How to Ask Your Workplace to Pay for Coach Training

The Everything Life Coaching Podcast, featuring Lumia Coaching founders John Kim and Noelle Cordeaux, is a deep dive into the experience and business of being a life coach. Subscribe to get new episodes weekly!

Make The Business Case for Life Coach Training

Interested in becoming a coach, but unsure how to pay for life coach training? What if it were possible to receive assistance from your employer?

Let’s talk about how to make that happen!

In this episode, John and Noelle break down the steps, with real world examples of all the ways you can make a compelling proposal.

Here's How

STEP 1: Find Your Why

Why do you want to get trained as a coach? Why now? Ask yourself why you need or want this, and write down a specific list of every reason. 

Ask yourself the hard questions like:

• How will this make me a better manager or leader in my company? 
• In what specific areas will I perform my work better? 
• How can I bring more value to my organization with a coaching certification?

STEP 2: Take a Look at Your Work Performance

Before you ask your company to invest further in you, it’s time for some self analysis. If you believe you’ve been performing well in your role and are a valuable asset to your employer, it’s a lot more likely that your boss will take your request to pursue coaching certification under consideration.

Make a mental note of times that you’ve incorporated something you learned into your work at the company, and how it benefited your team and the organization.

In making your case to your employer, the direct link you’ll want to draw is between:

• WHY coach training will help develop your potential (Step 1); and
• HOW you can implement these new skills and information on the job (Step 2).

STEP 3: Focus on The Organization

Now that you know your own personal reasons, it’s time to look outwards. While coach certification can help you improve in your role, in order to help your employer see the benefit, you need to present your request with THEM in mind.

Major companies spend a great deal on life coach training institutes. There are countless opportunities for professionals to use coaching techniques, and many people who utilize these skills play a variety of roles within a company without calling themselves “coaches.”

Some of the transferable skills you can expect to gain from a legitimate training program include:

• Communication
• Leadership
• Goal Setting & Attainment
• Motivating
• Performance Coaching
• Emotional Intelligence
• Self-Management
• Ethics

Spend some time with these skills to discover which are most applicable to your role and context. Get in touch with why the skills you want to emphasize from the list above are authentically meaningful to you.

Make sure that you emphasize the impact and value that coach certification can bring to the business. The benefits to you as a person are already understood. If they are going to invest in you as a leader, be ready to explain how getting certified as a life coach will serve your organization, teammates, clients and customers.

STEP 4: Use Facts to Persuade

Yes, you’re probably very excited about this new venture! However, it’s important to be well prepared for this conversation. Do your research and get the facts straight so you can have a well-informed discussion with your boss. Make your request clear and easy to understand, from the specifics to the particulars.

Be ready to answer questions such as:

• How much does the training cost? 
• What’s the time commitment? 
• Will productivity be impacted? 
• How will this benefit the organization?
• Is there a competitive advantage?

STEP 5: Come Up with a Proposal

When developing a proposal, keep it simple. Think of this as you would any other business expense. It needs to be high level, but also detailed enough to help your employer make a decision.

Depending upon the culture of your workplace, you may need to present this information in a formal deck or written proposal. 

Points to consider for your pitch:

• What you are asking for
• Why you’re asking for it 
• The total cost in terms of both resources and time 
• What it might cost the company if you don’t develop these skills
• How it benefits your employer’s business
• Any other benefits or impact
• What’s the ROI (return on investment)?

Use the information you gathered in your research phase, and be sure to address how your employer will benefit. Pay attention to THEIR bottom line: clearly explain how getting credentialed from a reputable life coach certification program adds value to the organization.

It’s helpful to mention that professional training programs and certifications allow employees to quickly gain knowledge or skills that can otherwise take a long time to grow. It can help improve your productivity and that of your team, and boost client confidence. 

STEP 6: Make Your Proposal

Keep the proposal to a single page if you can, and check out any guidelines from your organization’s policies or procedures for training and certification.

Give the decision maker a chance to look it all over before discussing face to face. Write up a simple email with a summary of your request, attach your proposal, and send it to your manager along with a request for a one-on-one conversation to discuss.

STEP 7: Be Prepared to Negotiate

It may be that your employer designates a set amount for your professional development each year, or is facing budget cuts that don’t allow them to grant your request as presented. Be willing to trim it back, or negotiate on splitting the fees, or offer to add some benefits, such as teaching what you learn to your team in a structured way.

AND FINALLY… Bring Back Knowledge to Empower Your Organization

The wonderful thing about knowledge is that it can be shared. Once you’ve been trained as a life coach, be sure to bring back what you’ve learned for the benefit of others in your organization. 

Be sure to keep track of how it affects your performance over time, and let your employer know. It’s a great way to let your manager see how beneficial it was to support you through coach training, and opens the door for others to receive the same support in the future. 

Ready to Get Started?

Many Lumia graduates choose to apply the skills they gain in our program to their existing career. Our ICF-accredited coach training program enhances your current skill set and gives you new tools to utilize in your current role. Business leaders, advisors, HR professionals, therapists, personal trainers, techies, nurses, teachers, social workers -- all of these people have found our training useful in elevating their existing skills, and for assuming leadership positions within their organizations.

Want help thinking through how to make your case for employer sponsored training? Schedule a call with a member of Lumia's team to discuss your situation and develop an approach that's right for you! 

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