IAC VOICE, Volume 4, Issue 28, July 2008, Circulation: 12,453


Kerch

From the Editor

Values-based decision making generally
has one of the most clear set of measures.
If an option does not match my values my
choice becomes pretty obvious, pretty quickly.

When coaches help clients get clear about
their values there is an opportunity to
look at all manner of decisions from a different
perspective—and a much bigger one.
How are you using values in your work with
clients?

This month President
Angela Spaxman begins
poking at the values of the IAC. New contributor
Warren Siminoff writes about his value of
personal safety. Art Gangel talks about
the growth that came for him after his certification.

Use the VOICE’s new table of contents
at the right to find all the articles in
this issue.

Kerch McConlogue, CPCC, PCC
Editor, IAC VOICE
Email: voice@certifiedcoach.org
Web: www.mapthefuture.com



Angela

From the President

by Angela
Spaxman


president@certifiedcoach.org

The values of the IAC are one of the main
forces that draw us together. They are a
legacy we inherited right from the beginning—from
Thomas Leonard's inspiration to start an
organization like ours. While we have a
written mission, vision and purpose, we
have never written down our values. And
yet I'm sure you, our members, have a sense
of what those values should be. They should
both define our organization and also model
the best of the field of coaching.

Although our values have never been formally
declared, I’m also sure that if the
IAC fails to live up to the values you expect,
you will feel a loss.

What are those values? We need your feedback
to know what values are important to you
and how well you believe the IAC is living
up to your expectations. Please email
me
. Now is a good time to tell us what
you think.

For me, one of the things I value about
the IAC is that we strive to serve from
a place beyond our egos. Without fear, we
want to be generous, open and trusting while
working in integrity. It's exciting and
challenging to work with a group of people
who, as coaches, are more aware than most
of how well they are holding themselves
to those values. We are definitely still
human beings! And I greatly appreciate the
opportunity to work with evolving human
beings.

There are some people I would especially
like to thank for the impact they have on
the evolving IAC values. One is Des
Walsh
, a member of our Board of Governors,
who ably chairs our meetings with great
skill, diplomacy and humility. By keeping
us on track he upholds the values we espouse.
Another is Janice
Hunter
, the author of Coaching Moments,
now on holiday somewhere by the sea, who
by expressing her authentic vision of coaching
inspires and uplifts many coaches. I'd also
like to thank all those people who achieved
their IAC-CC certification this year. Through
your commitment to coaching excellence,
you help us create our vision.

Wishing you all enjoyment of the weather,
whatever it may be where you are!

Cheers,
Angela Spaxman
President, IAC
Email:
president@certifiedcoach.org

Web:
www.lovingworkandleading.com




by Nina East

Keeping the IAC Coaching Masteries™
at your fingertips will help you become
more familiar with each of the masteries.
And it will be easier to recognize when
you are using a specific mastery and how
effective that use is. Members can download
their copy here.
If you're not a member, join us
here.

Last
month I shared key insights about the
first of the IAC Coaching Masteries™.
VOICE readers said the article expanded
and strengthened their understanding of
how to establish and maintain a relationship
of trust—effectively and efficiently.
This month we take a closer look
at the second Mastery.

Mastery #2 – Perceiving,
affirming, and expanding the client’s
potential

You may remember the earlier version of
this Mastery did not include the word “expanding.”
But so much of what we do in coaching is
help the client acknowledge “what
is” in order to see beyond that to
“what can be.” This involves
going outside of previous comfort zones—beyond
simply affirming—to bringing an expansive
quality to the coaching.

Perceiving, affirming and
expanding the client’s potential is not just in relation to what the client
does, but also in terms of the client, him or herself. Who is the client being?
What are they capable of? What are their gifts and talents? And what can all
this mean for them?

Some coaches describe this as a “being”
mastery versus a “doing” mastery—focusing
more on who the client is and who they are
being, believing in the client’s inner
greatness, no matter what the external results
happen to look like at the moment.


Members continue reading here.

To join the IAC, click here.


About the author:

Nina East is the IAC’s Lead Certifier
and the author of PersonalGrowthEnthusiasts.com.
As a coach she works with personal growth professionals, helps coaches master
the art of coaching and coaches students and their families through the complex
and emotional transition from high school into college. Find her on the
web at
www.MyMentorCoach.com
.

 


Please send your questions on the IAC
Coaching Masteries™ and the certification
process to certification@certifiedcoach.org.



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Bonus offers worth over
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who subscribes or renews between July 10
and July 31. Everyone will be entered in
the drawing for the big prize. Winners will
be notified by email.



Reminder to
Members

If
you haven't updated your profile on the
IAC website, please log in and add your
contact information. In order to make the
Find
a Coach directory
useful to visitors,
there has to be some information about our
coaches there.

So,
log
in
. Scroll all the way down the page,
past the fine list of member benefits, to
the form at the bottom. Fill it out! Include
at least a link to your website!



The Signature
File


by Kerch
McConlogue

Thirty
years ago when I got my first business cards
for my first business, I thought it was
the best $20 I ever spent. It made me feel
professional and assured that whoever got
my card had all the pertinent information
about me and what I was selling. I still
think it’s the best marketing money
spent, but now even more important is your
signature at the end of your email. It’s
advertising that is allowed by all but the
strictest of email groups or message boards.
It often remains attached to your emails
even when they are passed further—and that’s marketing!

The signature file, also called a sig
file, comes after your closing on every
email—even the ones you forward
on.
It should not be more than about seven
to ten lines long. It should contain at
least your full name with appropriate
credentials, your business name, your web
site address and your phone number
.
I also include my street address
and my email address
—just
in case the body of my email is detached
from the header (the top part of an email
that includes the to/from info).

Don’t be tempted to leave
out the phone number
. In a column
on the website Poynter.org,
a website for journalists, one of the top
ten beefs was emailed press releases with
no contact phone numbers. You sure don’t
want to mess up a contact with the press.
You also don’t want to delay prospective
client who just prefers real conversation.
And if you want me to call you, don’t
presume I can find your number in the scraps
of paper on MY desk!

Store more than one sig file in your mail
manager (Outlook, AOL, Eudora, or what ever
program you use to view your mail). I have
three:


  • a standard default one that includes
    everything I mentioned above,
  • one that refers to me in my role as
    VOICE editor. It includes links to organization
    website, and

  • a similar one for the official correspondence
    as editor of another publication.

I can choose to use none. But that must
be a conscious decision.

By the way, think carefully about including
a graphic as part of your signature file.
It is especially annoying for people with
whom you correspond regularly. Personally,
I don’t need 72 pictures of my sister
in my email files!

If you think you might be too big or too
busy to be bothered with a sig file, check
out the website of the Fayette
County Public Schools in Lexington, KY
.
They have a great technology site. You’ll
find simple instructions of how they show
kids in grade K-12 to set up sig files using
Outlook. Their list of what should be included
is a bit shorter than mine, but not much.
And their information is for little kids!


About the Author:
 

Kerch McConlogue, CPCC, PCC is a coach
in Baltimore, MD, US. She works with people
who have too many ideas. Find her on the
web at www.mapthefuture.com or contact her
by phone at (410) 233-3274.




The Cell Phone – A Blessing and a Curse


by Warren
Simonoff


The basic cell phone has morphed into a
camera, PDA, GPS and MP3 player, with assorted
gadgets that rival a Swiss Army Knife. People
often tool down the road with a Spock-like
wireless earpiece discussing business or
catching up with a friend. They don’t
think they have a problem focusing on driving
and connecting to the person on the call.
However, with the split second timing needed
to respond in an emergency, experts
say we need total focus to maximize reaction
time.

Here's my story
I was returning home from an errand with
my wife. She was driving. Traffic was unusually
bad. A meeting with a client was coming
up. So I called from the car to tell him
I was running a few minutes late. I wanted
to talk about either delaying our start
time or, if that didn’t work, rescheduling
the appointment. He agreed, but after several
minutes of scanning our calendars, he asked,
“Are you driving?”
I said very matter-of-factly, “No,
my wife is.”
The client exploded, “You violated
me!”
I explained very calmly, “We’re
only scheduling; she doesn’t know
which client is on the phone and can’t
even hear your side of the conversation.”

He slammed his phone down. I tried to contact
him later from my home phone and email,
but to no avail.

I have been thinking about other ways that
conversation might have played out and how
I can use the incident as a learning experience.

Lawsuits
Obviously, even in the general population
car accidents do happen. A study by the
US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA) (see sidebar) outlines the dangers
of driving coupled with the distractibility
caused by cell phone usage. In my opinion, this
is not only about the phone itself but about
the conversation. Hands-free devises will
not alleviate my concern nor is it endorsed
by the Commission.

National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (USA) says: “The primary responsibility of the driver is to
operate a motor vehicle safely. The task of driving requires full attention and
focus. Cell phone use can distract drivers from this task, risking harm to
themselves and others. Therefore, the safest course of action is to refrain from
using a cell phone while driving.” More information on the agency’s policy can
be found on this web site:
www.nhtsa.gov
.

Going a step further, when an accident
occurs and there is a lawsuit, one of the
first questions an attorney asks is: "What
were you doing at the time of the incident?"
Also in more recent times, "Were you
speaking on a cell phone during this incident?"
Well, we know which road we're going down
by those questions.

Coach-client or colleagues' discussions
require a high degree of concentration.
If an accident occurred, a coach might be
found at least partially responsible either
because of his or her own cell phone use,
that of the client or both. Regardless of
liability, injury is not the preferred outcome.

Coach-Client Agreement
In my Coach-Client Agreement I have added
the following:

It is agreed by the Client and Coach
that that they will not be in communication
by cell phone while driving. Driver safety
is paramount for the parties to this agreement.
Cell phone use can distract drivers from
the task, risking harm to themselves and
others. Therefore, the safest course of
action is to refrain from using a cell
phone while driving. www.nhtsa.gov

Consider adding something similar to your
own contract. Then while reviewing the contract
with the client, you can reinforce your
concern. When the agreement is signed by
both parties, it is clear and unequivocal.

Here’s
what I do when I’m in the car


Voice mail is a wonderful thing. When a
client—or anyone, really—calls
me while I’m driving, I just don’t
pick up the phone. I can always pull over
and check messages. When I return the call,
I tell them that I'd been driving and that
I’d rather be in different surroundings
so that I can concentrate on the conversation.
And I can touch again on the danger of cell
phone usage while driving.

The bottom line is this: statistically speaking,
talking on a cell phone is an
accident waiting to happen. Just ask the NHTSA.

Research
articles of note


According to the United States’ National
Highway
Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA), in
2006, at any given daylight moment in the
US, 745,000 vehicles were being driven by
someone talking on a hand-held phone.
Continue reading in this article here.

In this article published by Virginia Polytechnic
Institute and State University, better known
as Virginia Tech, (USA) “Drivers were
studied while driving their own cars, under
normal traffic conditions.” They learned,
“Fatigue, distraction, and failure
to pay attention ranked as the top three
crash-causers.”
Continue reading in this article here.

According to Science Daily, “Nearly
80 percent of crashes and 65 percent of
near-crashes involved some form of driver
inattention within three seconds before
the event. Primary causes of driver inattention
are distracting activities, such as cell
phone use, and drowsiness.”
Continue reading in this article here.




 

About the author:


Warren Simonoff, ACG is a professional ADHD coach in Anthem, Arizona. You can
reach him by email to:
WarrenSimonoff@cox.net
or call him at: (623) 826-8557. 

A different version of this
article was published by the ADHD Coaches Organization.

  




Tune Up Your Coaching Business


by Jennifer
Croft

Have you been so busy with the day-to-day
operations of your business that you haven’t
looked at the “big picture”
in a while…or ever? If so, take a
quick peek at how the different areas of
your coaching business are performing.

Marketing
A successful marketing plan for your business
should include:

  • A clear understanding of what you’re
    selling and how your services and products
    can benefit clients.
  • A narrow definition of your target market,
    which, simply put, represents the clients
    who are the most likely to buy from you.
  • Ongoing strategies for how you’ll
    reach prospects in your target market,
    such as through networking, publicity,
    or Internet marketing.
  • A marketing “message” that
    conveys a consistent image and tone.

Think of the four-step marketing process
as:

  • what you’re selling,
  • who will buy it,
  • how you’ll bump into them and
  • what you’ll say when you do cross
    paths.


Money


To make more money in your coaching business,
you need to bring in more revenue or cut
back on expenses.

To increase revenue, you can either raise
prices on your services or products, increase
your volume, or both. If you haven’t
evaluated your pricing structure recently,
now’s the time. If you’re too
busy (booked weeks or months in advance),
it’s probably time for a price increase.

You could raise prices by 20% and if you
lost one-fifth of your business, you’d
still bring in the same amount of income.
But with 20% less work! On the flip side,
if you’re too slow, you might consider
lowering prices or including value-added
services or products to boost your volume.

To tackle the other side of the money equation,
see if you can reduce expenses by trying
this simple exercise.

Go back through your business check register
for the past three months and circle every
entry you could have reduced or eliminated.
Calculate the total of these savings, multiply
it times four and that’s how much
you could potentially save in a year.

Bring in more. Spend less. Every cent you
earn or save will drop straight to your
bottom line.

Recordkeeping
Accurate, timely recordkeeping is one of
the cornerstones of any business. To ensure
that you can build and maintain a healthy
company:

  • Keep track of all of your income and
    expenses, even if your system is as rudimentary
    as a shoebox for receipts.
  • Each month, set aside aside enough money
    to cover your taxes. In the US that might
    be 40% of your income (after expenses).
    And while it might seem like a whopping
    figure, on average, it’s what’s
    required to cover federal and state income
    taxes, as well as Social Security and
    Medicare.
  • Pay all of your bills on time or arrange
    more lenient payment terms with your contractors
    or vendors.
  • Prepare invoices on a timely basis and
    send collections letters to any accounts
    that are more than thirty days past due.
  • File all of your taxes on time.
  • Produce a profit and loss statement
    at least once a quarter and use it to
    track and react to changes in your business.

If you need help with any or all of these
recordkeeping tasks, delegate them to a
virtual assistant or bookkeeper, but be
sure to do them.

Marketing, money and recordkeeping—tune up all three at least twice a year
and your coaching business will run more
smoothly.

 



 
About the author:


Jennifer Croft has 25 years experience in
marketing and is the co-author of Search
Engine Optimization For Coaches: 101 Tips
.
She specializes in writing website content
that can attract search engine referrals.
Visit her website at www.searchenginecoaching.com.

  




How IAC Certification Changed My Life


by Art Gangel

I originally saw certification as an end
goal, not a beginning. After attaining my
IAC certification, instead of becoming empowered
and engaged in my pursuit of being a full
time coach, I stopped moving on the path
to coaching mastery. I stopped all the activity
that had enabled me to achieve certification
in the first place. Not surprisingly, my
coaching suffered, and I did not make the
strides I wanted to make in my business
development.

That’s when I picked up Mastery
by George Leonard and read it again. It
spoke to me in a way it didn’t the
first time. I started moving down the path
again, taking the small steps I had in front
of me. I began to wake up to the reality
that the path to mastery in any pursuit
is not about getting certified, but about
the person you become during the process.

It’s also about the application of
the tools you learn through the process,
not about sticking them in your toolbox
and forgetting them. Tools that aren’t
used rust, and coaching skills that aren’t
applied go away. The journey never ends.



 
About the author:


Art Gangel, IAC-CC is a coach in
Kansas City, KS, USA.  You can find his profile here.  Find him on the web at
www.groundworkcoaching.com

or reach him by email at art@groundworkcoaching.com.
 

 


If you have a story about how IAC certification
changed your life, please send it to voice@certifiedcoach.org.
We want to share the value with members and subscribers who haven’t taken the
plunge yet.


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