Latest / Rising Above The Mud / S1:E5 | From Root to Regulation: The Future NBHWC with Mary Alice Keator

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S1:E5 | From Root to Regulation: The Future NBHWC with Mary Alice Keator · Rising Above The Mud

0:09
Welcome back to Rising Above the Mud, the space where we honor
0:13
the struggle, normalize that messy middle, and remind you
0:17
that the most beautiful parts of who we are often bloom from the
0:21
darkest soil. Every single Lotus flower starts
0:25
trapped under thick, heavy mud. And if you've ever felt buried
0:30
by burnout, exhausted by a broken healthcare system, or
0:35
overwhelmed trying to rebuild your health from scratch, you
0:38
are exactly where you need to be today.
0:41
Because today, we are pulling back the curtain on the very
0:46
architecture of healing. Our guest is a guardian of trust
0:51
and excellence in the health coaching world.
0:54
As the program Approval and Continuing Education Manager for
0:58
the National Board for Health and Wellness Coaching, she is
1:02
the powerhouse ensuring that Board certified coaches meet the
1:06
highest standards of safety, ethics and credibility.
1:11
By collaborating with healthcare leaders, academic institutions
1:16
and training programs, she works tirelessly to integrate National
1:21
Board Certified Health and Wellness coaches into the
1:24
broader healthcare system. Her mission is to build the
1:29
pathways that prove health coaching is a vital evidence
1:33
informed profession. Please join me in welcoming our
1:37
very first podcast guest, the incredible Mary Alice Cater.
1:43
Mary Alice, welcome to Rising Above the Mud.
1:46
We're so grateful to have you here.
1:48
I'm so glad to be here as well and thank you for that
1:51
beautiful, beautiful introduction.
1:54
Yes, absolutely. So I wanted to start where this
1:59
show always starts, in the mud. Long before stepping into
2:05
national leadership at the National Board for Health and
2:08
Wellness Coaching, what was the initial spark that drew you into
2:13
the healing arts? Yeah, such an important question
2:16
to remember why we get into this, right?
2:19
And with everything going on in the world, remembering where we
2:23
started and our why is so important.
2:25
So for me, I grew up in a very rural environment.
2:30
My next oldest sister has a chronic illness, cystic
2:34
fibrosis. And so growing up in an
2:36
environment where healthcare wasn't particularly accessible,
2:41
where we had to travel long distances to get that
2:45
healthcare, and where we were often treated like maybe we
2:51
didn't know what it needed to be done to take care of ourselves,
2:56
shaped my vision of how to take care of myself and and others
3:02
around me from a very early age. I would say that the through
3:06
line has always been wanting to help people have a better
3:14
understanding of what's good and right for them, and most of us
3:19
already know that. But in a world that likes to
3:22
take away our agency, I find that it's so important for folks
3:27
to remember that they know themselves best and they can use
3:32
that knowledge to help find the support they need and what's
3:37
truly going to work for them. So a long and winding journey
3:41
for me. I started off in a neurological
3:44
psychology, sort of the chemistry of behavior.
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Turns out I'm not so great at chemistry, but I got really
3:52
interested in returning back to sort of the person centered
3:58
healthcare and helping folks find that agency.
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And so I eventually transitioned into traditional East Asian
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medicine. I received my doctorate there
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and had a business for several years an integrative health
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clinic. And throughout that experience,
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again, it was really a learning experience to see that most
4:24
people do know how to take good care of themselves, but knowing
4:29
and doing are two very different things.
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And then I had my practice and was doing health coaching and
4:37
acupuncture and massage and herbs and supplements and all
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sorts of things like that. And eventually said, hey, I want
4:44
to just make a paycheck. I don't think I want to be the
4:47
boss right now. And then transitioned into some
4:51
laboratory work for food allergens and then over time
4:56
said I really miss the human aspect of it.
4:59
And that's when I got involved very actively in the health
5:02
coaching community as a program developer for a national board
5:08
approved coach training program. Now I'm with the National Board
5:12
of Health and Wellness coaches, as you said, and really helping
5:15
programs to train great coaches, and then as we'll talk about
5:20
advocating for the future of health coaching as well.
5:24
Yes. And I am so excited to hear
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about that advocacy portion of it.
5:29
But what an interesting winding road, right, that you've taken
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to get to where you are today. And, you know, being able to
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kind of relate that back to our clients that we work with, that
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nobody's road tends to be like straight and narrow, right?
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There are twists and turns and things you didn't expect and how
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wonderful to kind of have that to bring up and in sessions as
5:57
well. Yeah, that reminds me that all
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of our experiences lead us to be a stronger version of ourselves.
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And we can focus on the mud, or we could focus on the bloom that
6:10
comes from. I love that and thank you for
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bringing it back to the Lotus. That's so wonderful.
6:16
Okay, let's do a little bit of a pivot here and talk more
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specifically about coaching. So in clinical practice, you can
6:25
give someone the perfect treatment plan, right?
6:29
But they still have to go home and live their life.
6:32
When did you realize that the missing link between modern
6:36
healthcare wasn't more clinical advice, but an empathic partner
6:42
to help clients navigate the daily grind of the actual
6:46
behavior change? Yeah, I think the the anecdotal
6:50
evidence was there throughout my whole life.
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My parents, their efforts, my sister, but I think what really
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cemented that for me was being in practice with clients and
7:04
seeing, you know, they knew exactly what to do for
7:07
themselves. And yeah, some suggestions here
7:09
or there, referrals and things like this, but really seeing
7:14
from my clients and experiencing myself that that feeling of I
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know what to do, but why am I not doing it right?
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Know the right thing. I know what's going to help me.
7:27
I know it's not going to be fast, easy or fun, sure, but why
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can't I just do it? And I saw that so often with my
7:38
own patients and clients, and I really started to experience it
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in my own life as well. You know, running a business is
7:46
very challenging and I had my own health concerns and just the
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real life of trying to balance all of that is so challenging.
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And I was studying for a master's in public health as
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well. And that was a huge part of we
8:02
have all of this amazing health education that we can give to
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folks and even, you know, grappling with the term health
8:09
illiteracy that makes it sound like you either know it or you
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don't. And it's like most people do
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know, but maybe we don't have the resources or that intrinsic
8:20
motivation. Something else is pulling us
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away from it. And for me, learning more about
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health coaching psychology, the psychology of behavior change
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really is when that started to crystallize like, oh, that's why
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you can know all the right things to do, get a very stern
8:38
lecture from your doctor and still go home and not.
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Follow through. Well, thank you for really
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elaborating on that and helping us understand that it's not just
8:49
about having the information. There's more to it than that,
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right? And that's, that's where a lot
8:56
of times life gets in the way. And how do we dissect that and
9:00
break it down so that life is helping us in that change
9:05
process instead of hindering us? Exactly how to make the the good
9:09
and healthy choice also the easy choice.
9:11
Managing national standards and program approval is a massive
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and I imagine often invisible undertaking.
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What is the core fashion that keeps you energized everyday to
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build the infrastructure for this entire profession?
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Yeah, really it's it's the outcomes that keep me going.
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And the whole reason that I was really interested in taking my
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role with the national board when it came up is because I
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know we're training exceptional coaches and qualified coaches
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and caring professionals. And I really wanted to be able
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to show that these are folks who can make a difference in
10:02
healthcare as well. So having the standards in
10:09
place, raising those standards, making sure that all of our
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programs are meeting and exceeding those standards, I
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know we're creating phenomenal coaches now let's also give them
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a trajectory that's perhaps a bit more straightforward than
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many of us took at the beginning of health coaching.
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It's really beautiful to hear how your holistic roots really
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planted the seeds for where you are today.
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I think that's a really important part of your picture
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because when we look at the reality of people trying to
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heal, they need that empathic partner to help them do that
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daily work, right? But as you know and we've talked
10:52
about, the Wellness industry can sometimes feel a bit like the
10:57
Wild West, like anyone can throw up a website and call themselves
11:01
a coach. Let's talk about building a safe
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space for this work for a client who's already feeling vulnerable
11:11
and overwhelmed. Why is working with a National
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Board Certified Health and Wellness coach the ultimate
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safety net? Yeah, I see it as a really
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important marker of quality and accountability, right?
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When we talk about the Wild West and that anyone can hang a
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shingle and say I'm a coach and we see it all over social media,
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right? There's some wonderful coaches
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there. There's some really unsafe
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information that gets shared as well.
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And so working with a national board certified health and
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Wellness coach means that this person has been trained to work
11:51
under nationally defined standards rather than simply
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saying, I'm a coach and here's what you need to do.
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In fact, a nationally board certified coach is much more
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likely to ask you what you'd like to do, what your
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motivations are, and how you can do that safely.
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So a national board certified coach has to go through
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completion of a nationally board certified health and Wellness
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coach training program with practical coaching requirements
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and successful completion of a national board exam.
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What really sets us apart also is that we have these defined
12:32
competencies, we have ethical expectations.
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And just like any allied health practice, a scope of practice,
12:42
that's our guiding principles that really helps us recognize
12:48
the boundary between coaching and clinical care or coaching
12:54
and giving information or all importantly in today's day and
13:00
age, coaching versus making recommendations, diagnosis or
13:06
prescriptions, those are things that we don't do in coaching.
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A strong coach helps the client maintain their autonomy rather
13:15
than creating dependency. So, you know, to be very clear,
13:22
board certification doesn't necessarily mean that every
13:25
coach is going to be the perfect fit for every client, but it
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does add the certainty that this coach has met and maintained A
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meaningful baseline. The person has demonstrated
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education, competency, practical experience and knowledge that
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meets the national standard. And one of the most important
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safety skills in coaching is knowing what we're not qualified
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to do. And I think one of the most
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beautiful things that folks outside of board certified
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coaching might not realize is that we all come to coaching
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with an understanding that our clients are not broken.
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Our clients are whole, our clients are resourceful, our
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clients are capable and we aim to build that, not take it away
14:25
by saying, oh, you don't know what you're doing, you've got to
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do XY and Z. Of course we can help with
14:30
guidance, we can help with referrals, but the core of our
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approach to the individual is that they are whole and they are
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capable. So I have been following you and
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I know that you have spoken passionately about keeping
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coaching accessible without requiring massive degree
14:51
inflation, meaning that we don't want to force heart centered
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healers into this expensive four year or master's degrees just to
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practice. How does the National Board for
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Health and Wellness Coaching balance keeping the financial
15:10
barrier to entry realistic while keeping the exam and education
15:17
standards incredibly rigorous? Yeah, great question.
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And you really hit at the heart of it, right.
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I'm someone who is what we like to call an alphabet suit, right?
15:29
Lots of letters after my name because I love going to school,
15:33
I love learning things. But again, that's not something
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that we want to have to require of every coach.
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There are many, many skilled, phenomenal coaches who have work
15:48
experience or who have an associate's degree.
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And it's again, more of the behavioral aspects that really
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matter in effective coaching. And so while we do want coaches
16:02
to know very well what their scope is, what their boundary
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is, we don't necessarily find that for every coaching role.
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We need a masters or a doctoral level, right?
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Because again, we're not trying to change our clients.
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We have, we live in the information age, right?
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We know information is out there for us.
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It's more about helping the client find what works for them
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and the why for them. So back to the question at
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heart, knowing at the National Board that we can have rigorous
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standards, we can continue to evolve and adapt our standards,
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but we want to do so in a responsive and responsible way.
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We have different types of programs for different education
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levels or for folks who are seeking different education
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levels. If you're struggling with the
16:53
finances of it, reach out. We can't always say, Oh yeah, do
16:59
exactly this. But we don't want cost to be a
17:03
barrier if your heart is in this mission.
17:06
And so, yeah, let's work together to help folks find a
17:10
way to make the investment worth it.
17:13
Whether it's a certificate level program or, you know, a graduate
17:18
level program, there's a program out there for everyone who has
17:22
the heart and the drive for this work.
17:24
I love the diversity of that, right?
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Like it's kind of like meeting our clients where they are,
17:30
We're meeting our coaches where they are, people interested in
17:34
coaching where they are. As the continuing education
17:37
manager, you see the ongoing evolution of our field, which
17:42
has to be fascinating. How do the the National Board
17:49
for Health and Wellness Coaching continuing education
17:53
requirements ensure that board certified coaches remain trauma
17:58
informed, culturally competent and grounded in the latest
18:02
behavioral science? Yes.
18:03
So we have a very stringent review process for every CE
18:08
course that comes our way. So we look at what is this
18:13
course offering and who's the intended audience.
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Oftentimes we'll have some someone apply to be ACE provider
18:21
and they provide education to other professions.
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And so we want to be very careful in those cases to say,
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OK, is this in scope for our coaches also?
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Yeah, ensuring that any information shared within
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continuing education is evidence based that it's presented by
18:46
subject matter experts. And of course as I mentioned
18:50
again, I'm, I'll, I'll keep mentioning it because it is one
18:52
of our most important things that it stays within scope of
18:56
practice and really adheres to our ethical guidelines as well.
19:01
That it's not about promoting a certain theory or certain
19:06
supplement or a certain one-size-fits-all program,
19:09
because that's just not an alignment with National Board
19:12
health coaching standards. Thank you so much for explaining
19:17
that for us. So let's transition a little bit
19:22
to CPT codes, insurance, the clinical side of things.
19:27
Creating that level that you were just talking about of
19:31
rigorous credibility, I feel like is exactly how we get a
19:35
seat at that table, right. And Speaking of that table,
19:39
there is a massive historic shift happening right now that
19:43
our community is watching very closely.
19:46
We're moving from talking about the value of coaching to seeing
19:50
that integrated in our actual financial infrastructure of
19:54
healthcare. So exciting.
19:57
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, also known as
20:01
CMS, has been rolling out major updates regarding reimbursement
20:06
pathways. Can you pull back the curtain
20:09
for us on the National Board for Health and Wellness Coaching's
20:14
active advocacy work and what all of this means for the
20:19
everyday coach? Yeah.
20:21
So, you know, on its surface someone might think, OK, CMSCPT
20:27
codes, this is just about how do coaches get paid.
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But as you mentioned, it's so much more than because in our
20:36
U.S. healthcare system where CMS goes, so goes everything else.
20:42
So it really is stands to add a lot of legitimacy to what we do.
20:48
We know we have the research, we have anecdotal evidence and, and
20:52
all of this, but having access to the greater healthcare world
20:58
is a really big thing. So what the national board looks
21:02
at is how can we make sure that our appropriately trained and
21:08
credentialed health and Wellness coaches become a recognized part
21:12
of high quality healthcare workforce.
21:15
You mentioned earlier on in our broken healthcare system and I
21:20
think we've all experienced that in some ways.
21:22
And so, you know, one of one of the many considerations I know
21:27
so many of us have is how can we integrate more with this
21:30
healthcare system without taking on some of the things that we
21:34
know are not so great. And having a background in
21:39
acupuncture, you know, is having seen how CMS approach that, even
21:46
having been around way back when, when nurse practitioners
21:50
were becoming a recognized field, we've seen how this can
21:55
be done successfully and where some of the stumbling blocks
21:59
are. So we want, of course,
22:01
recognition and reimbursement that will significantly expand
22:06
access to coaching. Again, getting coaching to
22:10
people who otherwise wouldn't have had a way to pay for that.
22:16
But reimbursement has to be paired with credible workforce
22:19
standards. So again, This is why we're
22:22
really excited that CMS reports have specifically named the
22:30
National Board for Health and Wellness coaching here, because
22:36
when payers use a generic term like health coach, there can be
22:40
enormous variation in training. And that can lead to even
22:45
healthcare entities saying, OK, let's hire some coaches and
22:49
seeing, wait, these people are all calling themselves coaches.
22:52
These ones are really good and these ones maybe aren't meeting
22:55
the mark. What's different?
22:57
And often that education, training and the certification.
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So the National Board for Health and Wellness Coaching contribute
23:08
something particularly valuable here, an established national
23:13
credential. We've been credentialing since
23:16
2017, so we've been here for a while now.
23:20
We're about to celebrate a decade of our board exam,
23:24
approved education standards, competency, expectations,
23:28
ethics, and of course, our examination.
23:31
So access matters, reimbursement matters, and workforce quality
23:36
matters. And honestly, we shouldn't have
23:39
to choose between them. When a healthcare entity is
23:44
hiring a national board certified coach, that's what
23:47
they're going to get. And when an individual meets
23:50
with a nationally board certified health and Wellness
23:53
coach, they know they're meeting with someone who meets these
23:57
standards. What a great explanation for
24:01
that. Can you take a moment to briefly
24:04
explain current procedural terminology or CPT codes to our
24:09
audience? Yes, so CPT codes.
24:15
This creates a common language for describing services, right?
24:20
So I won't ramble off the the codes and embarrass myself right
24:24
now. It's been a little while, but it
24:27
essentially let's healthcare entities, billers, insurance
24:32
companies, coders know exactly what happened in a visit.
24:38
So again, it's a common language for describing services, but
24:42
having a code is not synonymous with guaranteed payment.
24:47
So those coverage decisions involve CMS, commercial
24:52
insurers, benefit designs, provider eligibility, proper
24:57
documentation, supervision requirements and other policy
25:01
decisions. So one of the national board's
25:05
highest priorities is making sure that policymakers really,
25:09
truly understand what distinguishes a properly trained
25:13
and credentialed code health and Wellness coach from someone just
25:17
using the term coach. And again, I, I, I feel sort of
25:21
bad saying that because we know that there's phenomenal coaches
25:24
out there who also who are not board certified.
25:28
But as we look into reimbursement, that's where we
25:33
say, OK, this is the standard where the industry can know what
25:38
they're getting. And I think that is a really
25:43
important expectation of anyone going to a coach.
25:47
National board certified health and Wellness coach offers that
25:51
level, right? So I think that's super
25:55
important. Yeah, in my particular lens and
25:58
on the education side, right. So at the national board, we
26:02
have the approved training program and and continuing
26:06
education approval side, that's where I live.
26:09
And on the other, other side, we have the credentialing side
26:13
administering that exam and then helping certified coaches get
26:17
their CES, stay credentialed and work in that world.
26:21
So through my particular lens in on the education side, I see
26:26
that if health coaching or as health coaching becomes more
26:30
deeply integrated into healthcare reimbursement will be
26:34
forced to answer the very important consumer protection
26:39
question, who is qualified to provide that service.
26:43
And it's our position at the National Board for Health and
26:46
Wellness Coaching that our eligibility standards provide a
26:51
defensible, nationally standardized way to answer just
26:55
that question. Absolutely 100% agree with that.
27:00
Yeah, and that's exactly what I'd like our coaches to know as
27:04
well. Now for the profession as a
27:06
whole, that recognition creates opportunity, right?
27:10
We all want more opportunity for health coaching to get out there
27:14
into the larger world, but with that becomes responsibility.
27:18
And that's where our scope comes in.
27:20
The scope is what are we responsible for and what do we
27:24
need to allow other credentialed health partnerships to be
27:29
responsible for. So as we move closer to
27:32
healthcare integration, expectations around competence,
27:36
documentation, ethics, outcomes and scope, again got to say it
27:41
will become even more important. So for coaches who want to start
27:46
positioning themselves for an insurance reimbursed future
27:51
today, what practical foundational steps should they
27:55
be taking right now? That's such a great question.
27:59
So if you're not a board certified coach, reach out.
28:01
Let's talk about what it might look like to get Word certified.
28:05
If you are board certified, I would you would get honest with
28:10
yourself about where you feel really strong in your practice
28:13
and maybe where you don't feel as strong.
28:16
Right. So how do you feel about
28:18
biomedical information? Is it something where you feel
28:22
like, oh, I don't know anything at all?
28:24
Maybe that's where you want to focus your continuing education
28:27
credits, right? Or it's been a while since I
28:29
talked about blood pressure. What's abnormal, what's normal.
28:33
Yeah, maybe it's, it's a it's ACE to brush up on that.
28:37
Maybe you're working already in a healthcare world where even
28:43
perhaps you have another licensure and you're often
28:47
working outside of the the scope of a board certified coach,
28:52
right. Helping yourself to get really
28:55
clear on where that boundary is can be helpful.
28:59
And then I would say if you're not sure where to get started or
29:04
do I want to work in that world again, you're continuing
29:07
education courses can be really helpful there to start dipping
29:11
your toe in and see flex your network as well.
29:15
So if you know other coaches who are working in healthcare or you
29:20
know, even maybe reaching out to your own PCP or healthcare
29:24
providers and seeing what they know about health coaching and
29:28
maybe even posing that question if coaching were to become a
29:32
reimbursable practice, is that something that would be helpful
29:36
for your? Practice.
29:38
I love that flexing your network.
29:41
So it's it's really incredible for me to hear how much
29:46
intentionality goes into protecting this profession
29:50
behind the scenes. Mary Alice holding space for an
29:55
entire national movement, navigating policy, managing
30:00
continuing education is a massive mental load on this
30:05
show. We talk a lot about nervous
30:07
system regulation and avoiding burnout.
30:11
I want to look behind that executive curtain for a moment.
30:17
How do you personally recognize when your own nervous system is
30:21
hitting a red line? And what are your non negotiable
30:26
daily somatic tools to ground yourself?
30:29
Yeah, such an important question.
30:31
And I think something that we probably don't ask each other
30:36
enough, right? We see someone's version of
30:41
success and we say, oh, they must, you know, put in all the
30:45
hours that they do all of this. And and, you know, we kind of
30:49
the culture of our world, right, is work, work, work, and then
30:53
you reward that. But what I've found and that I
30:56
think many of us has found is that we can't reach that, that
31:01
success either without sacrificing something or in the
31:07
more healthy way, creating those boundaries that give us the
31:12
ability to maintain our energy. So the first warning signs for
31:19
me, and I guess this is if I can give it some advice to anybody,
31:23
is get to know yourself really well.
31:27
I know for me what my sort of red flags are that OK, I'm
31:33
getting stressed. I try to head it off at the pass
31:37
by, of course, practicing what I preach, right, getting enough
31:39
sleep, trying to have a relaxing morning.
31:42
I'm not a morning person. For me, my first warning signs
31:46
are usually more cognitive. I'll have less patience.
31:51
I'll have difficulty prioritizing.
31:54
Everything starts feeling equally urgent.
31:56
It's just as important for me to brush my teeth as to answer this
31:59
e-mail as to, you know, do all of these things.
32:01
And I'll notice I might be moving faster or touching more
32:06
things, but less accomplished, right?
32:09
Everything starts to suffer a bit.
32:12
My instinct might be to keep pushing, but I've learned to
32:16
recognize the those kind of pink flags before they become red
32:22
flags. I know for me also, as someone
32:25
who tends to think quite holistically about individuals,
32:30
about myself, about the systems that we put into place, when I
32:35
start getting very individualized or very isolating
32:42
in my thought process, when I started saying things to myself
32:46
like these people, Oh, right. And separating myself from the
32:52
other or the outcome, that's a real sign that my nervous system
32:57
is trying to protect me by isolating me.
33:00
But it's a sign that burnout is coming.
33:04
So one thing that coaching has absolutely taught me is to
33:07
notice without immediately judging, because if I start
33:11
judging myself, oh, it just, you know, makes it even worse.
33:15
Instead, I'll say, what is it about this situation that I wish
33:20
I was handling better? Why is this coming up?
33:25
What's my system telling me right now?
33:28
What advice do you have for setting deep energy boundaries
33:33
so we don't absorb the collective weight of everyone
33:36
else's bud? Oh my goodness.
33:39
That's hard one. I think this might be good life
33:47
and advice in general. You don't have to be everything
33:50
to everyone. You know, a lot of especially
33:56
new coaches will ask about don't I have to have a niche?
33:59
Don't I have to have a speciality?
34:02
And I think when when we think about success in general, right,
34:07
we, we might think about being really good at all of these
34:11
things. I think about this with people
34:13
who go for their doctorate, right?
34:15
Many of them will will say, yes, going for that has made me
34:19
better, but in one really tightly defined area.
34:24
Now, that doesn't mean that everything else has to suffer
34:27
for it, but I think being open to that process, keeping our
34:33
growth mindset and having the confidence to say, hey, I don't
34:38
have to be great at everything. I don't have to be everything to
34:42
everybody. But what I do have to do is know
34:46
myself well enough to know where those boundaries are, to know
34:51
what helps me be my best or what takes away from that.
34:55
And that can be a really great values based sort of navigation
35:00
tool for what we're willing to put our energy energy into and
35:04
what, you know, maybe we can leave for somebody else to put
35:07
their energy towards. Earlier you mentioned practicing
35:12
what we preach, right? And we know that's the ultimate
35:15
foundation, especially when the work gets really heavy.
35:19
And I know so many coaches listening right now are trying
35:23
to find that exact balance. They've done the hard work,
35:27
they've studied, they've passed the national board exam.
35:31
But stepping out into the business or clinical world can
35:36
feel like a whole new kind of mud.
35:39
Sure. As we wrap up today, what is
35:42
your best piece of advice for a newly national Board certified
35:46
health and Wellness coach trying to build true confidence and
35:51
client momentum in their first, let's say, 90 days?
35:54
Yeah, great question. And being relatively new to my
35:59
role at the national board, I've been there now for nine months
36:05
or so, almost time for me to stop saying I'm new.
36:08
But let me tell you, even as someone who's been in the
36:12
coaching world for a long time, who knows the competencies
36:16
inside and out, I haven't been in this role before.
36:19
And it's been a learning curve and it's forced me to grapple
36:23
with some of that, not imposter syndrome necessarily, because I
36:28
know I'm capable of the role, but still that going back to
36:32
basics, remembering how to be a learner.
36:35
And so my message there is be kind to yourself.
36:41
Be patient with yourself. You've mastered the coaching
36:45
skills. You've passed your practical
36:47
skills assessment. You've gotten that golden stamp
36:50
that says you can go out and coach the world.
36:52
You passed your board exam. That is so hard.
36:56
And it shows us, you know, how to think like a coach.
36:59
You know when a situation comes up that you'll be able to work
37:04
with it with grace, with empathy.
37:06
So offer that to yourself as well.
37:10
Really practical advice. Don't spend the first three
37:13
months perfecting your logo. Confidence comes from coaching
37:17
people and getting those experiences.
37:20
You'll learn something from every single person you coach.
37:26
So yeah, coaching comes or confidence comes from doing the
37:30
work, not from thinking about doing the work.
37:33
So get those repetitions and reflect afterwards.
37:37
It's OK to ease into it. It's OK.
37:39
Get those repetitions. Build your strength, build your
37:42
stamina, build your style. And over time you'll really
37:48
start to see, OK, this is where I'm feeling strong.
37:52
This is where maybe I could ask my network to help mentor me or
37:57
to seek some feedback to keep growing those skills.
38:02
Passing the National board exam lets us know that you've met
38:05
these foundational standards. But it's part of our role as
38:09
coaches to continue growing and evolving.
38:13
We're always learning and growing and again, that idea of
38:17
you don't have to be everything to everybody.
38:19
We want you to be able to coach any situation, any person, any
38:24
mood that walks into your coaching practice.
38:28
And yet your niche, what you're you may end up specializing in,
38:33
tends to come with time and practice.
38:36
You don't have to invent it before your first client.
38:40
And your practice, just like you, will continue evolving over
38:43
time as well. You already know the standards
38:47
of the coaching practice, right? You've proven that you don't
38:51
have to prove your value by having the smartest answer, or
38:55
the loudest voice, or the swankiest website, the largest
39:00
social media following. All of those things are really
39:03
nice. But remember your basics.
39:07
Show up with empathy. Be a human.
39:09
We need that more than ever, right?
39:11
AI can learn to coach, but it can't learn to be you.
39:15
And it can't learn empathy. It can't learn true empathy.
39:19
I should say yes. So ask good questions, listen,
39:24
evoke, partner with your client. The rest will come.
39:30
Words of wisdom to live by for coaches.
39:33
Thank you so much for that. I always like to close the show
39:38
with a sentence like, no matter how deep the mud feels right
39:44
now. Can you complete your version of
39:47
that sentence for us? No matter how deep the mud feels
39:50
right now. No matter how deep the mud feels
39:54
right now, I would say know that it is fortifying.
40:00
You know that it is like compost, right?
40:05
That breaking down of material, that breaking down of who am I
40:12
and what am I going through is exactly what will be the fuel to
40:17
keep you blossoming and flourishing and moving forward.
40:22
Wonderful, thank you so much for sharing your wisdom, your heart,
40:27
your incredible leadership with us today.
40:30
What is a way for listeners to follow your work and stay
40:34
connected with the NBHWC community?
40:38
Yeah. So I would definitely check out
40:40
nbhwc.org. We're constantly updating our
40:46
website with new information and offerings.
40:50
It's where you can find all of our CE library.
40:53
And of course, you can always reach out via e-mail to
40:57
info@nbhwc.org to get our kind of general line.
41:05
And and then please also feel free to take down my
41:08
information. My e-mail address is
41:11
maryalice@nbhwc.org. Please feel free to reach out.
41:17
I know sometimes people here the National Board for Health and
41:20
Wellness Coaching, and it feels like I might not want to reach
41:23
out there. They might be scary or
41:25
something. I have a very open door policy
41:29
and I'm a coach too, so I love talking with folks.
41:32
No question too big or too small.
41:34
And if I don't have the answer, I probably know someone who
41:37
does. I also recommend following the
41:41
National Board for Health and Wellness Coaching on social
41:44
media. And feel free to reach out on
41:47
LinkedIn as well. I'm there just under my name.
41:51
The National Board has a page there as well.
41:55
And those are not only great resources for you as
41:58
individuals, but a great way to grow your network as well.
42:02
Coaching can feel like, especially if you're doing it in
42:06
private practice, it can feel like a very isolating
42:09
environment, but it doesn't need to be.
42:11
And so please know that if you're looking for mentorship or
42:16
networking or even just to reach out and ask a question or say,
42:20
am I doing this right? Or oh, I had this really tough
42:25
visit and I'd like to talk to someone about it.
42:27
We're here for you. We're here at Best Coaches for
42:31
Coaches and honestly, the National Board for Health and
42:34
Wellness Coaching works for you. We work for coaches.
42:37
So please don't hesitate to reach out.
42:39
We'd love to hear from you and support in whatever ways we can.
42:43
I love that so much. Connect, connect, connect,
42:46
right? Yes, don't be afraid to.
42:49
Thank you for sharing yourself with us today and all of your
42:53
expertise. And thank you all for listening
42:56
to Rising Above the Mud. Remember, you aren't being
42:59
buried, you're just planted. Keep rising and I'll see you
43:03
next week. Remember to join me again next
43:08
week for a new episode on the necessity of rest and sleep.