by Betty Terrell CPCC | ICF-Chicago Director of
Membership,
We are coaches, and we are skilled at engaging with
clients and potential clients. We are excellent listeners, talented at cluing
in to what is going on under the surface for our clients. We may also work with
our own coaches to grow our own self-awareness and business-awareness. How
often, however, are we associating with our colleagues? Making friends of other
coaches? Finding others who are curious about similar areas of interest as we
are? Or with similar – or wildly different - niches to ours? Meeting coaches
who are potential referrals for clients we meet who aren't for us to work with?
Or coaches who may have referrals for us, in our specialties or approaches?
Even just meeting coaches who we would like to get to know better, to have
coffee with or to join for a walk?
What opportunities await at the ICF-Chicago meetings! At
one of our first 'World Cafe' style meetings a few years ago, we developed the
motto for our organization, “Learn, Earn, Engage”. Though it is much less
poetic, I have hit upon another version, “Engage, Learn, Earn”. Yes, we can
learn a lot, both intellectually and emotionally, at our training sessions. I
enjoy that. I also enjoy the greater earnings that are available as I grow in
my profession and business expertise.
However, I think it all begins with engaging: as coaches,
what is possible when we engage with each other? What might happen when we meet
new coaches, with different personalities, training methods, different wisdom
to share? In the bigger picture, what could happen when we nourish the Being of
our profession as Coaches, by investing time in collegiality? Visualize with me
for a minute, what is possible for us as individuals, if we grow this way.
Maybe in three years, in 2017, we could have an
organization that is a tremendous source of wisdom, friendship, collegiality,
and inspiration. We could build together a powerful community of so many
diverse individuals and relationships. Of course, I find it already to be this
way; yet so much more, exponentially so much more, is possible for us. We can
build relationships small and large, for many different purposes.
I learned once that the native people in one mountainous
area of South America have built their rope bridges for centuries. They braid
long grasses in small bundles in each household, then braid those bundles of
several households together in groups, then entire villages braid those
together, until finally the villages gather together and braid the resulting
ropes into magnificent, long, thick, sturdy and safe bridges. These then serve
for decades, for all nearby, to cross chasms between mountains.
That bridge image is a great one for community building
among ourselves. Our chasms are the physical distances, and the simple fact of
the (sometimes) isolating nature of our work. There aren't a lot of
opportunities to meet other professional coaches. Since Chicagoland is such a
large area, I see our members gathering to carpool or ride trains together, all
coming to our meetings from various directions. Conversations could take place
not only during the meetings, but before and after also. Those who live or work
more remotely from our meeting location might find it irresistible to attend!
I personally live about an hour's drive away from our
meeting location, and so when I first began coming to ICF Chicago, I would scan
the listings of descriptions of upcoming meetings, and select maybe one per
quarter to attend, as the topic or presenter appealed to me. But after
attending about two meetings, it began to dawn on me that the presentations,
wonderful as they were, were not my primary delight in having attended. It was
getting to know other coaches, those similar and those quite different from myself,
my training, background and approaches. It was touching and inspiring to have
the experience of being in a room of coaches! Indefinable, a rich
experience.
Also, as time has gone on and I have become more
involved, I have had more learning. I have found that investing time in
attending ICF meetings is a way to build a better present and future experience
for myself and others as a coach. ICF Chicago has also become a way to
contribute to the profession in the Chicagoland area and globally. It all
starts small, with one individual making a decision to attend one meeting.
I invite you to make that decision, to help yourself and
others to have a richer experience, being a coach among coaches. I invite you
to share in that community building experience. I – and others –
look forward to meeting you.
