Coach Express

by Bronwyn Bowery Ireland

We have been spending time over the last month working on our strategic plan, and are now turning it into an operations plan.  It has been a great process for us as we map out our activities and business for the year ahead.

Now, I have to admit I am not great at working through all the detail involved.  I like the idea of setting goals and describing how we do that. But once it goes to a deeper level than this I start to lose focus on the big picture and where we need to head. 

Thank goodness I have the most amazing Operations Manager who is skilled beyond belief in the area of creating an operations plan. I have often thought that perhaps I need to train myself more in this area but then that would take me away from my strengths and not provide an opportunity for someone else to demonstrate their strength. 

I have found that one of the greatest ways for us to achieve our strategies is to be really honest about our strengths and to know other people’s strengths on the team. We are often in a meeting and identify a strength we need for a particular task and then we ask a person with that strength to support us. It works so beautifully. What I have noticed the most is that this makes everyone feel confident as we are working to people’s areas of competency. 

It did however take me a long time to recognise this. After many years of going through interviews and performance appraisals in other organisations, I found that my focus was always taken to my weaknesses or the areas I was not strong in. I would try and up skill, take on all sorts of new systems or ways to transform myself only to end up at the same place each time - failure. It was a very demoralising journey each time, corroding into my self esteem and inevitably my confidence. 

Through focusing on my strengths my confidence increased and I was able to be more open and honest about what I could do successfully. Imagine a workplace full of people operating in a confident manner. I now feel like that is the workplace I am in. Everyone is working towards their strengths. If something doesn’t feel aligned with their strengths then they turn to others who can do the task. It creates an amazing energy flow in the organisation too. 

Over the next couple of weeks I would like to share our strategic plan with you so you know where we are heading and to keep you updated on how we are tracking. It is going to be one huge exciting year.  

If you would like to share your strengths with me, I would love that. It’s an opportunity to see the greatness in you and that is a wonderful feeling for both of us.  You can email me at bron.bi@icoachacademy.com

Join Anodea Judith (Ground breaking thinker, writer, and spiritual teacher) who will share her insight into humanity’s path from power to love.  Hosted by Leon VanderPol, ICA trainer, this teleseminar will explore the chakra system as a map for personal evolution.  In particular,

•  the shift in humanity from the love of power to the power of love
• the dying off of the old system, to make way for the new,

Not to be missed, this teleseminar promises to enlighten us and shift our way of thinking towards the power of love.

Tell me more -> http://tinyurl.com/anodea-judith

** Teleseminar Details **

Topic: Waking the Global Heart: Humanity’s path from Power to Love

When: Wednesday, 14 April, at 12.00pm (midday) New York EST

Host: Leon VanderPol

Guest: Anodea Judith

Cost: No cost

Register Now -> http://tinyurl.com/anodea-judith

Note: The registration page (above) will also provide you with time conversions for your nearest capital city.

by Bronwyn Bowery Ireland

The coaching profession has been around now for quite a few years. For some people coaching may still be a new concept. However as people come to understanding the skills required to be a coach - the coaching profession, they also understand how these skills have many applications - the coaching process. 

The two concepts are as follows:

• 1. The coaching profession is about the training of coaches to be accredited professionals.
• 2. The coaching process is about the application of coaching concepts and skills into other contexts other than a coaching session. 

Take, for example, the skill of asking questions. Coaching is built around asking open-ended questions that shift the thinking of the client to see other perspectives and possibilities. However great questions in the middle of a strategic meeting, a marketing campaign, an argument, a consultation with a doctor or a conversation with a child can change the outcome of the conversation completely. Great questions in a meeting can completely change the outcome of the action to be taken. We have all heard about how great moments in history were created by the asking of a great question. 

Other concepts from coaching can be applied, such as acknowledgement. This is the practice of seeing the greatness in a person and telling them about it. Acknowledgement is not a compliment, which is the giving of our opinion to someone. Imagine spending each day, interacting with people, and focusing on seeing the greatness in them. This activity would totally change the way you see people and how you interact with them. A group of HR managers from some large multinational companies were recently in a room together. They were talking about how the culture of some of their workplaces was quite challenging. They mentioned that they wanted to bring about a coaching culture in their organisation but weren’t sure how to do this. We discussed designing a plan to do this, but for now they could begin by modelling coaching culture behaviour. The first step could be by acknowledging every person they talk to at work and looking for the greatness in that person. This perspective would create a change in the interactions they have. This has been done in other situations and over time the result has been that people observe that they feel good around people who acknowledge them and so they enjoy working with them. 

The critical element here is that using coaching concepts outside of coaching does not make you a coach but instead a more self aware person. Coaching after all is about increasing an understanding of ourselves. It is not about the practice of coaching others. To be a coach requires many hours of training and great skill.

To be more self aware means that each person you meet you are making an impact in their lives.

Last week 51 students graduated from our Certified Professional Coach Program (CPCP). As with every graduation, it is a special time to reflect on our achievements; the achievements of our students, our trainers, our support staff, and the whole ICA community. I welcome each graduate into our Alumni and look forward to working with you.

During our graduation ceremony I spoke about the opportunities for positivity and possibility. I had been watching a documentary on television about a school that had a religious divide. Some students belonged to a certain religion and had certain beliefs and behaviours. One day the school decided to hold a discussion calling in all the students around 18 years of age to discuss this divide. The students entered the room and sat in groups according to their views. The room ended up having one side completely for the religious group and the other opposed to the behaviours of the religious group. The discussion or rather debate went on for about an hour with a great amount of heated conversation. The school had invited a speaker who was of the religious group but had decided to stand out and not follow their behaviours.
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Microsoft Corp and Yahoo Inc have finally agreed on a 10-year search deal that will help them better compete against the market leader Google Inc. The 10-year deal announced on Wednesday 29th July gives Microsoft access to the Internet’s second largest search engine audience, adding a potentially potent weapon to the software maker’s Internet arsenal as it tries to better confront Google, the leader in online search and advertising. The extended reach will allow Microsoft to introduce its recently upgraded search engine, called Bing, to more people.

Google has a global Internet share of 67 percent compared with a combined figure of just 11 percent for Microsoft and Yahoo.

The partnership deal struck between Yahoo and Microsoft has been in the works for many many years. When we hear about partnership deals we usually hear about the end result – the partnership not the process. The process, as in the case with Microsoft and Yahoo has gone on for years. The process of creating a partnership involves many details and hours and hours of negotiation. So why enter into a partnership?
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We would like to invite you to take a FREE sneak peek into our Certified Professional Coach Program (CPCP). Our coach training is fast becoming the choice for coaches globally as our community continues to thrive with over 60 students enrolling each month and more than 400 professionally certified coaches graduating annually. Our students are located all over the world – in fact, in 90 different countries. This includes United States, Australia, China, United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, India, Hong Kong, France, Malaysia, Germany, Taiwan, Portugal and Switzerland…. and, that’s just to name a few.

Our unique, and fully supported, online learning environment delivers an internationally accredited curriculum (ICF) offering a blend of theory and niche specific practicum. With over 60 teleclasses each week to choose from, you will have the flexibility to develop a learning style and pace that best suits your lifestyle. Some students complete within 6 months, and others within 2 years.
The best way to get a feel for our training is to sample it. Register for our FREE preview and receive:

- Module Download: ‘What is Coaching’
- Worksheet: ‘Design Your Life’ Worksheet
- ‘A Day In The Life Of A Coach’ audio and transcripts
- Accreditation / Certification Whitepaper
- CPCP & ACCP Program Brochure
- Graduate Interviews
- Academic Calendar (schedule of classes)

Register for Sneak Preview - > http://tinyurl.com/lta8n6

by Bronwyn Bowery-Ireland

I recently met a person who was interested in becoming a coach. They asked me if I was a coach. Then they asked me why I was a coach. I thought for a moment to ensure I was going to give a clear articulate answer. In this twenty-second moment of thinking through this question I kept trying to drill down as to the reason for being a coach. I was thinking about the coaching process, coaching skills and techniques, the contexts that I coach in and many other thoughts.

Then I realised that the reason why I coach is because I am passionate about people and their capacity to be amazing beings. I love observing someone who achieves their goals, hearing the excitement in their voice. I love seeing how people interact and live out their lives. I love seeing the greatness in others and watching them exploring their greatness more and more each day.
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by Bronwyn Bowery-Ireland
I am about to board a plane from Chengdu to Shanghai. I have just spoken to 50 people about coaching and how we need trained up coaches who can speak Chinese.

Last week I was in Taipei and Kaohsiung in Taiwan speaking to 30 coaches, of which most were students and graduates of ICA. We spoke about the future of coaching and business and the nexus between the two.

In June we are planning a trip to Malaysia to speak to students and people interested in coaching and in July travelling to Australia to speak to staff, and more students and potential coaches.

In October a trip to India is planned, again to meet students, graduates and future coaches. In December a trip to the States to attend a coaching conference.

Now to some people this might sound like a lot of travelling and to others it might sound like the dream job.

To me it is the dream job. I decided some years ago that I wanted to travel to many places around the world. I wanted to meet up and connect with coaches and people doing business in this area. So I made it happen.
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by Alexia Michiels

During the week of March 23rd 2009 the International Coach Academy held a “Positivity Week” and invited ICA students and friends to share positive thoughts and stories. The idea was to counterbalance the negative energy surrounding the global crisis and by creating positive energy, take the first steps to regain power!

To continue surfing on this empowering wave of positivity, I am sharing some tips shared by those who joined the first teleseminar of that week “Sharing Positive Tips and Stories About Yourself”.

Alexia recently joined International Coach Academy as a trainer. ICA is a lead provider of coach training in the world, accredited by the International Coach Federation. For more info, visit the website www.icoachacademy.com.

Select the tips that resonate with you and enjoy being positive!!!

• Spine twist to release physical tension - Sitting comfortably, relaxing the shoulders, feet on the floor… Place your right hand behind your back at the base of your spine, place your left hand on your right knee. Inhale, lengthen your spine……exhale, twist to the right and repeat….. Repeat on the other side.
• Breathing - Take a break to center yourself. Focussing on your breath, be fully present “here and now” - even for just a few minutes or a few breathes. Extra tip - smile when breathing.
• Gratitude attitude - Every day, be thankful for what is beautiful in your life.

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by Robyn Logan

A Lifestyle Entrepreneur is someone who has managed to work out a way to combine a successful business with a meaningful personal life. You are a lifestyle entrepreneur when your business is a reflection of who you are.

Now, I don’t know about you, but where I grew up, having a business was something people did to make money, whilst the “more worthy” among us went to university to train to be Doctors or Lawyers or Teachers, or some other professional. This kind of thinking was so ingrained in me that I can remember feeling almost embarrassed when, years later as an adult, I told people I had thrown in my job in the Adult Literacy field (now there’s a worthy cause) to start a business.

Now, 20 years and 3 successful businesses later, it is clear to me that, rather than feel slightly guilty, I can be proud of my choices. I can do so much more to contribute to the world now through training coaches in over 70 different countries than I ever could sitting on my local Adult Literacy committee of management. In fact coaching is one of the most effective ways I know of making a contribution and making a difference. And the thousands of coaches enrolled at ICA are each individually, every day making amazing differences in people’s lives.

So if you are anything like me then what you learnt in school was wrong. What your parents or your church may have told you is wrong. What you have been led to believe about the work/life relationship is wrong.

1. You CAN spend your life doing something you feel passionate about.
2. You CAN make a contribution.
3. You CAN earn a decent income.
4. You CAN have more freedom in your life.

It’s almost like a magic formula:

Passion + Contribution + Income + Freedom = Ideal Life

So how do you know if you are a Lifestyle Entrepreneur (or one of its close cousins, a social entrepreneur)?

I have created this quick quiz - 3 or more “yes” responses and you are a Lifestyle Entrepreneur waiting to happen.

*****

1.) You hate your job, but can’t bear the thought of finding another one (Yes/No)
2.) You drag yourself out of bed each morning and stay up too late each night (Yes/No)
3.) You spend your spare time thinking about new business ideas, products and services (Yes/No)
4.) You have bits of paper lying around everywhere with scribbled ideas (Yes/No)
5.) You would do just about anything to be in control of your own destiny (Yes/No)
6.) You can’t believe the paperwork you have to fill out just to get an extra blue pen (Yes/No)
7.) You are sick of not being able to make your own decisions at work
8. You want to spend more time with your children/family (Yes/No)
9.) You want your income to increase, not decrease – or all 3 (Yes/No)
10. You want to make a contribution, make a difference with your life (Yes/No)

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So how did you go? More than 3 “yes” responses? Great! Now you just need a career choice that will give you all of the above and more. I know I’m biased and this seems a totally predictable thing to say - but coaching really is one of the all time greats for Lifestyle Entrepreneurship. You can choose your hours, choose your clients, set your fees and still make a huge contribution.

To find out more about becoming a coach (and therefore a lifestyle entrepreneur) join this FREE Information Call

http://www.icoachacademy.com/fc/freecall.html