Coaching is a profession that has rapidly matured over the last 30 years.  From its stirring roots in organizational development, psychology, sports coaching and philosophy, it has grown into a strong and vibrant profession whose mission is essentially to raise the well-being of the world.  According to the International Coaching Federation (ICF), the world's largest coach regulatory organization, there are about 33,000 ICF credentialed coaches worldwide.  These coaches have put in long hours of training and experience to enable them to empower thousands of clients to reach their full potential.

Like any profession, there will be people who take advantage of consumer ignorance to make money.  There are those who call themselves coaches who have never attended a coaching class.  There are coach training organizations (not accredited by ICF) who make unfounded promises to gain a coach certification in a few days, for minimal investment, or who create in essence a pyramid scheme to bring in unsuspecting coaching students.  This regrettable kind of malpractice is not unique to coaching; it shows up across most professions. Coaching is a very new profession and is experiencing the growing pains that any new profession has endured.  That is why a prospective coaching student must be diligent in their search and research, ensuring the coach training organization is ethical and has been accredited by the International Coaching Federation (ICF) or another governing body.

There are many factors a prospective coach student should consider to ensure the coach training fits their needs and will result in the training they need to make a comfortable living as a coach.  Some factors to consider:

• Is the Coach Education Program ICF-Accredited resulting in an ICF approved Level 1 or Level 2 certification?
• Does the coach training organization have a set curriculum with a fixed tuition?
• Does it have instructors who are mainly ICF Master Certified Coaches who have gone through rigorous instructor training?
• What is included in the training? It should have robust teachings of the ICF Competencies, Ethical Standards, an emphasis on what coaching is.
• Does the organization offer entrepreneurial training to help the coach set up a thriving coach business?
• Does the training fit in with the prospective student’s current lifestyle and financial situation?

Research indicates and our experience bears that with some business acumen a certified and ICF credentialed coach can make a good living. They will probably not get rich overnight, so be leery of promises.  However more organizations and coaching platforms are hiring credentialed coaches.  As this young profession becomes better known in the marketplace, clients are seeing an astonishing return on investment and realizing how effective coaching can be when it is done by qualified credentialed coaches.

Coaching is a powerful tool for transformation. It is a profession whose time has come. The power of coaching can be accessible by more people once the public recognizes the potential and becomes more educated on what to look for in coach training and in the coaches they hire.