2 Big Opportunities for Incredible Change!

Recently, I had the opportunity to do an online session with my friend Ben Croft for the WBECS 2017 Summit. Ben is president of the World Business and Executive Coach Summit and founder of Ethical Coach and he asked me to talk about my pay it forward project 100 Coaches. I jumped at the chance to do this and I am excited to share the video webinar with you in this week’s blog.

In the webinar Ben and I talk about two ways to give back through coaching, and I want to share these with you so that you can dive into one of these chances to help others!

The first is the Ethical Coach program. The vision for Ethical Coach is to support 64,000 NGO, non-profit and children’s charity leaders each year in accessing coaching. The goal of each coaching engagement is to increase their organizational capacity so they can serve 100 extra children that wouldn’t otherwise have been possible if it were not for the coaching. 

In the heart of successful coaching, there is the transformational belief that it is possible to make a positive impact. We excel in making endeavors stronger, more resilient, powerful, and of course, more successful. 

Recognizing that global challenges bear down disproportionately on the most vulnerable, especially on children, has triggered an important call to action. How can coaching end extreme poverty, promote equality and protect the planet? Through the leadership of WBECS and the formation of Ethical Coach, a new vision is in place.

Ethical Coach bridges exclusive and effective coaching to the charities, not-for-profit organizations and social enterprises addressing the greatest humanitarian and environmental challenges of our time. Applying the tools of coaching to philanthropic efforts creates a platform to really change lives. Our goal is to empower leadership development, accountability, organizational capacity, and performance enhancement for 64,000 leaders a year, who can then extend their reach to an additional 100 children a year.

The Ethiopia Experience is one of the initial projects and begins January 2018 in Addis Ababa. Although Ethiopia is home to a network of organizations working to address extreme poverty and hunger, efforts are thwarted by the constraints of capacity. Ethical Coach will host 400 NGO leaders in workshops and deliver coaching skills through our high level international volunteer coaches. In addition, selections for the 2018 Coaching Grant will match pioneer Ethical Coaches to Ethiopian organizations. These case studies will then inform opportunities in other region around the world, as well as contribute new standards of practice.

‘When spiders unite, they can tie up a lion.’

Amharic Ethiopian proverb

If you would like to get involved or find out more about this amazing movement and be part of the solution, send us an email: [email protected]

The second opportunity is my legacy project Marshall Goldsmith 100 Coaches. I came up with the idea a couple of years ago when I attended a program led by my wonderful friend Ayse Birsel called Design the Life You Love. At the program, Ayse asked us to write down our heroes. I wrote down Frances Hesselbein (former CEO of the Girl Scouts and recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom), Alan Mulally (former CEO of Ford and CEO of the year in the United States), Peter Drucker (founder of modern management), Paul Hersey (noted author, teacher, and personal mentor of mine), and Warren Bennis (one of the world’s greatest leadership thinkers of his time). Then Ayse asked us to describe what made us think of them as heroes. I wrote “great teachers” and “very generous.” She then challenged us to “be more like them” in designing the lives we love.

It was from this fantastic program that I came up with the idea to teach 15 people everything I know at no charge. In return, these 15 would do the same thing for 15 others, for free. I was inspired to do this by the many great teachers and leaders who have so generously helped me – without ever asking for anything in return. It is my way of recognizing the amazing contributions they have made in my life.

I made a 30-second video about the project for LinkedIn. It ended up becoming one of the most widely viewed videos in the history of LinkedIn. I was amazed when more than 12,000 people applied for the 15 positions. I have been very humbled and inspired by this overwhelming response, and so I expanded the project to 100 Coaches and 100 Aspiring Coaches!

Our first cohort of 25 coaches has met twice and this past weekend our second cohort of 30 coaches met for the first time. At these meetings, we’ve learned from some of the greatest leaders of our time, Alan Mulally, Frances Hesselbein and Dr. Jim Kim, President of the World Bank, and where they were formally trained in Stakeholder Centered Coaching by Dr. Frank Wagner, Chris Coffey, and Will Linssen. I am very happy to say that the first 55 coaches are well on their way to paying it forward!

If you would like to apply to the Marshall Goldsmith Aspiring Coaches program, please go to https://www.marshallgoldsmith.com/application/. I look forward to receiving your application!