I founded the Career Coach Entrepreneur Academy in January 2021. The list of things I did not know or expect is very long. After graduating 25 students, and with 5 more done with their training next week, I am reflecting on the most surprising aspects of coach training—the struggle to come up with a coaching topic.

The only way to learn how to be an excellent coach is to practice, so every one of the 14 weeks in the Academy includes real-life coaching sessions. It’s not role-playing. I insist students bring significant topics, personal or professional, from their life, they would like to explore.

In week one of coaching school we learn the difference between coaching, consulting, and therapy. Then it’s time to start coaching. I pair students up and ask one to be the coach, the other is the client, and the client needs to have a topic. This is a hurdle that throws most folks off. They expected to be trained, but not to be sharing and exploring their own lives.

Reactions have ranged from relative comfort to feeling exposed and awkwardly vulnerable. Frequently students will choose a topic they think is simple, like carving out time for a walk in the morning or taking better care of the dog. But, as they get going, they find out that coaching, even with a novice, will uncover deeper feelings. Coaching is magic.

Throughout the Academy, students embrace both coaching and being coached. They achieve clarity about the challenges they face in daily life. They work out their anxieties about starting a career coaching practice, attracting clients, and finding the confidence to pursue their dreams.

I love sharing details about the Academy, especially ones that are unexpected. The next cohort starts soon, September 17, 2024. If you’ve been reading this newsletter and feeling drawn to enroll, please set up some time to get your questions answered. It would be an honor to guide you through the coach training journey.