I'm going to own up, I know I promote myself as a coach and call what I do coaching but the truth is I HATE the word. Which is somewhat contradictory.

So I thought I'd confess..

I hate that now everybody calls themself a coach.

The truth is that coaching is coming of age. It's past the stage where it was only of interest to the early adopters, the people who like to stay ahead of the curve. Now its entering the mainstream. People know what is and understand the benefits that it can bring. All that's happening is that people who once might have been managers, or human resource specialists or internal consultants are going freelance and finding new ways to offer their services.

The growth in the number of coaches is about a change in the way certain information and advice is provided, nothing more. It's actually a fore taste of the kind of changes we can expect in a freewheeling knowledge economy where business functions are outsourced.

So Robin, get over yourself.

I hate the vague woolly definitions that people use to describe what they do.

Life coaching, personal coaching, business coaching, relationship coaching, yada, yada, yada, blah blah blah.

I call what I do coaching for the simple reason that I use the following process:

I help you find out what you want and articulate it clearly.

I help you learn the attitudes, believes, skills and resources that you need to get what you want.

I give you feedback so you know when you're heading in the right direction.

Sure I'm an NLPⁱ Master This and a NLP Master That. Hey I've even got a diploma in Yoghurt Weaving. All that is icing on the cake. The basics are just that. Goals, learning, feedback.

So Robin, get over yourself.

I hate that every coach claims they can do everything!

The worst thing about this one- it's true! The basic principles and techniques of coaching are content neutral so it doesn't matter if your goal is to make more money, find a great relationship or increase your website traffic, a good coach could help you with all of those.

Myself, I've helped people through major life transitions, trained teams in multinational businesses, overcome fears and phobias. It's all the same skill set.

But as more people are getting into coaching its becoming more important to specialise. You get more choice! I've worked all my life in the creative industries as a performer, director, software developer and as a business owner. It makes sense for me to work with creative people. I like hanging out with them.

So Robin, get over yourself.

I hate that different organisations compete to be the defacto standard for what coaching is.

Groucho Marx said he wouldn't join any club that would have him as a member. I take it one step further. I wouldn't join any club fullstop. I can get ultra cynical about this. I know that some of these organisations have good intentions. They want to protect people from incompetent practitioners or protect practitioners from incompetent clients. They want to create standards and respectability.

But I have to tell you some of these organisations are set up just to make a particular college or training provider look good. What real processes are in place to ensure members meet the minimum standards?

Ethics? Sure I have a code of ethics. It's my own. I don't need anyone else to tell me what is or is not acceptable behavior. I already worked that out. I trust myself.

The way I see it is this. You want to know if I'm any good. Read my website, see if you like it. Ring me up, I'll tell you if I think I can help you. I'll refer you to previous clients, you can ask them what they think. Don't rely on anyone else to make your mind up for you. Go with what you feel. 

Ok Thanks, I've got that out of my system now. Sometimes when you want to change your attitude to something it helps to have someone who can help you each step of the way. Sometimes its enough to say “Just get over yourself”.