| President's Message
Who are YOU as a Coach?
Who are you as a coach? The first time I asked myself this question was in June 2001. I had completed coach training just eight months before and was struggling with whether or not to attend the ICF 6th Annual conference to be held in Chicago, IL. I didn't have the money or time. Yet my non-rational decision to attend anyway turned out to be pivotal in my future success as a coach.
While I could not convince myself with logic that it made sense to attend the conference (I found two nay reasons for every yah reason), I asked myself the question I now propose to you, "Who are you as a coach -- are you someone trained in coaching who coaches here and there or are you a professional coach?"
With my decision to attend that first conference, I claimed my identity as a coach. I decided that I needed to BE where coaches are, READ what coaches read, and LEARN what coaches learn. I needed to be at the conference because that's where successful coaches would be and it's what successful coaches do. Even though I didn't yet feel successful as a coach (and I wasn't), I know that I needed to start acting the part (fake it till you make it, as they say).
After claiming and acting on my new coach identity, doors began to open. ICF put out a late RFP for breakout sessions and before I knew it I was not only an attendee at the 6th annual conference but I was also a breakout speaker with 60+ people listening to my message about managing stress through self-mastery. Afterwards a participant came up to me and asked me to be her coach. She was one of my first clients and my first coach-client (yes, a little intimidating -- she would know my limitations). We worked together for 9 months and I still get Thanksgiving and holiday cards from her every year with a "Thanks." The income from that one client covered my entire cost to attend the conference, plus some.
Other unexpected opportunities happened as well. For example, during dinner with some coaching colleagues an Executive Director at the table next to us expressed interest in coaching, handed me his business card and asked me to follow up. Three colleagues and I formed a "Coaching Prosperity" group that met regularly for several years. Together we literally helped each other's practice grow (from cross referrals to sharing ideas & resources and visioning exercises on our future success). These are only a few benefits that came from the conference - not to mention the incredible education I received.
I will be in Las Vegas Sept 24-27 for what may be ICF's last international conference (regional conferences will take their place, in part due to the large size of ICF's membership). And I am equally excited about our regional conference to be held at Penn State's Great Valley campus on 11-11-11.
Whether you choose to attend these upcoming conferences is, of course, a personal decision. However you come to that decision and any other decision related to coaching, I hope that you stand in the place of "I am a coach!," because, YOU ARE A COACH and the world needs you.
With gratitude and respect,
Jeff Kaplan, 2011 ICF Philadelphia President
president@philadelphiacoaches.org
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Consider all the benefits!
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Benefits of attending the International conference in Las Vegas (Sept 24-27)
- Opportunity to earn approximately 16.5 CCEUs.
- Dynamic, upbeat opening general session.
- Opening reception with Michael Gelb (CCEUs offered).
- A "gathering place" for meeting with peers.
- Balancing space-a personal care space/place to take a break from a busy day.
- A balance of interactive and traditional (didactic) breakout sessions.
- Global Conversations with a new "reporting out" process.
- More information click here
Benefits of attending the Regional ICF Philadelphia Conference at Penn State Great Valley (Nov 11)
- Opportunity to earn approximately 6 CCEUs.
- Local, national and international speakers - 18 sessions in all - and what a roster! Check it out on our website.
- Keynote by Dr. Annie McKee, the "high priestess of executive coaching" says Business Week
- Business building, coaching tools & techniques, and leading edge science on coaching
- Lunchtime panel discussion on mental, spiritual, emotional, physical and technical aspects of coaching
- Excellent opportunity to network with leaders in coaching and fellow colleagues
- Observe Veterans Day with like minded people (and remember to bring your Toys for tots)
- The economical choice - no travel expenses!
- More Information click here
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| September Monthly Meeting | |
 Date & Time:
Thursday, September 15, 2011 -
6:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Topic:
Create a Thriving and Profitable Coaching Practice
Speaker: Michelle Schnubel
Location: Double Tree Guest Suites, 640 W. Germantown Pike, Plymouth Meeting, PA (610) 834-8300
AGENDA 6:00-6:30 pm New Member Pre-Meeting 6:00-6:30 pm Registration 6:45-7:00 pm President's Remarks 7:00-8:30 pm Dinner Presentation: Michelle Schnubel 8:30-9:00 pm Informal Networking CEU Credits: 1 Business Development CCEU Credit How to Create a Thriving and Profitable Coaching Practice At our September 15th dinner meeting, Michelle Schubnel, Head Coach and President at Coach & Grow R.I.C.H., will speak on how to "Create a Thriving and Profitable Coaching Practice". Michelle Schubnel is a veteran coach, dynamic speaker and sales and marketing expert. A leader in the coaching field, Michelle regularly speaks at industry events and conferences in the US and abroad. For more than a decade Michelle and the Coach & Grow R.I.C.H. team have helped thousands of coaches worldwide create thriving, rewarding and profitable coaching businesses. Would you like to coach groups, but feel like you're not ready, aren't sure how to fill them or are worried that you don't have the right skills? Then don't miss this content-rich presentation where Michelle Schubnel will show you step-by-step how to design, market, fill and deliver a highly effective group coaching program, even if you are just starting out. You will learn: - The secrets for designing an irresistible group that will have your ideal participants clamoring to sign up.
- The 2 huge mistakes many coaches make when launching their first coaching group. (Most of which are completely avoidable and easy to fix.)
- How much content you need to include and the 3 best ways to get some if you don't have any of your own. (These may surprise you!)
- The golden rules you must follow in order to fill your group.
Here's what Past President and ICF Philadelphia Member Gerrie Dresser says about Michelle: "In the past year, I launched a speaking tour, based on Michelle's system, and kicked off the New Year with her "Best Year Ever" teleclass model. My client enrollments have increased and I've opened up new markets! Michelle continually uplevels the model to reflect current marketing trends while maintaining the credible, proven foundation elements that work. I'll be there in September to hear her program and hope to see you there too!" Gerrie Dresser, PCC ICF Philadelphia, Past President, 2006 |
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October Pre-view
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For our dinner meeting on October 11th, Ben Dooley from the Chicago ICF chapter will be with us to lead us through an interactive and fun workshop.
He'll show us three incredibly easy and amazingly powerful techniques that will get us instantly out of our own head and into our client's. Mark your calendars for another exciting evening with ICF Philadelphia.
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Have you signed up yet?
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By Marjorie Johnson, ICF President-Elect and Co-Chair, Conference Planning Committee
 Only two more months until our annual conference "Coaching Excellence: Foundations and Frontiers." If you have not registered, don't wait! Sign up today to assure you get into the workshops of your choice. The choices are outstanding.
This conference promises to be the biggest coaching event in the greater Philadelphia in the past several years. In addition to being a great educational opportunity, this is your chance to network with your peers, to learn more about ICF Philadelphia, to become more involved in our community, and to meet the thought leaders of our coaching community. Come to hear Dr. Annie McKee and share ideas with other coaches in the area.
To get even more value out of attending the conference, please also consider volunteering to help with conference prep or the day of the conference. We need people to stuff "goodie bags" prior to the conference, to help with registration and hospitality at the conference, or to be a room monitor to support our speakers. Volunteering is a great way to get to know your fellow coaches while supporting your professional community. To volunteer, please email HelenMorris@epiph-partners.com. We would love to hear from you!
As president-elect, it has been my primary task to help organize this conference, and I've loved it. I've experienced first-hand the warmth and collegiality of our local chapter. Please feel free to reach out to me as well if you want to become more involved. I promise it will be well worth the effort.
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Book Review - The Innovator's Way: Essential Practices for Successful Innovation
by Peter J. Denning and Robert Dunham
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By Cindy Howes, ICF Philadelphia Conference Co-Chair
 Robert Dunham currently leads the Coaching Excellence in Organizations program offered by the Institute for Generative Leadership and Newfield Network. He will be sharing his expertise on leadership at our Coaching Excellence: Foundations and Frontiers conference in November. His new book, co-authored with Peter J. Denning, focuses on the eight practices which are necessary for successful innovation.
Based on research with successful leaders of innovation within organizations and companies, Dunham lays out each practice, its critical components and its common breakdowns; and provides guidelines for developing each practice. He shows that invention is just the beginning of innovation. Many other additional skills are necessary to make an invention a successful innovation that sustains itself.
The eight practice areas are: Sensing, Envisioning,  Offering, Adopting, Sustaining, Executing, Leading, and Embodying. To flesh out these practices, Dunham shares the stories of seven generative innovators highlighting their use of the eight practices to gain success. As Dunham points out the description of a practice is not the same as the practice itself, so his book is full of thought exercises and examples that make the practices vivid pictures and manageable skills.
The final section of the book is Journey to Mastery which takes the eight practices and shows:
- How one can develop further to solve more complicated problems, called wicked problems
- How one can move innovation into social media
- How to create a culture of innovation in your organization
Dunham's book pulls on his depth of knowledge and skill of the world of leadership and organizations to enhance your understanding. Not a simple process but ultimately one that can be grasped by the serious student. The Innovator's Way can bring you more clarity about what successful innovators do so you can emulate them via your own practice and reflection. I invite you to dive into this pool of wisdom by reading the book and/or attending Dunham's two-hour interactive workshop at our conference in November.
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ICF Announces New Membership Requirements
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By Colleen Bracken
 After 18 months of research and deliberation (Many thanks to ICF Philadelphia members who contributed!) ICF Global announced last month that new Membership Eligibility Requirements will take effect in April 2012. This is a major step forward for us in professionalism and global credibility, so hooray for us!
There have been multiple communications on this topic. Most recently the July edition of Coaching World published a Q&A with Kara Exner, the Chair of the Membership & Community Committee. The Membership & Community Committee was charged with exploring the costs and benefits of membership eligibility requirements, and designing recommendations for policy and implementation. I served as the Chair of this committee in 2010 when this initiative was started and would be answer any questions you may have. I can be reached at colleen@brackenleadershipconcepts.com
Below is a brief summary of the major points of the article. For the full article, go to
Why is the ICF establishing Membership Eligibility Requirements after 15 years without any?
If the ICF is to continue as the leading professional coaching association in the world, membership in our organization must require more than paying a fee and checking an ethics box. We say we are an organization of professional coaches, and therefore we need to be exactly that. A higher bar to become and remain a member will help ensure that.
What will it take for someone to become a member of the ICF in 2013 as compared to today?
Currently, membership in the ICF requires paying the annual dues and agreeing to abide by the ICF Code of Ethics. In 2013, membership will require completion of at least 60 hours of coach-specific training, as well as the dues and the ethics pledge.
How will ICF members benefit from this policy change?
We all benefit from increased credibility and the confidence of knowing that we are indeed an organization of professional coaches. By setting a higher standard for coaching in a number of ways (membership, credentialing, school accreditation, research, conferences, etc) the ICF is ensuring that our clients, potential customers, news media and others will continue to view us at the "go-to-place" for coaching. To borrow a line from John F. Kennedy, "A rising tide lifts all our boats."
When will these changes take effect?
April 1, 2012 to April 1, 2013 will be a transition year, allowing current members to retain membership status while completing (or compiling records of) their 60 coach-specific training hours. Beginning April 1, 2013, individuals must have completed this requirement in order to become a member or remain a member.
For NEW members to the ICF, beginning April 1, 2012, any individual who can demonstrate enrollment in coach-specific training may join the ICF as a "Student Coach Member". The Student Coach Member category will be limited to one year, after which point the individual must have completed the 60 hour training requirement to graduate to a full Coach member.
There are more details and explanation of this policy on the ICF website. To find out more about this and how it effects our organization and your individual path, check out www.coachfederation.org/mer
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This Conference is for YOU!
| By: Ginger Jarrett
 "Best practices in coaching....connections....new skills....moving my business forward... networking...marketing....custom coaching practices...use-it-now coaching techniques....etc., etc., etc." Sound familiar? The November 11, 2011 ICF Philadelphia Coaching Conference program will bring to life the survey input we received from YOU in the early planning stages of the conference! Even the date, 11/11/11, was chosen after a survey to determine the date most preferred by attendees.
The conference provides you with presentations in three tracks to choose from: - Business Building
- Coaching Tools and
- Advanced Coaching Skills.
Here are some questions to help you select the best sessions that most suit your interests and current needs: - Am I new to coaching and looking for fresh insights to clarify my role, approach, or discipline?
- Am I a 'seasoned coach' who knows "When you stop learning, you stop?
- " What will take my skills to the next level?
- Is my marketing the same old, same old approach where I feel stuck and am looking for innovative business-building ideas?
- What do I need to be able to learn, be, or do to be even more effective than I ALREADY am?
- What patterns and needs do my clients bring to me, causing a real 'stretch' on my part?
- If coaching is one aspect of my work as a consultant, learning and development professional, or HR professional, what tools will round out my toolbox?
- Which session topics pique my curiosity?
- Which sessions will challenge my belief system, help me see another perspective, or answer questions clients have had for me?
As coaches, we give our clients homework. Reviewing these questions will help you do your own pre-work for an intentional day. If you'd like some help in selecting sessions that best meet your needs, feel free to send me an email at corporateaffairs@philadelphiacoaches.org I look forward to seeing you on 11/11/11! Ginger Jarrett VP, Corporate Affairs Chair, Programming and Speakers |
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Welcome New Members
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We're growing! ICF Philadelphia would like to extend a warm welcome to these new members:
James Lane
Destiny, Inc.
Brenda March
AAcoaching.com
Randi Raskin Nash
Robin Rodin
The Rodin Group
Stephanie Vincent
Radical Hateloss
David Wilson
Destiny, Inc.
Abe Zubarev
Center City Coaching & Consulting
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ICF Global wants to hear from PA Coaches!
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Dear ICF Philadelphia Coaches:
As vice president of the ICF Global Board of Directors, I am requesting your assistance with a very important research project. You may have seen in Coaching World that ICF is conducting the 2011 Global Coaching Study. This study will give us important insights into the current state of coaching across the world.
Currently, the Eastern part of the United State is underrepresented in responses. While we would love to see a boost across the entire country, we mostly need help from you in the Eastern part of the USA now. At this time, just 37% of our total responses received have come
from the USA. By comparison to our membership critical mass here, we can do better.
If Pennsylvania has 100 completed surveys ICF Philadelphia will receive customized state-specific data tables when the study is complete.
You can respond to the study regardless of their ICF member status. ICF does not directly receive any individual responses as the study is being conducted by Pricewaterhouse Coopers. You confidentiality is guaranteed and no individual information will be used in any way.
The link to the study is:
www.coachingstudy2011.com
Thanks so much for taking the time to add your voice to new knowledge about the current state of the coaching profession.
Sincerely,
Cheryl M. Vermey, Ed.D, CPCC, ACC, CTC
Vice President, ICF Global Baord of Directors
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PHRPS Leadership Forum
with Dr. Marshall Goldsmith
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Join PHRPS for the 5th Annual Leadership Forum on Friday, October 14, 2011! "A New Approach to Employee Engagement & Leadership - Leading your own life" will be presented by Dr. Marshall Goldsmith.
Marshall Goldsmith is a global authority in helping successful leaders achieves positive, lasting changes in behavior: for themselves, their people and their teams. He recently conducted research on what keeps employees engaged. Rather than focus on what the organization can do, Marshall's research focuses on employee engagement from an individual perspective. In addition to sharing the research findings, he will provide insights from his books and work coaching leaders.
In this highly interactive session, Dr. Goldsmith will address these key themes:
- Provide insight into the current workforce.
- Learn why the key driver in building leadership, engagement and relationships is the person - not the program.
- Understand previous research on increasing leadership effectiveness, lasting success and research on happiness, meaning and satisfaction and the connection of this research to building engagement.
- Learn about recently completed and upcoming research on engagement and relationships.
- Gain skills to implement an incredibly time-efficient process to build engagement and relationships.
You won't want to miss this event where you will be learning and networking with a diverse group of professionals - all business leaders are encouraged to attend!
EARLY BIRD PRICING ENDS SOON - RESERVE YOUR SEAT TODAY!
- Friday, October 14, 2011 from 7:30am to 12:00pm
- Union League of Philadelphia
- Continental breakfast will be severed
- Approved for 3.5 General HRCI Credits
- PHRPS Members: $135 Early Bird/Regular Price - $175
- Non-Members: $175 Early Bird/Regular Price - $245
Groups of 10 or more receive 10% off! (email info@phrps.com for group registration details)
Click here to read more and register!
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Advertise with ICF Philadelphia!
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Advertise your workshops on ICF Philadelphia's home page, monthly newsletter or on ICF Philadelphia's Calendar of Events. And ICF Philadelphia Members receive special discounted rates! Check out your options and rates from ICF Philadelphia's home page. For more information, contact Suzanne Perry, our VP of Communications at communications@philadelphiacoaches.org.
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ICF Philadelphia's Regional Conference
on Coaching
November 11, 2011
Early Bird Registration Deadline: Sept. 6th
Register today!
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Connect with ICF Philadelphia! | |
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Interested in Being Interviewed for Our Member Column? Please contact
Pat Weeks at:
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Display Your Products And Promotional Materials At Monthly Meetings
Did you know?
ICF Philadelphia members are welcome to bring and display their coaching products at all monthly dinner meetings. A long-standing member-only benefit, a table will now be available just for ICF Philadelphia members to display their items.
So bring your coaching tools, books, flyers of upcoming events, etc. and share with our community!
For more information, please contact Clare Sautter at Claresautter@comcast.net or 610-304-5829.
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Good News
Have you been:
- Covered in the news
- Published in a magazine
- Quoted as an expert?
Then we want to know! Send your good news links to communications@ philadelphiacoaches.org so we can share with the whole ICF Philadelphia community. |
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Yahoo! ICF Philadelphia Discussion Group: | |
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