Well, it's official - the International Coach Federation has reviewed and approved my application and I have been awarded the Professional Certified Coach (PCC) designation! In terms of the technical requirements, I completed a full training certification program at an accredited coaching school (I graduated from invitechange, formerly known as the Academy for Coach Training, in 2002). I also had to show record of at least 750 actual hours of coaching (I've logged well over 1,000). And likely the most daunting was to have two internationally-certified coaches provide review and reference of your skills as an active coach today. Thank you Susan McKay, MCC, andBJ Levy, PCC, for your wisdom and powerful feedback!

What does this mean for you, as you consider coaching? First, find someone with experience. Second, find someone who is professionally trained. Third, find someone who is committed to his or her own personal and professional growth. And fourth, and not related to anything else here, is find someone you connect with. Spend at least ten minutes on the phone with each of three coaches so that you know whether the coach is someone you can get completely raw with on the phone.