Women Consultants, Do You Really Need Another Qualification To Provide Coaching In Your Consulting Business?
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I see a lot of women look for a training course or a certificate to prove to the world that they are actually ‘allowed’ to do the work they do.
Sometimes this is genuinely a good and positive thing to do. If you are a coach, follow the trend in your industry. If your competitors are all accredited, or you are aware that your clients value an official certification, that’s a pretty good marker that you should prioritise this too.
But it isn’t a requirement in all industries, so if you aren’t accredited you don’t necessarily need to feel a whole ton of inferiority about this.
The main thing is, are you able to coach ethically and professionally, and get results for your clients?
Even if you aren’t accredited as a coach, read up on the theory and always be looking to improve your skills and practise. Some of the elements of accreditation-based coaching such as having a coaching supervisor can be a real asset to you, and by association, your clients too.
The only proviso I would add in here is that you should always do your research before paying for a coaching qualification. There are companies out there who ‘train coaches’, but if they’re not recognised in your industry, that could just be a very expensive piece of paper that doesn’t do much for your skill level or add to your credibility with clients.
However, if you’re paying out a lot of money for a fairly dubious qualification that you really feel you need to be the thing that gives you permission to do the work you are already skilled at – I always want to pose that perennial question of ‘would you feel like you need to do this if you were a man?’
Sometimes it can add several years (and several thousand dollars) onto your business plan, when in reality, you could actually already do the work very capably without the piece of paper.
The bottom line is, follow the norms in your industry. If the companies you’re targeting prefer to use accredited coaches then find out who they tend to hire and get accredited with that same body. Be the person they’re expecting to hire. Make it a really easy decision for them to say yes.
Let me know, are you currently working towards a qualification? What is it?
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Thanks for reading! I’d love to hear your feedback and future topics you’d like me to feature. You may also enjoy The Seven Figure Consultant Podcast, the show that takes you from booked up and burned out in your consulting business to THRIVING as the CEO of your 7 figure enterprise.