When you are starting with your coaching career, you may feel little insecurities and self-doubt. This is normal, and this is where coaching programs can come in and help you. But how do you find the best coaching program for you?

In this episode, Heather gives her insights on how you can find the coach training program that will help you in your coaching journey. Heather will get into the coach training program styles and how each style works. She will share the advantages and disadvantages of each program style and what she recommends you look for. She will share questions that you can ask as you decide which coaching program you want to enroll in. Heather will also share about how her own coaching program, The Atmana Intuitive Coach Program, works and so much more.

Are you ready for an episode full of great ideas and resources that will help you find the best coach training program? Then get your volumes up and make sure you listen till the end of this podcast!

Soul Stirring Quotes

“Linear coaching style follows specific steps or processes that you will use with your clients.”

“Linear coaching style gives you the sense of security and boost of confidence you need.”

“People are diverse, their problems are infinitely complicated. Throwing everybody through a cookie cutter coaching style will probably not work.”

“Coaching is a dynamic, applied field where you are constantly being thrown curve balls.”

“The constellation coaching style is powerful because you master the science of the skill and you are allowed to or can experiment with employing in a way that works for you and your client.”

“When you partner with your clients, you are quite literally helping them create themselves anew and you learn from every single client you work with.”

“You have this robust skillset and you’re allowed to be creative.”

“Constellation coaching programs give you flexibility. If one strategy you are using with a client doesn’t work, you have the expertise to pivot to something that will.”

“Constellation coaching programs will give you a comprehensive skill base that allows you to work with anyone with almost any problem.”

“You rely on your skills which are what actually invoke true transformation in your client.”

“You are able to masterfully guide a session so that your client gains the insight that they need to go into alignment with better results.”

“You are not here to be a cookie cutter version of anybody else.”

“I always gave myself permission to create from my heart.”

“I want you to know that you do have a work that you’re born to bring forward.”

“What you will find in coach training is everybody brings their own flavor to it. Everybody brings their own unique experience.”

“Coach training is understanding the deep theory and the practical application behind the unique skills that map on to the human psyche that invoke change.”

Welcome to the everyday intuitive podcast. I’m your host, Heather Alice Shea intuitive life coach trainer status quo, shaker and founder of Atmana Coaching Academy. Listen in each week to break up with your comfort zone claim your self confidence and radically embrace your role as an intuitive healer mentor and sought after coach let’s get within and get after it.

Today we are gonna be talking about how do you know if the life coach training program that you are considering pouring your hard earned money into is the right coach training program for you with proper educational standards that are actually gonna help you become a really great coach. In a way that allows you to express your unique style.

So this is a very important episode because as we are talking to new coaches all over the world, there seems to be a lot of gray area or just. Low resolution understanding of what a really good coach training program should look like. Now. I don’t blame most of the aspiring life coaches out there for not having any idea.

You know, everybody says, well, you need to get on, you need to interview the people you need to ask the right questions. Before you hire a coach, you need to understand the program. You need to understand what you’re going to learn in a coach training program. And all of that is true. But the issue is that you don’t know what to ask.

You don’t know what to look for. Of course you don’t because you’re not in the training world of coaching. Right. So how would you even know? And so my goal with this podcast is to help you understand the things that you need to be looking at in order to make a good decision for you. Okay. So we’re gonna go over two styles or models of coach training.

And I’m gonna go over the pros and cons of each. It’s very important to understand this because depending on which model you go into, you are definitely not going to be able to do certain things as a coach. And you definitely will be able to do certain things as a coach, depending on. which one of these models you pick, I’m gonna tell you the one I recommend and why I recommend it and the benefits to that.

And then we are going to go into some questions that you can ask and sort of the recommendations I would make to you. When you are looking at coach training programs, the types of questions you should be asking of your educational institution, about the teachers that you would be working with, and also using just good old fashioned tried and true.

Tactics really that you need to be employing before you say yes to anybody. Okay. So I am so old school at heart. At the end of this, I’m gonna give you a couple of ideas on things. I would recommend that you do. I do this all the time in AHANA. I am so happy when people ask me for it. And they want me to do it.

I am more than happy to supply that information and anybody who is unwilling to do it, that’s a red flag. Okay. So let’s jump into it. There are two methods that you will find in the industry today that provide coach training. So what do I mean by method? I mean how the coach training program is set up in terms of what it is you are going to learn the skill sets.

You are going to learn the individual coaching skills, how they are set up, how they are arranged. And so the first type of model is called a constellation model. And then the second training model is a linear model. Okay. Now you’re not gonna Google this and find this anywhere. This is language and concepts I have developed in the 20 years that I have spent in the coaching industry, the coach and training.

So let’s go through these really quick and then let’s go over the benefits of each and some of the drawbacks. And then I’m gonna make my recommendation on which one I think you should be using. So the first is a linear style model of coaching. What do I mean by linear? What I mean by linear is. You find a coach out there and they say, Hey, here’s my coaching method.

Here’s how I coach. And I’m going to teach you the specific steps and the specific skills that map onto these steps that you are going to use to coach your clients as well. It’s linear it’s. Step one, step two, step three. Step four or it’s part one, part, two part three part four. Right? And you move through, you employ those skills, those steps that you learn, the concepts and everything that you learn, and those steps in that manner, you learn it, how that person teaches it, you employ it and you use it.

How that person teaches it. Right? So it’s linear. There’s no creativity to it. It’s a process that you are taking your clients through. So you do it exactly like how you’re being taught. It’s a modality, it’s a method. You do it exactly how it is taught out the advantage to this and a lot of new coaches when they come into Atmana they ask, do you give us a coaching method?

Do you teach us exactly what to. And I’m gonna get to that in a minute on how our answer to that not ma is yes and it’s no, and yes, it’s really the best of both worlds. But the advantage to the linear model is that you feel as a new coach, you feel like, Ooh, I know what I’m doing. It gives you this sense of security, right?

It kind of gives you that boost of confidence you need. Like, since you can see it in this linear, One step two, step three, step four step framework. It makes you feel like, you know what you’re doing the disadvantage to the linear model is that there’s no creativity. It’s not gonna work with every client because, oh my God, what does people are?

So, so diverse. Their problems are infinitely complicated. Like throwing everybody through this cookie cutter coaching style is probably not gonna work. If that’s the only tool you have in your toolbox. You’re probably not gonna be able to get very far. So the advantages, I think for new coaches, if linear style models are really attractive, because it makes you feel like you’re gonna know, quote unquote, know what you’re doing when you get out.

But what I have found is that in six months you’re board, it doesn’t work. And because coaching is a dynamic applied field where you’re constantly being thrown, thrown curve balls, what you will find is in six months, you’re looking for a new certification. How do I know. About eh, 40% of the clients that we enroll in our certification program come to us because of this.

They have life coach certifications. A lot of them even have master’s degrees in this kind of. And they realize that they lack the creativity, right. They lack the core skillset that will allow them then to get creative with it. Okay. So the first is a linear model. There are advantages to it, but I think that the drawbacks to the linear model outweigh any benefit that you get, especially as you continue on in your career.

The second type of model you will find is the constellation model. And so I want you to think about the constellation model, just like you would a constellation in the sky, right. With little stars, kind of little dots and pinpoints up in the stars. Just up there, twinkling. Think of the stars, like each of the skills that you learn as a coach.

And again, we’ve said this a thousand times on the podcast, coaching is a specific skillset. It is a conglomeration. It is the amalgamation of specific skills, right? Body language, attentive, silence, active listening, reflecting feelings, open question, close questions, minimal encouragers providing feedback setting.

Dealing with resistance, invoking client autonomy, partnering with a client in a way that helps them move towards their goal. And at man, we teach unconditional positive regard, congruent and empathy. These are all skills and I haven’t even gotten on the intuitive skills yet. These are just our basic skills, right.

That we teach that you learn to master, or you learn the mechanic of the skill. And then from there, think of that mechanic, that’s kind of the science of the skill or the little star that’s shining in the constellation. But then from there you are allowed to connect the dots between those stars to form.

All a different picture, right? So the constellation model is really powerful because you master the science of the skill, right. You sort of get really strong in the individual skill. But from there you are allowed to, or can experiment with employing that skill in a way that works for you and your client.

So it allows you to be far more flexible and it gives you a broader range of being able to work with clients because you can shoot and move. You can adapt. You’re a master at the skills. It’s kind of like the piano, you know, where all the keys are on the piano, but. The order in which you play, the keys makes a different song or not.

Right. So, and as you master your skills, you play a harmony. Right. And it makes music and it’s the same with our coaching skills. Right. So we master those notes and then as the artists that we are as healers, right. It’s. In an infinitely deep and unique creative process that we, when we partner with our clients, we are quite literally helping them create themselves anew.

And of course we learn from every single client we work with. So the constellation model really provides that. So the constellation model advantage, I’m gonna go over those in a minute. I do wanna talk about some of the drawbacks to the constellation model. Well, the constellation model, you know, it, doesn’t give you a rope formula.

You know, you don’t get to walk into your sessions, knowing exactly what’s gonna happen. You know, you can trust your skills, you know, that they work and you know that they’re awesome. And you know, that it’s going to work, but it does require courage. I think, you know, I still, to this day, when I work with one on one clients, Sometimes I just sit back and I, you know, it’s rare that I do one on one work now, but even sometimes when I do, I’m like, how am I gonna help this person?

What am I gonna say? What am I gonna do? I don’t really know what’s gonna happen when I get in session. I just know my skills are going to be a powerful force in the room to help this individual unlock the knowledge that they already have inside their heart. so the constellation method, I think the advantage and why I recommend finding a constellation style model of training program is because it grants you more of four incredible things that I think really make you a master coach.

Like if you don’t have these things, I don’t really think you could be considered a mastered coach, the linear model. In other words, it’s just not going to give you these things by definition. It’s not gonna give you these things. So the first is creativity. When you have this constellation style skill set, you are able to experiment to develop your personal style, all within ethics and best practices.

You’re not going rogue. You’re not trying things. You don’t know what’s gonna happen, or if it doesn’t work, no, you have this robust skill set and you’re allowed to be creative because each of these little skills give you that. Flexibility, which is my second point. So constellation style coaching programs give you flexibility.

If one strategy you’re using with a client doesn’t work, you have the expertise, the knowledge, and the know how to pivot to something that will and believe you need. That is super valuable when you are working with people. The third is range. So you’re gonna have a comprehensive skill base that allows you to work with anyone with almost any problem.

So episode 76, I’ve recorded what life coaching isn’t. And I talked about how coaching. Is not, I have a problem that I worked out. I’m gonna teach you how to overcome it too. Or I had this specific problem. And now I’m gonna show you how to overcome it. Using what I did. That is not what coaching is.

Coaching is this specific skillset that you use that allows you to work with almost anybody on almost any problem. So you have this really, really broad range. Of people that you can work with. Of course, you’re gonna bring yourself, you’re gonna bring the things you’ve experienced. You’re gonna bring the things you’ve learned into the session with your clients.

Of course you are authentic, right? And you bring yourself into the room. Of course you bring all of your experience, your knowledge, your wisdom, your heart, your soul, your mind, all of that to bear. In session, but you’re not relying on that to invoke the transformation. You are relying on your skills, which we know through the research are what actually invoke true transformation in your client.

The fourth advantage to the constellation style model is control. You are able to masterfully guide a session so that your client gains the insight that they need to go into alignment faster with better results. So control you are able to pivot, shoot and move. If you’re working with a client, let’s say that you notice that they’re shutting down, right?

Maybe they just, you know, disclose to use some type. You know, really next level experience, you know, it’s your sixth session with them and they just dropped a bomb about something that has happened in their past. Right. They just disclosed this thing and you’re like, whoa. And you notice your client is shutting down.

Right. You feel a shift in the room, you would know exactly how to handle that. You would go, oh, Attentive silence, reflecting feelings. You wouldn’t just sit there and go, oh my goodness. I just noticed this vibe shift and I’m gonna wing it. You would go, oh, I know exactly what to do, right. Or if you notice a client is making excuses, if they’re othering people, if they’re going into judgment, if they’re blaming doing the shame and blame game, you know, you would say, okay, It’s time to provide feedback.

It’s time to resolve discrepancies. It’s time for some accountability, you know, it’s time to kind of have that hard conversation. You would know what skill to go to. So you are in control of how you move that session. And yes, that is possible. It is possible when you have that skill set. You are able to understand exactly how you’re guiding the session.

Right. And you do all of this within again, ethics and best practices of really understanding the art and the science of coaching. Okay. So one of the things that we get asked here at Mont all the time is okay, well, if I get a constellation style, how do I get started? If I don’t have a framework? It’s really hard to just walk into session and go, okay, tell me your problem.

You know, you feel like you’ve got wet wings and weak legs and boy, do I get it? Because that is how I started my practice, dude, dude, I started on a wing and a prayer. I was just like, I am gonna figure this out. So in Atmana what we do, and this is kind of something for you to be thinking about is we actually provide you with both.

So we train a constellation style model here in Atmana but on the back end, when we get into the business development portion of the program, we actually teach you how to create your own method, your own model, right? So your own unique way of putting these skills. What do you want your coaching program to look like?

How would you like to specifically coach? What does that process look like for you? So in we’re trying to give you the best, right? I want you to have the constellation style because that’s, what’s gonna make you a stronger coach. Your confidence is gonna soar because you’re gonna get in session and you’re gonna notice that there’s like nothing you can’t handle.

You might not feel that way before you jump into. But at the end of that session, you’re gonna be like, dude, I am a stone cold badass at this. Right. You’re gonna be amazing. Especially as you use your intuition, right. Especially bringing that to bear on, you know, the obstacles in your client’s path. So you really develop confidence, deep, deep, deep, rooted confidence.

That’s not shallow. It’s not, I did it. So can you or I had this problem now? I don’t anymore. Let me show you the way. It’s not all about you, right? It’s about this beautiful mastery. Art and the science, that is the transformation of the human psyche. Oh, I get so passionate about it. I love it so much. This is my favorite thing in the whole.

So you get the constellation style model and then on the back end, you do a linear model that works for you. You’re not cookie cutter coaching. You’re not here to, you know, using somebody else’s method. You’re here to be truly creative. You’re here to allow how your soul is meant to express in the room to come forward.

You’re creating a new unique work that I know your clients need, that, you know, your clients need, you are not here to. Cookie cutter version of me or anybody else. So I want you to have the best of both worlds. So you get that constellation skill set, but you can bring forward that linear model that helps you feel really confident as you step into session and also is really fun for your clients, right?

They get to see. Your coaching program and what you’ve put together. And they get to be like, oh, this is the coolest, you know, I’ve loved this. So in my business, I always gave myself permission to create from my heart. I put together concepts and teaching points and themes and ideas. That I knew my clients were going to love.

And I want you to feel empowered to do the same thing. I want you to know that you do have a work that you’re born to bring forward. And I want you to feel underneath that work, that you’re bringing forward. The timeless principles that this constellation style model teaches. Okay. So I’m going to leave in the show notes, a link to a page on my website, where you can watch a video where I talk a little bit more about this.

And on that page, you can download a skills map that we train here in up. It’s got all of them outlined. So you can kind of see, it’s kind of like a, a mind map, so you can actually see what I’m talking about when I say a constellation style. Okay. So I hope that this helps you understand a little bit more about the different types of models that you’re gonna see out there as you contemplate getting a life coach certification.

I recommend the constellation style. Now, we’re gonna wrap this up with a couple of questions. I want you to ask any person that you are gonna hire to train you to become a qualified professional, intuitive life coach. Or you could even just say hire any coach, but definitely if you are looking at someone who’s gonna train you.

Okay. First one is you wanna ask how long they’ve been doing coaching themselves and how long they’ve been doing coach training. So you should know that you need to ask again how many years of experience. Does the owner of the company have coaching. And how long have they been training coaches? You see, those are two different things.

Okay. So for me, I have a 20 year career in coaching and I’ve been training coaches since 2016. So, you know, easy peasy, easy for me to answer that question, right? That’s not hard for me to know. You wanna know that? What I would say is if a person has less than two years of experience in coach training, I would find another program not to say that they aren’t awesome.

And you need to go with who you resonate with, but it is important that you ask these questions at the end of the day, go with your intuition, but you should at least know the answer to these question. The second question that you want to ask is can I have a reference list of two or three clients that you have, uh, certified?

So if they cannot give you a list of people for you to physically call and or email or get in the DMS or have a real conversation with a real human that’s a red flag. Okay. Our clients, every time we open up our program, they of their own free will and accord get in our Facebook group. They go live. They ask people, please reach out to me.

I am here. They literally take phone calls for us because they love our program. They know what we stand for. And I have a list, a mile long of coaches. That are in our program or who have graduated from our program that will attest to the quality and the character of myself, my team, and all the people that they’re in class with.

So that is a massive, massive thing you need to be asking for. That’s old school business. Where are the references? Where are the humans? Just because we’re online does not mean that you cannot reach out to a real human and touch them. Okay. Touch them. Talk to them, jump on a zoom call. Please ask for that.

I love it. When my clients ask, I think people have heard me say that so much that now people do it to me and I’m like, yes. Here you go. Here’s the list. So you definitely want to be asking that. Okay. So again, how long has a person been coaching? How long have they been life coach training. And then you wanna ask for references, and then you also wanna look at that person’s educational background.

The reason why I say this is because what you will find in coach training is everybody brings their own flavor to it. Right. Um, everybody kind of brings to bear their own unique experience. So for example, in my coach training program, because I have a mental health background, I infuse a lot of that into my program.

Right. It. Colors or flavors, my program and people that like, that love my program. Right. So I think it’s really important to understand that you are seeking a professional certification and I’m not suggesting that you should like worship the degree. I don’t believe in worshiping false authority. I think you’ve gotta go with who you resonate the most with.

However, there is something to be said, For you demanding that your trainer also be a certified coach and, or have some type of professional background in this. So, you know, hiring a person who has been coaching for a couple of years and has a, you know, degree in accounting. I’m not really sure that person is qualified to train you right.

Again, why would they not be qualified to train you? Because coach training isn’t, I’ve done something I’m gonna teach you how to do it. That’s not what it is. That’s not what coaching is much less coach training, which is a degree above. Right? So. It is. I understand the deep theory and the practical application behind the unique skills that map onto the human psyche, that invoke change.

And I have done this for years and I know how to teach it such that you can master the skill as well. Right. That is what you’re looking for in a trainer. You also would want to, if they have a team. I would actually want to look into the background of the people that are training you as well. So, you know, here in , we have a very diverse team from all types of backgrounds, you know, some have master’s degrees, some don’t Sharon has a 20 year professional it career.

She teaches our business development stuff. She’s also a coach, you know, she’s highly skilled and qualified at what she does. So is every member of my team. Right. Even though they’re all very, very. So this is information that I am super happy to provide people. And so I want you to know that if you ask for that from the institution that you are considering training with, that should be standard.

People should be like, yeah, here , here’s a PDF. Here’s a page on our website where you can go and look at that. So just know that that’s pretty standard for you to be doing. And if you can’t get a hold of that information, or if there’s somebody there at the organization that you can talk to that, if there isn’t anybody there to talk to about it, then to me, that’s a red flag, right?

It’s showing that there’s a gap or something missing in their approach to. Training you to become a professional coach, which is a fun, incredible, and exciting career to be embarking into. And I think that you deserve the best training out there possible. So check the links in the show notes for the video, and you will be able to download a skills map.

That’ll give you a little bit better idea of what the constellation model I am talking about in this episode really looks like, and I’ll catch you next time together. We rise. That is a wrap for today’s show. Thank you from the bottom of my feels for showing up today in your power and in your willingness to let your intuitive self lead.

And if you are still working your way to your first 50 to 100 K in your coaching practice, I have two incredible free resources to help you fast pass. This process, the first is to join our free and fun Facebook group. The Atmana intuitive coach collective, where myself and our atmana instructors do free trainings every week to help you turn your obstacles into opportunities with each and every step you take so that you can begin to achieve success on your own terms, and finally make the money that you know, you deserve.

So, if you’re interested in joining our group, just pop onto Facebook and you can search bar atmana intuitive coach collective, and we will pop up or you can check our show notes for a link. And the second resource is a V I P ticket to our next upcoming five day workshop experience. Live your purpose, launch your practice, where you are going to.

Four keys to claiming your intuitive confidence calling in clients with authenticity and integrity. And then you’re gonna create your very first or one of many signature programs that help you sell your services with ease and grace. That also helps you go high ticket. So head on over to Heatheraliceshea.com/intuitive coach launch to get your V I P ticket, or you can check the show notes where you can get your hot little hands on a link to both the Facebook group and the five day workshop until next time I see you.

I love you together. We rise.