As one of the fastest-growing industries globally, coaching is being seen as an attractive career option for many people.  However, coaching is more than a career – it is a vocation.   As Director of Training for Neurocoaching Australia, you most likely expect me to say that the indispensable qualities of a Neurocoach are highly developed coaching skills, including a sound understanding of the neuroscience of coaching.  This is certainly foundational to our training at Neurocoaching Australia.  However, to be a highly successful Neurocoach, it’s not only about skills, it also about personal qualities.  It’s about the head, and also the heart.  Below are five qualities you need to become a highly valued Neurocoach.

• A heart to grow

One of my mantras is that coaching is most powerful and effective when it is offered out of the overflow of our own personal growth and transformation.  When we are committed to ongoing personal development in every sphere of our life, we coach our clients with authenticity.  Our clients pick this up and it strengthens their trust in us.  The more clients trust their coach, the safer the feel to be vulnerable, enabling coaches to get to the heart of the issue.

• A heart to serve

Let me be candid:  if your primary motivation is to build a successful career then Neurocoaching may not be for you.  Sure, it’s great to want to succeed, and coaching can be personally and financially rewarding.  These things will follow if we make serving our primary motivation.  Coaches who have a heart to make the world a better place through supporting their clients in becoming better versions of themselves are usually very successful coaches.

• A heart to be present

One of the great things about training in Neurocoaching is that you will learn some great skills — based on neuroscientific research – in managing your thinking to ensure it remains resourceful.  The better we are at combatting our own invading thoughts so as to remain present in the moment, the more we can be present with our clients.  The more fully present we are with our clients, the more focused we will be on them and their agenda, not us and our agenda.  A Neurocoach passionately believes that the client is the expert in his or her life and to serve them we must be fully present in the moment whenever we engage in coaching conversations.

• A heart to listen

As a trained Neurocoach you will be equipped with many coaching skills, coaching models, and insight into the neuroscience of coaching.  The temptation will be to impart all of your knowledge to your clients.   Great coaches give priority to listening to their clients – listening on multiple levels to hear what is said and not said; listening for shifts in emotion and energy and exploring these shifts with their clients.  It is only as we listen and explore that we become aware of the underlying issues, and then our coaching skills shine because they are focused on the real issues to address in moving our clients forward.

• A heart to Learn.

Neurocoaches are life-long learners.  They are always expanding their knowledge and skill in coaching and in their coaching niche(s) whether it be leadership, personal development, wellness, relationships, trauma, and so many others.   High-quality Neurocoaches never go stale; they are always seeking fresh insights to road-test on themselves, and then serve their clients.

If this is your heart, then training as a Neurocoach may be the pathway for you.

Mark Setch
Master Certified Coach, International Coaching Federation.
Director of Training,
Neurocoaching Australia.