Our 211-hour Level 2 ICF accredited program, Wayfinder Life Coach Training (WLCT), has three distinct components:
- Live classes (with recordings available for anyone who can’t make it live)
- A robust online learning space, including the interactive forums and your library of multimedia resources
- In depth mentoring (see below for details)
Finding Your Feet – The First Month
In the first few weeks of your training, you’ll tune into the overview call and Martha’s first class. These are always lots of fun! You’ll be invited into the forums on your online learning space, where you can introduce yourself and start getting to know your instructors and peers. You’ll also gain access to the library of resources for explanations of the tools and coaching demonstrations.
Then you will join your Coach-the-Coach group — a small group of up to ten fellow Wayfinders who will be a huge part of your training experience. Coach-the-Coach classes include regular opportunities for observed coaching sessions with feedback from an instructor (see below).
Coach-the-Coach Classes
These interactive and hands-on classes comprise the bulk of your training. With your small class group you’ll have the chance to work with the tools you’re learning from every angle: as “coach,” as “client,” and as the observer of your peers’ learning.
Your instructor in these classes will be a seasoned Wayfinder Master Coach with extensive experience using the tools in real-life contexts. Your instructor and group will create a welcoming space where you’ll feel empowered to practice coaching and receive constructive feedback.
Mentoring
Since our coaching methodology is so hands-on, guidance from experienced mentors is a key part of your training. These group and individual sessions are interspersed throughout the training, giving you the opportunity to steadily build confidence in your craft and the coaching business you may wish to establish. Your mentors are experienced coaches who have built their own coaching practices and have been using Martha’s tools effectively for years.
Mentoring sessions are your chance to ask any and every question you may have about coaching—from the nitty-gritty of the coaching tools to larger concerns about business and entrepreneurship.
There are two types of mentoring in Wayfinder Life Coach Training:
- Group mentoring. You will have ten of these sessions during your training program. They will cover aspects of effective coaching, ethical decision making, the ICF core competencies, as well as give you ample opportunity to ask questions.
- Individual (one-on-one) mentoring. All trainees are offered three individual mentoring sessions over the course of the training. These sessions will be used to support you in becoming a more skillful coach and evaluate your coaching if you wish to become a Certified Wayfinder Coach.
- Note: If you aren’t interested in certification (Wayfinder or ICF), you are most welcome to use your individual mentoring sessions for personal or professional coaching from your mentor.
Business for Wayfinders classes
Start creating a way of living and working that makes your heart sing! The business classes are full of exercises and processes to help you create clarity around your unique practice, whether you coach for a living or use your Wayfinder tools in another way. The ethics materials and the ideas you will have at the end will be worth their weight in gold.
Between each of the business classes, you will have Group Mentoring calls with your small group to practice and integrate all the coaching tools you learned in the training. This is an ideal opportunity to coach and be coached around the business class exercises and how you wish to employ your Wayfinder tools after the training has concluded.
Evaluation and Certification
Many trainees choose to be certified as a Wayfinder Life Coach, though this process is optional. It is generally seen to lend legitimacy to your status as a life coach: a “seal of approval” and confirmation that you have mastered the Wayfinder tools and are ready to launch your practice as a full-fledged coach.
For more information about becoming certified, visit the Certification page.