The Importance of Mentor Coaching in Your Coaching Journey
Overall, Mentor Coaching is not only an essential part of Professional Coach training, it is an on-going commitment we make to being the best professional coaches we can be over the course of our careers. All coaches will need a Mentor Coach from time to time to maintain coaching acumen and to explore new methodologies and educational experiences. More, if you are a Professional Coach and believe in what you offer, would you not want a coach for yourself?! (intended to be rhetorical)
Specifically with regards to training, however, every applicant for a coaching credential with the ICF is required to have received at least ten hours of Mentor Coaching. What is that?
A Mentor Coach plays a crucial role in shaping the future of your coaching practice. More than just a guide, they care deeply about the quality of coaching you’ll provide to others. Regardless of the unique coaching style you develop over time, the ultimate goal of Mentor Coaching is to help you succeed and thrive in your commitment to being a qualified and committed Professional Coach. This means focusing not only on how you show up, but also on how your presence supports your client’s growth and development.
With Potentials, Mentor Coaching as required for the acquisition of a credential is delivered in various formats, whether through one-on-one sessions, small groups (3-6), or larger cohorts (5-10). The key to this relationship is its adaptability to meet you where you are as a coach. It’s a form of “meta-coaching”—designed to help you reflect, assess, and discern what you need to do to become your best self, using a coach approach. Your Mentor Coach supports you in crafting a style, delivery, and presence that reflects a high level of coaching.
The ultimate goal of Mentor Coaching as a training requirement is to help you produce a recording (or recordings, depending upon the credential for which you are applying) that showcases your skills and proves you can coach at the level required for the credential you’re applying for. This recording becomes a vital piece of evidence, helping you “strut your stuff” as a coach and demonstrate the expertise and capability needed for professional recognition. An assessor, who may or may not be the Mentor Coach with whom you have worked, will evaluate your recording. You will submit that evaluation along with your recording and transcript to the training organization from whom you will ultimately receive your Certificate of Completion of Training. That certificate will then go to the ICF.
Moving out to a wider angle, Mentor Coaching is not just about achieving a credential—it’s about growing into a coach who can make a lasting impact on your clients. It’s a collaborative effort that ensures you’re ready to take the next step in your coaching journey with confidence, whether pursued in a one-to-one Mentor Coaching relationship, or in a larger group cohort, Professional Coaching excellence is the goal.
From the ICF Website:
Explore the ICF Mentor Coaching Competencies, which outline six essential skills for effective mentor coaching. These skills fall into four domains: foundation, process management, client development, and group mentoring coaching. For a more in-depth look, review the entire model.
