Coaching as a Profession

Coaching is an unregulated profession. Everyone can claim to be a coach. Many people jumped onto the wagon with little training.

When untrained coaches floated the market, I was concerned about consumers and the profession’s reputation. So, I supported the ICF (International Coaching Federation) between 2008 to 2019 to ensure that trained coaches showed up to provide value.

Coaching has become a more established profession in the last few years, along with ICF’s maturity.  Coaching companies like Betterup were able to engage businesses, from corporations to startups, and demonstrate the value of professional coaching.

Nowadays, even trained/credentialed coaches are seeing the competitive landscape. For example, Betterup allows clients to switch to another coach when their coach is not a good fit. Clients can also work with specialty coaches other than their primary coach. Recently a few of my career growth specialty clients wanted me to replace their primary coach. Clients know who is more effective in supporting them!

It’s a different time now! Coaches must continue to grow personally and professionally to stay on the journey. I am glad to witness the coaching profession’s evolution and be part of its legacy. I have fun coaching too!