Picking The Right Professional Coach

At the current time, professional coaches are like chiropractors, sans the sale of supplements.? Some are amazing and produce testimonials from leaders attributing personal/professional growth and amazing results to their coaching experience.? Some managed to go through the factory of securing credentials but have little experience or results to share.

In short, not all coaches are created equal.? The International Coaching Federation (ICF) certifications are considered the gold standard of coaching certifications.? I possess the Professional Coaching Certification myself.? It is a solid process and a great foundation for any aspiring coach.? As the profession gains more notoriety, businesses are popping up like cannabis shops in Michigan who vie for future coach’s dollars with promises of getting them certified through ICF as quickly as possible. This race to a certification or even a diploma is a huge problem in education but a topic for another day.

“Although quality certifications are a good base, they are not the proof of a great coach.”

I have served as a professional coach and hired other professionals to coach our highest levels where I worked.? Here is the formula that I find works best and one that you can follow when choosing your professional coach:

1. Make sure they have a solid foundation.? This may be an ICF certification although there are others institutions that teach a solid foundation for coaches.

2. Pay attention to chemistry.? Chemistry may be familiarity with your industry, cultural understanding, personality style and more.? I have matched Christian based coaches with devout Christians for example.? It was important to them.? Others may prefer a female coach.? Still, some may want someone who is very different from them.? The key is choosing someone who you will be able to develop trust and confidence in.

3. Consider the experience and background of the coach.? Most coach training tells us that coaching is all about the questions.? To a great extent that is true.? As I have coached many emerging leaders though, I have found…

“…sharing my experiences and observations for their consideration has proved invaluable.”

Having worked for a wide variety of industries, at all levels from boardroom to shop floor; it is wasteful not to share insights or experiences that the client may find useful. ? Again,? these are not directives, but offered for consideration.? It is hard to share deep experience and insights if the coach hasn’t? had them.? The same goes for exposure to various levels.? If a coach has never worked around the higher levels, it would require a leap of faith to believe they will be able to understand their client well enough to help navigate that space effectively.? The coach’s background is an important element in your choosing the right one for you.

4. Ensure they have a system or process.? This is not to say that they don’t need to be adaptive and flexible.? They surely do!? But do they have an approach that is proven?? Any coach who says that they go with the flow is really just saying they are winging it.

Most solid processes start with building trust; identifying stakeholders, establishing the area(s) of focus.? From this they help you determine a specific metric of success.? The next step often involves gathering all the facts and objective information in relation to the focus.? From there they will have you explore new paths, people, questions and challenge current trains of thought.? Next they help establish options and actions.? I like to wrap with a commitment to action.? It will be the first thing we talk about in the following session.? This drives the accountability and your progress, a hallmark of my coaching style.

Within these steps we must flex and adapt and yet it is nice to have a framework that ensures we move toward goal.? A good coach will circle back a step when needed but always has a feel for where they are in the process and help keep their client focused and on track.

Leverage these steps when seeking your next or first professional coach.? Once you find a coach that you click with, you are on your way to new heights of achievement!

The author is Brian Hennessy, Executive Coach and owner of Hennessy Executive Coaching & Consulting.? If you would like to learn more about coaching opportunities you can contact him at [email protected]