Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (Ipec)

Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (iPEC)

149 Avenue at the Common, Suite 202

Shrewsbury, NJ 07702

Tel: (732) 982-8155

Web:

Peer Special Interest Groups

Students Guide

Contents

Welcome! ...... 2

Program Overview ...... 2

Basic facts about the P-SIGs ...... 2

You can expect to… ...... 2

Selecting your Peer Special Interest Group ...... 3

Some definitions to know, and things to consider, before you choose ...... 3

It’s time to choose ...... 4

Logistics ...... 5

Group member, Coordinator, and Facilitator Responsibilities ...... 5

What actually happens in a P-SIG meeting ...... 5

FAQs…………...... 6
Welcome!

Welcome to iPEC’s Peer Special Interest Groups (P-SIGs)! These groups were developed for

a variety of reasons – the most important being our dedication to bringing you the best

education that we possibly can. This program will provide you with a wealth of knowledge,

experience, and contacts that will help you immensely as you start your coaching practice.

This document describes an overview of the program, the P-SIGs you can choose from,

group member and leader responsibilities as well as logistics.

As you go through the program, we would like to encourage you to email your support specialist with yoursuggestions and comments. If you love it, tell

us why. If you could love it more, tell us that too – but please, also let us know how we can

make it better. (We want your feedback on everything, by the way, as we are here to serve

you.) We’re looking forward to hearing from you.

So now, let’s take a look at what the P-SIGs are all about…

Program Overview

Basic facts about the PSIGs

• P-SIGs are a continuation of the peer groups that you did during the first 12 weeks

of your program. The purpose of these groups is to provide time for the group to self-lead and put some focus on what you would like to know, discover or learn about a potential niche you are interested in exploring.

• Participation in these groups are mandatory forcertification
• You’ll be grouped with people from around the country who have similar interests
• P-SIGs will meet 11 times. 8 meetings will be 1-hour long, and 3 meetings will last

for 1½ hours (total 12 ½ hours)

• An iPEC facilitator (one of our trainers or experienced coaches) will lead the three

1 ½ hour sessions

• Group members will take turns leading the other 8 sessions (see logistics section)
• A peer volunteer will act as group coordinator (see logistics section)
• The facilitated sessions will include actual coaching demos within the niche area, and may include role play (coaching practice) and some time for questions and answers with your facilitator.
• The facilitator’s role is to act as one resource for the group not as someone who will tell you everything you want to know about growing a business in that area, that is up to you to discover within the group.

You can expect to…

• Share your information, knowledge, experiences, and best practices with others in

your chosen specialization – and benefit from hearing the same from them

• Learn information that will help you when you coach in this area, and also, help you

in your day-to-day activities and relationships

• Connect with iPEC peers who have similar interests to you, and explore potential

partnering opportunities and strategic alliances

• Get coached in your specialty area by an iPEC expert, just like you would coach your

client

• Experience the group coaching process – so you can replicate it, if you’d like, with

your clients

Selecting your Peer Special Interest Group

The groups are about both niche and coaching specialties.

Perhaps you know your niche. Perhaps you know what kind of coaching you want to do.

Perhaps you know neither, or both. Perhaps you are wondering about which of 2 niche areas you are interested in. Any of those variables is fine – no matter where you’restarting, your chosen P-SIG group will help you clarify and focus.

Don’t worry about “choosing incorrectly.” If you end up not liking the choice you made,

that’s valuable information for you. You’ll be able to listen to the facilitated sessions of all

groups, so you won’t miss out in any way.For most cycles there are 100+ demos that you will have access to so you won’t miss out on anything another group is doing.

Some definitions to know, and things to consider, before you choose

Niche = who you work with – specifically (think of this as a target audience)

Specialty = how you work with them – what do you do

Eight Options:

Corporate Coaching (this is a niche)

If you are interested in coaching…Managers, HR personnel, Administrative staff, High Potentials, Salespeopleand all others within a corporate setting who are not at the Executive level. Choose this niche group if you are interested in coaching a corporate clientele.

…using a specialty such as: Internal Coaching, Leadership Coaching, Communications Coaching, Conflict Resolution Coaching, Team Coaching, Customer Relations Coaching, Interpersonal Effectiveness Coaching, Emotional Intelligence Coaching, Strategic Planning Coaching, Business Development Coaching, Sales Coaching and all other aspects of corporate coaching

Executive Coaching (this is a niche)

If you are interested in coaching….Corporate clientele at the executive level. This would include C-level corporate executives or Boards of Directors. Examples of this target audience would include Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Technology Officer, etc.

…using a specialty such as:Re-engineering Coaching, Leadership Coaching, Business Development Coaching, and all other aspects of and interests related to Executive Coaching

Small Business Coaching(this is a niche)

If you are interested in coaching… Entrepreneurs and all those within businesses doing less than about $10 million in revenues (including other coaches).Choose this group if you are interested in coaching small businesses that are not service-related and not included in the professionals category.

…using a specialty such as:Business Development Coaching; Start-up Coaching, Exit Strategy Coaching, and all other topics related to small business

Professionals Coaching (this is a very broad niche)

If you are interested in coaching… Lawyers, Accountants, Insurance Agents,Financial Advisors, and all others in service-related businesses. Choose this niche group if your target audience fits into this category. If not, then small business coaching may be a better fit for you.

…using a specialty such as: Leadership Coaching, Communications Coaching, Conflict Resolution Coaching, Team Coaching, Customer Relations Coaching, Interpersonal Effectiveness Coaching, Emotional Intelligence Coaching, Strategic Planning Coaching, Business Development Coaching, and all aspects of running a professional service business

Health & Wellness Coaching (this is a specialty)

If you are interested in coaching…individuals, groups, or clinicianssuch as medical professionals, alternative medicine practitioners, chiropractors, body workers, personal trainers, and all others interested in improving personal health and wellness

…using a specialty such as:Nutrition Coaching, Fitness Coaching, Weight Reduction Coaching, and all aspects of health and wellness and business development

Relationship coaching(this is a specialty or a niche, depending on with whom you’re working)

If you are interested in coaching….couples (any two people with a similar goal) around relationships. This could include individuals in a personal relationship (married or not), business partners, parent/child relationships or any 2 people where the intention is to coach around the relationship.

…using a specialty such as:Communications Coaching, Conflict Resolution Coaching, Vision Coaching, and all other types of coaching

Transition Coaching(this is a specialty)

If you are interested in coaching…. employees, the unemployed, Baby Boomers, students, recently moved, recently married, divorcees, widow(er)s,empty nesters, and anyone else in transition. This is a very broad niche that may includeother transitions not listed here. Join this niche group if your target audience is going to be clients going through any major transition and that is what the focus of your coaching will be.

…using a specialty such as:Career Coaching, Retirement Coaching, Displacement Coaching, Downsizing Coaching, Vision Coaching, and all other topics related to transition

Life Purpose Coaching(this is a specialty)

If you are interested in coaching….couples, individuals, or groupsaround Life Purpose. This is the broadest niche group and covers most audiences interested in “Life Coaching.” This niche group usually accompanies a specialty (which you may discover while in this group) so as to be specific enough to market to your prospects. They may include but not be limited to the specialties below.

…using a specialty such as:Life Purpose Coaching, Spirituality Coaching, Personal Development Coaching, Religion (varied) Coaching, Life Planning Coaching, Self-Care Coaching,

Logistics

All you need to do to let us know which P-SIG you want to join is to make sure to submit your survey by the date indicated in the PSIG selection email you will be receiving

You will be assigned to a group of approximately 4 - 7 students in your chosen area of

specialization.

You will meet with those peers for your 8 1-hour meetings, at times and dates you mutually

agree on.

The three meetings with the facilitator will be held from 8:30-10:00 p.m.EST

on the dates noted in your “P-SIG Selection” email.

You will receive bridgeline information by email before those calls.

You will have access to all of the recordings of all the iPEC-facilitated P-SIGs in case you

wish to learn about other specialty areas.

Group member, Coordinator, and Facilitator Responsibilities

Group member – show up and participate, contribute to discussions, take turns facilitating

the self-led sessions.

P-SIG coordinator – you or one of your peers – you’ll be able to volunteer for this position

on your survey. You’ll be notified by iPEC if you are chosen (first come, first selected).

Coordinators are responsible for obtaining a bridgeline and setting up the first group

meeting. Coordinators will be selected by iPEC randomly if no one volunteers.

iPEC facilitator – one of our lead trainers or experienced iPEC coaches will lead three of

your sessions.

What actually happens in a PSIG meeting

During the facilitated sessions, an experienced iPEC coach willdo coaching demonstrations using real or potential scenarios that may come up within this niche area. They will provide a debrief and help you deconstruct what you heard during the demo. This will include what worked and how that is typically of benefit in this niche and also what are general coaching skills applicable to all niches. These sessions may include role play and also some time to be ONE resource for the group about topics related tocoaching in your area. Your PSIG facilitator is not going to be delivering niche specific education as that is not what the PSIG groups are designed to do. During the first session, he or she will also work with you on logisticsin setting up your peer-led sessions.

Agendas will be provided to you for the 8 peer-led sessions. During these sessions, you’ll be

exploring different aspects of your area of specialization, including specific niche and

coaching specialty options, marketing and business-building, and coaching program

development. Members of your group will take turns facilitating these sessions.

Note: The agendas contain suggested topics; your group is free to set its own agendas. The success of your PSIG group rests within the group itself. It is highly advised that you dedicate the first group meeting to scheduling/prioritizing what you want to have as goals for your group. Each group is slightly different. Each individual within the group brings different skills, knowledge and areas of curiosity. That is what makes a group experience so unique and why your success depends on your level of engagement with it.

FAQs

Please post any questions you have on the Peer Special Interest Group Forum so

that others may benefit from hearing the answers as well.

What if I miss a live session?

You can listen to the recording of any of the facilitated calls. If your group chooses to record itscalls, you can make up the non-facilitated calls by listening to the recording. Another optionwould be to schedule a makeup session with your group members.

Should I be done with my first peer group when this starts?

This is not required, but please do try to complete your peer group meetings before the PSIGs start.

What if I can’t decide which niche group to choose?

Review the teleclass recording on niches/branding, look over the descriptions of each group and trust your intuition to choose what you are most drawn to. You cannot make a mistake! Remember, you have access to the recorded demo calls for ALL groups so there is nothing you will miss out on.

What if I get a few weeks into my chosen PSIG group and realize I chose the wrong group for me, can I switch groups?

Unfortunately, once you have chosen your niche group we don’t allow you to switch groups. There are hundreds of people and the logistics are too complex to accommodate this. You can listen in on the recorded calls for the group you are interested in.