Business Coaching and Life Coaching Specialist Qualification
- Do you want to start your own coaching business?
- Not sure where to specialise?
- With this unique qualification, you can specialise in both business AND life coaching!
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There are two core modules of Business Coaching and Life Coaching
- You can focus on modules that interest you by choosing four more modules from a list of electives including - Business Operations, Business Studies, Introduction to Psychology, Marketing Psychology, Careers Counselling and Business Planning.
- You do not need a lot of experience in business or life coaching, as the courses are there to help you gain the skills and knowledge you require.
- Study in your own home and in your own time.
- Learn more about business and life coaching with help from our highly experienced and friendly tutors.
Modules
Note that each module in the Qualification - Certificate in Business and Life Coaching is a short course in its own right, and may be studied separately.
Sample Course Notes - What Does it Take to Become a Mentor?
Mentoring is a role that coaches often, (but not always) find themselves drawn into. It isn't exactly the same as life or business coaching.
Mentoring is a process in which a more skilled or more experienced person serves as a role model and teaches, sponsors, encourages, counsels and befriends a less skilled or less experienced person for the purpose of promoting the latter’s professional and /or personal development. Mentoring functions are carried out within the context of an ongoing, supportive relationship between the mentor and mentee.
Some Important Points on Mentoring
First and foremost, it is a partnership. If the mentee is solely learning from the mentor, then this is a one-way relationship which is akin to tutoring or teaching. It is not considered to be mentoring. Mentoring is a two-way relationship, and therefore it is a partnership. In a partnership, both parties bring something valuable to the relationship and both gain from it. The mentee wishes to learn and grow, whilst the mentor also has something to learn and wishes to share what they have already learned. The goal of mentoring is to learn. When establishing a mentoring relationship, it is important to define the learning goal and focus of the relationship.
- Mentors also let the mentee fail. Mentors are not there to stop the mentee making mistakes. Falling down and then trying to figure out where we went wrong is a valuable lesson. Good mentors know and accept that. Making errors can ultimately be to our advantage since in order to grow we need to learn from our own mistakes.
- Mentors ask rather than tell. If a mentee is not sure of something, the mentor should encourage them to come to their own solutions rather than 'tell' them what to do. Mentors may teach and tell the mentee, but they may do so by asking questions and encouraging the mentee to reason things out for themselves whilst the mentor listens. Both will benefit from this two-way communication and it will help the mentee to internalise the lesson.
- Mentors encourage. Everyone has fears and insecurities - good mentors know this and will watch out for any difficulties the mentee is experiencing and help them to deal with them. They may do this by listening to, and acknowledging, how they feel. A mentor should never patronise the mentee with phrases such as “don’t feel like that” etc, but should praise them where praise is due and thereby encourage them to learn.
- Mentors welcome conflict. Disagreement provides a ground for fertile discussion and growth. Conflict enables the mentor and mentee to consider all viewpoints and options. If the mentee is not able to share their own views and act as they choose, then it is not a true mentoring relationship and is not built on trust. The goal of mentoring is to stimulate thinking, not to get the mentee to agree with everything the mentor says.
- Mentoring is supposed to encourage the mentee to learn, grow, and achieve.
It is interesting to note that some research which was conducted to investigate a group of supervisees of an organisation, found that the most commonly reported problem with the supervision process was an ‘inability to access the supervisor’ as required. This factor must be considered when negotiating availability of a supervisor. For instance, a difficult session between a counsellor and a client will often require an immediate ‘de-briefing’ with a supervisor rather than waiting for the next meeting which was made for a pre-arranged time. Therefore, a degree of flexibility is preferred. Telephone contact in between times may also be appropriate.
Gender and Mentoring
Mixed gender mentoring relationships can be rewarding and successful but there can also be potential problems. Stereotypes can be held by the mentor, mentee, or both, which can make communication about particular topics difficult. Sometimes, others may question the relationship between the mentor and mentee, particularly spouses, partners, and so on. There may be sexual tension between mentor and mentee. Therefore, there can be potential pitfalls but these are usually not insurmountable. It requires awareness and honest discussion by the mentor and mentee to resolve any issues between them. Laying down ground rules at the beginning of the relationship can prevent problems later on.
In a traditional male to male mentoring relationship there is often acceptance of organisational hierarchy. The hierarchical model tends to complement male gender-role socialisation, whereas with women a web-like model is more complementary. Women tend to value peer relationships more. This may be because women place a higher emphasis on emotional support which can be lacking in patriarchal or hierarchical organisations and models of supervision. However, it is important not to confuse mentoring with role-modelling. Role-modelling allows the mentee to identify with and emulate the mentor. Mentoring however is a reciprocal process.
Models of Mentoring
Mentoring has several meanings. It can be unidirectional, reciprocal, and/or hierarchical. The traditional mentoring relationship will include sharing, giving, the incorporation of another person’s attitudes, and role modelling.
Who is this course suitable for?
- Anyone who would like to start their own business or consultancy as a business or life coach.
- Anyone who wants to improve their coaching skills and knowledge
in their existing career or as a way to improve their job prospects.
- You may know a lot about business and life and want to pass on your knowledge to others.
- Or you may want to study more about business and life coaching as a way to learn new skills.
Why Study This Course?
This course is a great idea if -
- you are thinking of starting your own life coaching and/or business coaching business
- you want to add business and life coaching to your existing skills
- you want to improveyour existing career prospects
- you want to study business and life caoching in a flexible way. Study this course by distance learning. You can start at any time to suit you.
- study a self-paced course
