go broke and kept encouraging me to do it part-time, do it when I
retire, etc. Many friends told me I "couldn't" leave my secure job and
asked me if I had gone "crazy". They all had some judgments and
agendas, yes?
7. Coaches are for those who
don't want to pay for therapists.
Therapists are great to fix behaviors and look back at the past.
Coaches are for people who are successful and want more success and an
even better life.
One of my clients has a therapist and also me as his coach. He tells me
the therapy helps him in getting clear on past issues that he wants to
understand, and the coaching allows him to forge ahead and have more of
what he desires in his life.
8. Coaching is all done by phone.
It can be. Some coaches also work in person. Pick what best supports
you. The coach will co-create the relationship and the coaching with
you.
Many coaches work with individuals by phone, in person, in groups; some
work in businesses in person, by phone, etc.
What is important is getting coached by the coach you match chemistry
with and through the way you like to be coached best. Even email
coaching can be effective.
9. Coaching is very expensive.
It is an investment in YOU. It pays out so much more than the dollars
you may put in. We all spend money on self-help books, tapes, and
seminars ... but most of that doesn't stick. Why not invest in
something that sticks, instead?
When I first hired a coach I compared it to a personal trainer, a spa
visit, a massage, a workshop and realized it was any or all of those -
a way to get personal training, treat my body, mind, and spirit, and to
learn. I then saw that the check I was writing the coach brought me
great value and took care of me in a more comprehensive, holistic way -
I felt I was nurturing and caring for ME, and why not?
10. Anyone can call himself or
herself a professional coach.
Professional coaches get certified and become Comprehensive Coaches.
Check credentials before you hire a coach.
Certified Comprehensive Coaches go through a professional training
program and bring their life and work experience to the coaching
profession. They take classes in tuning in, powerful questions,
powerful observations, powerful requests, building the client, growing
the client, achieving client goals, change, and personal and business
issues, to name a few topics.
It
involves years of training along with skills based labs with master
instructors providing them honest feedback on their coaching. It is not
an easy program. It is a well deserved credential that shows they are
extraordinary coaches.
11. Coaches don't fulfill any
special qualifications.
Certified Comprehensive Coaches sure do! And they are stringent! In
addition to some of the classes above, they have to coach during lab
classes - over 40 hours of practice during their training.
That
is like taking oral exams over and over. They get honest and tough
feedback and they are expected to meet the challenge and keep advancing
their skills. Not an easy process and according to the Certified
Comprehensive Coaches - well worth it to hold the prestigious
credential.
12. Anyone can get a certificate
as a "coach".
Comprehensive Coach Training is rigorous and becoming certified
requires a lot of coaching practice, feedback, oral and written exams
and observations. Not many stand up to that.
In addition to the classes and all the practice coaching, there is a
full curriculum of skills to study and learn on a cellular basis. Let
me tell you, the oral and written exams are tough - they are made to be
because only those who are extraordinary can hold this credential.
13. Coaching is a profession
that will never take off.
It has - BIG time. It is one of the fastest growing professions in the
US. There are over 10,000 coaches right now and more are needed.
Coaching has become a household word.
Four
years ago, when I told people I was a coach, they’d ask "what sport" or
"what team"... now they say "I have one" or "my friend has one". Even
the comics and television shows have featured this profession. It isn't
going away - just gaining in becoming an everyday word.
14. Coach training is not
substantial.
Certified Comprehensive Coaching is meaty - class work, practice,
feedback, oral and written exams... like graduate school - but even
more practical.
As one
of the Certified Comprehensive Coaches said, "I thought graduate school
was where it was at - this was a much better learning experience and
has allowed me to work with clients for pay while going through school
- that to me, is the best of both worlds".
~ ~ ~
Terri Levine, The Guru of Coaching SM, Ph.D., MCC, PCC, MS, CCC-SLP, is
the Founder of Comprehensive Coaching – The Professional's Coach
Training Program - and is a popular Master Certified personal and
business Coach, sought after Public Speaker, and author of bestsellers
"Stop Managing, Start Coaching", "Work Yourself Happy", "Coaching for
an Extraordinary Life."
~ ~ ~
|
|
Related
Talent Development Resources pages: