With Sandy Hogan
By Laurel Elders
(Excerpt from the Following Your Calling E-Book)
 
As my friend and mentor Sandy puts it, "Develop your hearing-aids".  Below, I've captured Sandy's advice and further reflections for our Answering Your True Calling blog. 

Sandy's advice on Answering Your True Calling: 

"Listening to the small callings is an invitation for hearing the bigger calling. Listening to the small along the way, in day to day life, prepares the path and grows our faith so that by the time the bigger calling shows up we are ready."

"Not all callings are paid. You may feel called to clean up the neighborhood you live in, or start a community garden." You may feel called to pay for the elderly woman's groceries in front of you. Not every calling, is a calling for fame and fortune. The most unfortunate missed callings are the ones that show up daily and are the simplest to fulfill. 

"What is at stake by not listening? What is the worst thing that could happen?" What if you took a risk to find out? What if it became an adventure or you became a detective following the clues of your life more closely to see where they lead you? Sandy asks us to reflect further, "How much does your personal comfort prevent you from answering?"

"What if I feel called, but fear it is the wrong number?" Sandy notes this as a common fear and then adds, "First, there is no wrong number. What seems like a dead-end or an off-putting idea, or conflicting ideas ruminating... are all indicative of the true calling that will emerge when it is ready." Again, listening to the promptings you feel now, paves the path for your future. 

"To access your calling consider who in life do you admire?  Then look at what qualities they embody. You may feel impressed by Maya Angelo, so look at the qualities she embodies. Strive to embody the qualities of Maya Angelo versus trying to measure your life against Maya Angelo. These qualities reflect your calling. Be careful to not be called into a persona. A true calling is authentic to you."

​​​​​​​I believe we are all called to something greater. When we don't listen, we feel it. It becomes the empty feeling in the heart. Then we attempt to cover that empty feeling up with ice-cream, TV, other people's ideals, texting, etc. etc.
The question to look at is, "To what is calling me?"  To explore this, I invite you to keep a "Calling Journal" for one month.

• Note what called you. Did you follow? Did you not? 
• If yes, what happened? 
• If not, what got in the way? 
• No judgment, just notice. 
• Reflect on whom you admire. What qualities do they embody? What does this reflect back to you? 
• What have you felt called to do in the past? Did you answer? How did it go? How did this experience shape you now, positively or negatively? 

 

You want to become an ICF credentialed coach. Congratulations! 
 
The ICF values excellence in the coaching world and has been the leading standard setter since the inception of professional coaching. 
 
Holding an ICF credential is an enriching journey. It means that you have met the highest coaching standards and have been trained by a quality program. 
 
The ICF has two credentialing paths for newer and seasoned coaches. They also outline three levels of coaching ability: foundational, proficiency, and mastery. 
 
This overview gives you a summary of what to consider and how to determine which path is a better fit for you.

LEVEL ONE: ACC

The ICF has the Associate Certified Coach (ACC) level. In the coaching world, this is comparable to having a bachelor’s degree in coaching.
 
ACC programs provide the foundation of coaching and give you enough basics to add coaching to another profession skillfully. 
 
For example, if you are an HR Director and want to embed coaching into conversations with employees or a team process, then the ACC-level training is perfect for your situation.
 
Another example of adding coaching skills to an already existing career is when consultants realize a client’s mindset is impeding progress. In this scenario, adding basic coaching skills helps the consultant up-level their client’s capacity for success.

LEVEL TWO: PCC

The next level up is the Professional Certified Coach (PCC). This level would be equivalent to a master’s degree in the coaching world. PCC is the most sought-after level of training.
 
The ICF considers PCC-level training to be the complete coach training program. This level teaches more advanced coaching skills and prepares you to contract with private clients. 
 
Your skills are evaluated at this training level, and you are given feedback, so you know if you are meeting quality coaching standards.
 
This level of training is the perfect path if you wish to establish yourself as a professional coach, launch a coaching business, and contract with private clients or companies.

LEVEL THREE: MCC

The highest level is the Master Certified Coach (MCC). In the coaching world, holding an MCC credential would be akin to having a doctorate in coaching.
 
MCC is an option once you have been a professional coach for years, completed 2500 hours of professional coaching, and attended a level three training.

Which path is best for me?  To determine which path is the best fit for you, consider which of these scenarios apply to you.
 
A Professional Growing a Private Clientele:  

• “My goal is to have a private coaching practice.”  PCC is recommended.
  
• The PCC track is designed for private practice coaches. This leads to the MCC level training after being in practice for years.
  
• The ACC level training is a partial training only. 

 
Managers, Directors & HR Professionals:

• “My goal is to add coaching skills into my existing career path.” ACC is recommended.
• “My goal is to add coaching skills into my existing career path, and I am close to retirement and see coaching as my legacy work to give back.” PCC is recommended.
• “I feel called to transition into leadership coaching and run a full-time or part-time coaching practice.” PCC is recommended.

 
Leaders Fostering a Coaching Culture:

• “My goal is to create a coaching culture in my organization and start coaching my leadership team.” ACC is recommended.
• “I am 5-10 years away from retirement. I find meaning in self-development work and wish to give back by coaching new leaders.” PCC is recommended.

 
Psychologists, Physicians & Therapists:

• “My goal is to add coaching and self-actualization skills into my therapeutic approach and treatment plan options.” ACC is recommended.
• “I feel called to transition out of the therapeutic setting and into a coaching focus. I am at a point in my career where I feel called to help people build a positive life and focus more on self-actualization methodologies.” PCC is recommended.

You can review our ACC program here and PCC level program here.

Here are the top three pitfalls we encounter at the Institute when people are determining if a coaching credential will be suitable for them.​

1. My current degrees and certifications qualify me to coach.  
Would you go to a mechanic to fix a dental issue? I hope not. Although a dentist and mechanic both diagnose and treat problems, their process and systems differ vastly.
 
I often have conversations with individuals who have 3-4 certifications/degrees, and they do not wish to go back to school to be a coach. I get that. I remember feeling the same about wanting to be done with training. The question I hear most is, "Do I need more training?”
 
Coaching is both a skill set and a process of self-actualization. Unless your previous training included coach training, the frameworks and premise are entirely different from each other. While you may already embody some skills, proper coaching does not include counseling. 
 
This is because there are two paths to developing our potential. On the first path, we are shown the way through counseling, books, classes, spiritual guidance, etc. On the second path, we reach our potential by going within ourselves for our truth and answers. Nobody else can teach us this path. However, a true coach illuminates the way.
 
I have also found that the more training and credentials someone has, the more challenging time they can have in the coach's seat. They often end up defaulting to other modalities like counseling and advising. 
 
If you have an extensive background in other areas and do not want additional training, you may want to consider the following: 1) Am I a lifelong learner? Perhaps there is more! 2) Do I want to be an advisor, consultant, or counselor? 

2. I got my degree from the school of hard knocks. 
I completely understand this and have felt the exact way many times over. Truth and power come from the empathy needed to hold space for another person's growth. However, the reality we discover from excavating our truths doesn't seamlessly equate to other people's truths. 
 
Why? Well, every human being has a unique success formula. A trained coach learns with wisdom and humility that they can become experts in external things in life but will never be experts in another person's truth. Our job as professional coaches is to help people excavate their truth, not ours for them.
 
So, yes, your life experience is a valuable asset for empathy. After empathy, we can help people create success from their inner truth. Sharing your personal success formula may feed someone a fish for a day. Getting them to their own reality, teaches them to fish for a lifetime. 

3. The government does not require a credential. 
This one tripped me up when I first started as a coach. I took the bare minimum training because I didn't feel I needed to get training in the first place. I later discovered a few things worth considering.
 
There is a reason coaching is not regulated by the government yet. The government regulates professions at high risk for ethical breaches, such as medical, therapeutic, or financial professions. Because actual coaches: 1) support people in growing by identifying their truth, 2) do not give advice or counsel people, and 3) do not evaluate or treat medical or emotional conditions, it is classified as a low-liability profession. 
 
Will this continue? We see an uptick in therapists transitioning to coaching with little to no training or getting a rubber stamp credential to evade therapy licensure. If this continues, that could be considered an ethical breach, and the government may decide to step in. 
 
We see some therapists using the title to escape licensing, and others switching to a coaching title because they don't fully understand how different coaching is. Some may assume they are already qualified as a coach because of their background in therapy. 
 
While proper coaching can be therapeutic, because the client is doing their own work and process, no therapy is applied by the coach.
 
My colleague Ana Melikian, a Ph.D. psychologist who has transitioned into coaching, explains it this way: As a therapist, she helped people get from -10 to neutral, so they can gain agency over their life. As a coach, she helps people go from neutral, or a +5, to a +10.
 
Some soft skills, such as empathy and reflection, transfer to being a masterful coach. However, in coaching, there are entirely new processes, ethics, and skills that coaches adhere to. 
 
I hope these considerations were illuminating for you if you are indeed considering coach training or know someone who is. 
 
Next, we'll review credential options and their unique purposes.

​Have you ever felt a pull to make a living helping other people live their best life? Do you find that people tend to naturally confide in you and turn to you when things get hard? Are you wondering if you can make a lucrative living out your gifts?  

If you said yes to one or all these questions, I’m writing this article to help you determine how to turn your passion into a paycheck. It is very possible, and your future clients need you!

TIP ONE: Determine Your Direction & Get Trained

I keep seeing some bad advice floating around coaching forums. A person who is considering becoming a professional coach will ask for advice on what training is best. Then someone chimes in eventually and says something to the tune of, “You don’t need training! There is no legal requirement to be licensed or certified, so just hang your hat as a coach and start charging.” 

Gulp. First, we should be clear and careful. While this may be true for consultants who are paid advisors, this is not true for life coaching and counselors. 

​I’ve come across many untrained coaches who aren’t actually coaching people (and many don’t even know what coaching actually is). They are counseling people without proper training or a license, which in most states is illegal. 

If you want to give people guidance, advice, and help them heal emotionally from wounds and traumas, then you will want to pursue a degree in counseling and psychology. Therapists diagnose and treat mental and emotional illnesses. Therapists are licensed at the state level.

However, if you want to help people find their own answers, develop their own wisdom, live through their gifts, and reach an empowered state so that they can reach their life goals, then you will want to pursue a PCC level certification in coaching.

Being properly trained also ensures you are: 1) trauma-informed, 2) understand ethical standards, and 3) have been assessed to hold the highest competencies. 

A credentialed coach and licensed therapist are able to get a client exactly what they need and understand all of the underlying principles behind growth and healing. 

TIP TWO: Learn Business

The only reason I’ve seen well-educated professionals fail to make a decent living in private practice is because they don’t understand business, or they don’t have a business mindset. As my son’s football coach said, “There is no problem education can’t solve”. It is the same with business.

For example, if you cultivate at least 3-5 referral sources that consistently give you referrals, you will be in great shape! 

You will also need to learn what effective marketing communication looks and feels like. 

There are many excellent marketing and business resources out there! There are also a lot of overpriced options that yield little results. Buyer beware.

When it comes to being a success, as a therapist or a credentialed coach, use a referral-based approach that is based on community and connection! Build relationships, cross refer, and get referrals from your new clients. 

We include referral-based business growth strategies in our coach training programs because they are so important for success. Without this education, no matter how good you are at coaching or counseling, a business can flop. With this education, you can flourish!

Even during a recession, there are millions of people who are still investing in services and support. If you understand the power of relationship marketing and how to pivot in business, you can easily switch gears. 

As one coach put it when she was in her first year of client building, “I went through a scary moment because I had most of my clients finish their programs all at the same time. Then I realized, I don’t need to be scared. I just need to go out and get more clients.” She did because she understood the power of referral sources and authentic relationship building.

TIP THREE: Give Yourself Space

I’ve found that the coaches and therapists who are successful in their first year of practice are the ones with prior education or experience in business.

If you are completely new to business, give yourself at least 1-2 years to get your business fully engaged. If you are an extrovert and love networking events or speaking, this timeframe may be shorter. If you are an introvert and prefer to write articles, this might take longer. Everyone has their own unique success formula. Honor your timing. Give yourself the space to grow into your practice.

Is there something in your life you have a true passion for? For me, it is budgeting (yep, geeky I know) and rock climbing. My husband makes fun of me when it is time to do the monthly budgeting. I light up like a kid on Christmas morning. 

​Both of these activities light up my heart and bring me to life. I can’t wait to do them again. What about you? What brings you to life? 

In this article, I’ll be exploring how to turn your passion for art, investing, leadership, health, adventuring… whatever it is you love, into an additional income stream.

Your passion can also be a paycheck. You can take what you love doing, what you feel called to do, and help empower other people’s lives. Whatever it is that feeds your soul can also make an enjoyable career track or business endeavor. 

There are hundreds of people who feel called to try to do what you do so naturally, but don’t know where to start. You can help them succeed. You can help them get unstuck in their life. 

Even in a recession, there are many people who remain unaffected and are seeking help to accomplish the very gifts you have dialed in. When you take them on as clients, you get the benefit of seeing the joy in their eyes when they’ve reached a success with you by their side.

You can coach clients. Coaching is an evolving career choice and often misunderstood. If you add coaching to what you would teach people about, you can take your clients ten times further than other professionals! 

Why Coaches Kick @ss!

There are two journeys to human potential. On the first journey, people are shown the way. For example, you might teach someone investment skills, or how to do yoga, or healthy cooking. People reach their potential on the first journey by receiving guidance and education.

On the second journey to reach human potential, one must journey into themselves to explore their own truth and develop their own wisdom. In the past, people took this journey alone. They embarked on spiritual quests or sat in contemplation and prayer. Now, we have professional coaches who are trained to help people dive deep within their own potential and access their own wisdom. A true coach helps someone access their own answers, often hidden within. 

We can be the expert of external things. I’m willing to bet you have some expertise in the area you are passionate about. We can help teach others how to master those things. However, it is good to humbly note, that we will never be the expert of someone else’s internal truth. That is where the power of coaching steps in. Professional coaches take someone on the second journey. 

And coaching is the only profession, skillset, and approach developed to take people on that second journey. When you become a trained coach, it gives you a huge advantage over any competition in your niche and passion.



How Does Your Passion Show Up?

If you love hiking and leadership, you can take leaders on a coaching journey. If you love art, you can add coaching to your art class and help people realize more about themselves. If you teach yoga, you can offer a coaching session on the mat. If you have mastered budgeting or financial wealth building, you can offer a coaching program to help people overcome their internal mindset blocks. And so on and so on. 

The sky is the limit! 

Sandy loved to create special personalized pieces for her friends and family. They cherished the handmade cards, pottery, and jewelry she crafted for them. Sandy loved singing and had a one-woman recital for her friends and family. As an avid collector, Sandy loved to find just the right item at just the right price.

Sandy also loved her dogs and rescued many PBGVs (Petit Basset Griffon Vendeen) over the years. She worked tirelessly with the Humane Society and the PBGV Health and Rescue Foundation.
​
​We are grateful for the lasting impact that she left on the Institute and hope you enjoy today's tribute to her.

The second four day learning retreat was just held amidst the Sonoran Desert of Tucson, Az. We
gathered in the L Offices with a full view of the Catalina Mountains.

We kicked off Thursday morning connecting and reflecting on everything the students in the Spring
2022 cohort had learned so far. One of our primary integration frameworks we cover is the Map to
Mastery. Each point on the map includes 4-5 integrative tools and frameworks to support a client
within their window of tolerance. This ensures the client has the capacity to make ample progress with
what they are working on.

By the time this capstone learning retreat comes about, we’ve covered over 20 integration frameworks
in addition to phasing each student into the PCC level, and beginning MCC level, coaching
competencies.

The second learning retreat is four days of intensive integration. We weave all the learning together
and also reflect on growth that happened personally. Many of our students walk away with a new,
more empowered, way of being in their life, coaching and beyond.
During our time together, we cover the advanced topics like the Neurobiology of Emotional Intelligence and Somatics, Coaching to Wholeness through our own Wholeness, the Nine Levels of Development, the Enneagram, Compassionate Communication and coaching ethics.

We wrap up on the fourth day with a group lunch from a locally owned restaurant, a Coaching Panel,
activities on developing your coaching voice, group huddle and then come together to celebrate
completing the class time together.
​
These are a just a few of the moments we captured together from our Spring Cohort:

​

The Top Three Reasons Coaching is Exploding!
by: Laurel Elders, MCC, CEC

Have you heard? The coaching field is booming and expanding rapidly across the globe.
According to the ICF’s 2020 Executive Summary of their coaching research findings: “The estimated global total revenue from coaching in 2019 was $2.849 billion U.S. dollars.”

People and companies are investing in coaches now as a norm.
 
However, this didn’t used to be the case.
 
I started coaching professionally in 2005. Back in the day people would say, “Hey Laurel, what do you do for a living?” I would smile and say, “I’m a coach!” Without fail, the response would be, “Oh nice! What sport?”
 
Fast-forward to today. Companies, leaders, business owners, and individuals are all hiring coaches on a regular basis and getting excellent results from their investments.
 
We now have research on the efficacy and benefits of working with a coach. Very exciting results have been coming in.
 
Today, I will disclose current trends, key findings, pertinent statistics, and touch on why coaching is exploding in popularity around the globe!
 
I’ve identified three top reasons that coaching is expanding so rapidly.
 
Exclusive 
There are two journeys we can take on the pathway to our potential. On the first path, someone can show us or teach us about our potential. We can take classes, read books, get mentoring, see a therapist, or get spiritual guidance.
 
However, the second pathway to our potential can only be reached by going within. This is where coaching steps in. Coaching introduces people to their own inner truths, latent gifts, and unborn skills. It takes people into the core of their truest self, their wholeness.
 
No other profession has the ability or skillset to take a person on the second journey. Coaching is the only exclusive approach that brings someone to their own inner peak.
 
Because of the exclusiveness coaching provides, coaching is not just the latest trend that will come and go. It is a profession that yields profound results and offers people pathways to new possibilities that can only be found by entering into a coaching process.
 
Coaches are the personal Sherpas of our future.
 
Public Personnel Management; conducted a study on Executive Coaching by Gerald Olivero; K Denise Bane; Richard E Kopelman. In this study, thirty-one managers underwent a conventional managerial training program. They found that training alone: which included goal setting, collaborative problem-solving, practice, feedback, supervisory involvement, evaluation of end-results, and a public presentation increased productivity by 22.4%. Training followed up with 8 weeks of one-to-one Executive Coaching increased productivity by 88%, a significantly greater gain compared to just training alone.

 
Evolutionized 
Current self-development models teach us to take who we are now and begin developing from that starting point. There is nothing wrong with this, it is a great approach. I view any and all growth as beneficial.
 
However, what happens when we first introduce a person to their Highest-Self and then have their Highest-Self inform the self-development process?
 
You may have guessed it. That person goes ten times farther in their progress.
 
Coaching, and integratively informed coaches, are trained to first introduce their clients to the highest aspects of their self and then the self becomes the guide.
 
The Course in Miracles states, "You have [been] taught what you are. You have yet to allow what you are to teach you.” This is the highly unique evolutionary process that only coaching provides.
 
Merrill Anderson of MetrixGlobal reported: “Coaching produced a 529% return on investment and significant intangible benefits to the business. Including the financial benefits from employee retention, coaching boosted the overall ROI to 788%. The study provided powerful new insights into how to maximize the business impact from executive coaching.”
 
Engineered
The very process of true coaching has been engineered for success.

The ICF Posted an article in Jan. of 2015 by master coach Teri-E Belf and Michael Marx. They state:
 “As coaches, we believe that clients have their own answers and the role of the coach is to create a space for the client’s wisdom to emerge. Giving advice detracts from the client’s autonomy. When a coach gives advice, the client owns less of the solution.”

The same article reveals key research that backs up the coaching ideology. In 2009, Jan B. Engelmann, C. Monica Capra, Charles Noussair and Gregory S. Berns conducted research on the brain's reaction to receiving advice.

They discovered that when the brain is taking in advice it "offloads by going into neutral and the actual advice does not embed in the neocortex while the advice is being given.”

Coaches are trained in a Socratic method that engages the emotive and sensory parts of the brain, which are involved in the decision-making process and follow through.

The coaching process by design instills intrinsic motivation, personal learning, ownership, and follow through. All of which lead to sustainable success for the person.

There you have it!
 
Coaching is a profound profession to join. It is expanding because it is such an exclusive unique process, that is highly effective and leads to sustainable success. The world trends come and go. Coaching is tapping into deeper truths and uncloaking new possibilities in Human Potential.
 
It is very exciting and rewarding to be a part of such a unique approach that is equally leaving a positive footprint on companies and individuals across the globe!

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