What does mastery look like in coaching today — and how are the ICF Core Competencies evolving in 2025?

In this episode of The Coach Within, Coach Jedi unpacks the latest updates to the 8 ICF Core Competencies, based on years of global research, feedback, and practice since the 2019 refresh. Whether you’re an aspiring ACC, an experienced PCC, or a mentor MCC, this episode will help you understand what’s changed, why it matters, and how to apply it in your own coaching practice.

Here’s what you’ll discover:

• Ethical Practice – Navigate integrity, confidentiality, and AI challenges in coaching.

• Coaching Mindset – Embrace ongoing learning, manage biases, and sustain well-being as a coach.

• Agreements – Move beyond checklists into living, revisitable commitments with clients and stakeholders.

• Trust & Safety – The timeless foundation of human connection across cultures and generations.

• Presence – Harness silence, uncertainty, and grounded awareness in coaching conversations.

• Active Listening – Hear beyond words into patterns, emotions, and the unspoken.

• Evoking Awareness – Use questions, metaphors, and observations (without attachment) to spark insight.

• Facilitating Growth – Support autonomy, acknowledge progress, and close with impact.

  
  

Plus: Explore the new ICF Glossary of Terms (2025) and why clarity around concepts like bias, worldview, well-being, technology, and without attachment matters for every coach.

This is more than an update — it’s an invitation to deepen your coaching mastery, align with the latest global standards, and bring fresh clarity to every client conversation.

🎧 Tune in to expand your skills, connect closer to your purpose, and elevate your coaching journey.

👉 For more, visit jedi.coach.

What does it really mean to reach mastery in coaching? In this episode of The Coach Within, MCC coaches Sophia and Jedi unpack the paradox of “Messy Mastery.”

Together, they explore how coaching mastery is less about perfection and more about play, curiosity, rediscovery, and love for the human being. From embracing uncertainty and frustration to drawing inspiration from the “messy” workspaces of Leonardo da Vinci and Picasso, this conversation challenges traditional notions of what mastery should look like.

Discover how presence and surrender create space for organic co-creation, where insights and programs emerge naturally — like a curriculum writing itself. Learn why mastery isn’t a level to attain but an ever-evolving journey, filled with rediscovery of the old, openness to the new, and unconditional love for those we serve.

Whether you’re a coach, leader, or on a personal growth path, this episode invites you to embrace the messiness, unlock fresh clarity, and step bravely into your own evolving mastery.

For more conversations, visit jedi.coach.

Are you preparing for your ACC or PCC exam, or simply seeking to elevate your ethical coaching practice? This session is essential for coaches navigating complex ethical scenarios and striving for excellence.We begin by exploring how to engage in ethical conversations without fear, guilt, or avoidance – a common challenge often presented in certification exams. This episode critically differentiates between proactive care and reactive empathy, highlighting that care, in the ICF context, is an active and deliberate measure a coach takes to support the client, fostering a space of trust and safety.This session meticulously breaks down the eight key sections of Part 3, which fundamentally centers on commitment for all within the ICF ecosystem – encompassing clients, stakeholders, the coaching profession, and its processes.Here’s what we delve into:• Mindful Performance with Integrity and Accountability: Understand your duties to perform mindfully, considering the global impact of your actions on the coaching profession. A critical focus is placed on client confidentiality: learn why sharing client stories or successes, even anonymously, is an ethical breach unless you have explicit, articulated, and recorded permission from the client. We also discuss strategies like fictionalizing content to ethically share lessons learned without compromising privacy. Key factors to consider are the scope of impact/reach and the nature of the permission given.• Commitment to Excellence through Ethical Development: Discover why ethical development is just as vital as skill and personal development. This involves continuous reflection, engaging with dilemmas, and learning from ethical missteps. We explore challenging scenarios, such as the internal struggle of a coach feeling ineffective and the urge to 'solve' for a client, and the importance of regularly resetting your ethical parameters.• Cultural Competence and Curiosity: Navigate the complexities of cultural filters – our invisible assumptions – and how culture profoundly influences ethics. This section advocates for moving beyond mere cultural tolerance to cultural curiosity and responsiveness, rather than neutrality. Learn to respect and adapt to differences in communication styles, hierarchy, generational nuances, and traditions. We provide insights on the importance of pre-session cultural 'homework' and how to frame initial conversations when cultural context is unfamiliar. The distinction between cross-cultural and multicultural differences is also explored.• Awareness of Relationships and Influencing Factors: Gain insight into how biases, power dynamics, and systemic oppressions can affect coaching relationships. Understand that unexamined power can distort the coaching relationship and that the client remains the expert in their own domain knowledge, while the coach provides expertise in the coaching process. We also discuss avoiding overly 'politically correct' but robotic conversations in favor of genuine ethical alignment for client safety.• Respectfully Addressing Unethical Conduct: Develop the courage to confront concerns regarding unethical behavior by peers, clients, or stakeholders. This includes navigating sensitive situations such as HR requests for confidential client insights, or addressing misleading marketing claims and over-promising breakthroughs by other coaches online. Private communication is often the preferred first step.----For more real stories, practical tools, and thought-provoking reflections, or to explore upcoming programs, visit jedi.coach or check out our show notes. If this podcast helped you grow, please follow, share, and leave a review – it helps more people find us. Until next time, keep listening, keep reflecting, and keep braving your story from within.https://jedi.coachJedi@Jedi.Coach

Welcome to "The coach within," where transformation begins from the inside out. In this crucial episode, your host Coach Jedi dives deep into the ethical frontier of coaching, focusing on navigating the gray zones and ethical ambiguity with wisdom, courage, and fortitude.

This discussion is essential for all coaches – whether you're an organizational, leadership, life, relationship, or even children's coach – as well as leaders and anyone on a journey of personal growth. We aim to equip you for scenarios where multiple options may seem correct or wrong, and where the ambiguity requires a clear logic to evaluate the best choice.

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• Beyond these practical scenarios, we delve into 5 key signals of ethical ambiguity that coaches must watch for in their practice:

  • Over responsibility: When the coach feels an excessive need to "fix," "help," or "save" the client, often called the "superman effect". This involves the coach holding the weight of transformation instead of the client. We clarify that the coach is responsible to the client, while the client is responsible for their results and outcome. This highlights the importance of setting expectations at the beginning.
  • Role Confusion: The blurring of lines between distinct roles such as coaching, mentoring, advising, or consulting. It's crucial to co-create clarity with the client about the coaching versus advising boundary before proceeding.
  • Silent Dissonance: An intuitive sense that "something feels off," "scratchy," or "not quite right" in a session, even if everything appears fine on the surface. You might feel unusually fatigued or begin asking scripted questions. The best ethical move is to pause and name what you are sensing, inviting the client into reflection.
  • Power Drift: A subtle shift where the client dominates the conversation, dismisses your questions, and sets the agenda, causing the coach to lose agency and the session to no longer be a co-created space. This erodes the co-created partnership and can compromise client autonomy .
  • Emotional Stickiness: Carrying a client's emotional issues or story with you after the session, leading to lingering impact and potential transference or counter-transference. If you find yourself ruminating over a client's story and feeling emotionally heavy, reflecting in supervision is the best next step [5, Q5 C]. This signals a need to re-center yourself, perhaps by taking a jog, exercising, or reading.

  
  

  We also discuss the distinct and vital role of supervision in coaching. Unlike mentor coaching, which focuses on feedback for ICF core competency development, coaching supervision is a space to voice any concerns, support the coach's overall development, address their state of being and mind, manage biases, discuss personal challenges, and navigate ethical issues. It serves as a reflective space for the coach, supporting them beyond competency development. The term "reflect in supervision" refers to checking in with a coach supervisor for help or support.

  Finally, we introduce the 3x3 Ethical Compass – a powerful framework to help you navigate ambiguous or emotionally charged moments. This principle guides you by considering Intent, Impact, and Integrity across three levels: Self, Client, and System. By asking questions like "What am I hoping to achieve here?" (Intent/Self), "How could this influence their autonomy or safety?" (Impact/Client), or "Does my action reinforce ethical standards beyond this moment?"

  
  

  For more real stories, practical tools, and thought-provoking reflections, or to explore upcoming programs, visit jedi.coach or check out our show notes.

  
  

  If this podcast helped you grow, please follow, share, and leave a review – it helps more people find us. Until next time, keep listening, keep reflecting, and keep braving your story from within.

  
  

Welcome to "The coach within," where transformation begins from the inside out. In this crucial episode, your host Coach Jedi dives deep into the ethical frontier of coaching, presenting 10 challenging questions focused on navigating the gray zones with wisdom, courage, and fortitude. This discussion is essential for all coaches – whether you're an organizational, leadership, life, relationship, or even children's coach – as well as leaders and anyone on a journey of personal growth.

We explore common ethical dilemmas through real-world scenarios, emphasizing the "first principles" of the ICF Code of Ethics:

• Client Safety & Mental Health: What's your best action when a client shares depressive thoughts and doesn't feel safe at home? Learn when to pause and explore options for professional support or reporting in line with your agreement, referencing ICF Code of Ethics Standard 2.3.
• Referral Bonuses & Conflicts of Interest: Navigate situations where a client offers you a referral bonus. The key is to disclose the referral offer and clarify compensation boundaries to avoid conflicts of interest, as per ICF Standard 3.8 (disclosing compensation for referrals) and 3.3 (resolving conflict of interest). It's about upfront clarity in your arrangements.
• Confidentiality with Sponsors: Discover the most ethical step when a manager asks for a summary of a coaching conversation with their employee. The best approach is to revisit the confidentiality agreement with both client and sponsor before sharing anything.
• Setting Boundaries with Clients: How do you handle a long-term client contacting you outside sessions for non-coaching advice? The ethical next step is to explore and reset the coaching agreement, clarifying boundaries.
• Cultural Dynamics in Coaching: When coaching someone from a culture that prioritizes hierarchy, and they often agree with your suggestions, the ethical response is to explore the relational dynamic and invite awareness of partnership.
• Ethical vs. Legal Boundaries: What should you do when a client confesses lying on a job application? It's crucial to explore the client's reasoning and clarify that reporting is not your role unless law requires it.
• Coach Self-Care & Presence: What's the most ethical step if you are emotionally affected and begin dreading sessions with a particular client? Seek supervision and evaluate whether your presence has been compromised.
• Consent for Public Sharing: Understand the ethical breach when a coach posts a social media quote from a client session (even anonymously). The breach is failing to obtain explicit informed consent from the client, as they can still feel exposed.
• Social Media Friend Requests: A past client asks to be friends on social media, and you feel uncomfortable. The most ethical action is to consider the nature of the request and initiate a conversation to clarify relational boundaries.
• Group Confidentiality Breaches: In a group coaching session, if one participant reveals confidential information about another, the best response is to pause the session and address the breach in a respectful and confidential manner. This might involve a co-coach or temporarily pausing the group to address individuals privately.

This episode delves into the practical application of the ICF Code of Ethics, helping you make courageous decisions in complex scenarios. Whether you are preparing for your ICF credentials or simply aiming to deepen your understanding of ethical coaching practices, this episode provides invaluable insights and practical tools.

For more real stories, practical tools, and thought-provoking reflections, or to explore upcoming programs, visit jedi.coach or check out our show notes.

If this podcast helped you grow, please follow, share, and leave a review – it helps more people find us. Until next time, keep listening, keep reflecting, and keep braving your story from within.

Welcome to "The coach within," where transformation begins from the inside out. In this crucial Part 2 episode, your host Coach Jedi dives deep into the ethical frontier of coaching, focusing on navigating the gray zones with wisdom, courage, and fortitude. This discussion is essential for all coaches – whether you're an organizational, leadership, life, relationship, or even children's coach – as well as leaders and anyone on a journey of personal growth.

We explore seven common ethical gray zones – subtle, complex situations where there may be no clear violation of the Code of Ethics, but the coach experiences discomfort, a conflict with personal values, or uncertainty:

• Blending Roles Without Clarity: Discover the challenges of being an internal coach, advisor, or mentor where lines blur, and how to maintain clarity in your coaching agreements, even when organizations use terms like "talent" or "employee" instead of "client". Learn how to set boundaries and distinguish your coaching role from HR or managerial functions.

• Emotional Dependency to the Coach / Over-attachment: Understand when a client's emotional needs extend beyond the scope of coaching and risk becoming therapeutic. We discuss how to establish clear boundaries and the importance of knowing and referring clients to appropriate mental health resources and helplines in your country.

• Confidentiality in Team or Organizational Coaching: Navigate scenarios where sponsors (HR, team leaders) request session notes or insider information. Learn how to protect client trust and safety, and when confidentiality can and must be breached, such as for violations of company policy, employee contracts, or criminal laws.

• Cultural Biases or Communication: Explore how your own cultural values, generational attitudes, traditions, hierarchies, and customs can influence your perception and create blind spots in listening. Understand the nuances of multi-generational workplaces and the importance of avoiding projections of your own beliefs onto the client.

• Unacknowledged Power Dynamics: Recognize situations where clients may feel unsafe to fully express themselves due to perceived seniority (age, title, position, gender) of the coach. Learn how to create psychological safety and address unspoken hierarchies to foster open communication.

• Coaching Friends, Relatives, or Past Clients: Unpack why pre-existing relationships can lead to complacency, cognitive biases, and make it difficult to maintain neutrality. We discuss the inherent challenges and offer guidance on when it might be best to avoid coaching those very close to you.

• Unconscious Influence on Client's Direction: Become aware of how you might subtly lead clients through your tone, pacing, or framing, and the importance of trusting the client to find their own solutions rather than imposing your own frame of thinking or rigid models.

We also cover the critical decision-making process, including when it's appropriate to respectfully terminate a coaching agreement if a client's customs or values conflict irreconcilably with your own, emphasizing that not every client is a fit for every coach.

For more real stories, practical tools, and thought-provoking reflections, or to explore upcoming programs, visit jedi.coach or check out our show notes.

If this podcast helped you grow, please follow, share, and leave a review – it helps more people find us. Until next time, keep listening, keep reflecting, and keep braving your story from within.

Welcome to "The coach within," where transformation begins from the inside out. In this crucial episode, your host Coach Jedi dives deep into the ICF Code of Ethics, focusing intensely on its four Core Values: Professionalism, Collaboration, Humanity, and Equity. This discussion is essential for coaches, leaders, and anyone on a journey of personal growth, offering clarity, sparking insight, and bringing you closer to your purpose.

And here's a bonus: This episode includes challenging sample questions to test your knowledge of these critical ethical concepts, perfect for self-assessment and refining your understanding of the ICF Core Values and ethical principles. This is especially valuable if you're preparing for ICF credentials like the ACC, PCC, or MCC exams, where ethics comprises a significant portion of the test!

Learn why ICF Core Values are the foundational framework for understanding the entire Code of Ethics, ethical principles, and standards of conduct. We emphasize their importance for guiding all ethical reasoning and decision-making, with all values and principles being equally important, supporting one another, and aspirational.

We break down each core value, providing definitions and practical insights:

• Professionalism: A commitment to a coaching mindset and professional quality that encompasses responsibility, respect, integrity, competence, and excellence. This includes being true and accurate in your statements (e.g., representing yourself as a "coach in training" if not credentialed). We discuss the importance of lifelong professional learning and making clear, accurate representations in all professional interactions, prohibiting misrepresentations like guaranteeing earnings or offering kickbacks for referrals.
• Collaboration: A commitment to developing social connection and community building. This involves working collaboratively, fostering joint creativity, partnering with diverse social identity groups, and cooperating with other ICF professionals, associations, and coaching organizations.
• Humanity: A commitment to being humane, kind, compassionate, and respectful to others. This value encourages accepting imperfections as an opportunity to spread a culture of openness and self-acceptance, continuously seeking self-awareness, owning mistakes, and avoiding any communication that suggests superiority (e.g., using grand titles like "Dr. Coach" to clients).
• Equity: A commitment to using a coaching mindset to explore and understand the needs of others, creating equality for all. This means recognizing and respecting all identity groups, treating everyone with dignity, bringing awareness to conscious and unconscious biases, and maintaining equality in all coaching relationships (coach-client, trainer-student, mentor-coach, supervisor-coach).

This episode also highlights the "do good principle" for navigating challenging situations and making courageous decisions. Whether you are preparing for your ICF credentials or simply aiming to deepen your understanding of ethical coaching practices, this episode provides invaluable insights and practical tools.

For more real stories, practical tools, and thought-provoking reflections, or to explore upcoming programs, visit jedi.coach.

If this podcast helped you grow, please follow, share, and leave a review – it helps more people find us. Until next time, keep listening, keep reflecting, and keep braving your story from within.

Welcome to "The coach within," where transformation begins from the inside out. In this crucial episode, your host Coach Jedi dives deep into the ICF Code of Ethics, specifically exploring its purpose, core values, and the commitments required from all within the ICF ecosystem. This discussion is essential for coaches, leaders, and anyone on a journey of personal growth, offering clarity, sparking insight, and bringing you closer to your purpose.

And here's a bonus: This episode includes challenging sample questions to test your knowledge of these critical ethical concepts, perfect for self-assessment and refining your understanding of the ICF Code of Ethics Purpose section. This is especially valuable if you're preparing for ICF credentials like the ACC exam, where ethics comprises a significant of at least 60% of the test!

Discover how the ICF's revised Code of Ethics (2025 version) sets the ethical standards of professional conduct required to be adhered by all within the extensive ICF ecosystem, not just credentialed coaches. We break down the six family organizations that form this ecosystem – including ICF Professional Coaches, Credentials & Standards, Coaching & Education, Foundation, Coaching in Organizations, and the Thought Leadership Institute – and how they are strategically coordinated by the ICF Global Board.

Learn why ICF Core Values are the foundational framework for understanding the entire Code of Ethics, ethical principles, and standards of conduct. We emphasize their importance for guiding all ethical reasoning and decision-making.

This episode also sheds light on critical areas such as:

• The Ethical Conduct Review (ECR) process and how the ICF Independent Review Board upholds and preserves ICF ethical standards through it, applicable to all ICF professionals.
• The mandatory requirement for continuous ethical education training for all credentialed ICF professionals, highlighting its role as a foundational element in accredited programs and its significant presence (60%) in the ACC exam.
• Recognizing and addressing misrepresentation and unethical practices within the coaching profession, such as incorrect use of ICF credentials or logos, blurring of lines by those rebranding as "coaches" while performing other roles like financial advising or training, and unethical claims by coaching education companies. Understanding these common pitfalls helps uphold the integrity of the global coaching profession.
• The role of the "do good principle" in navigating difficult ethical dilemmas, encouraging courageous decision-making in the best interest of the client, even though the ICF Core Values are the primary foundation for ethical reasoning.

Whether you are preparing for your ICF credentials (ACC, PCC, MCC) or simply aiming to deepen your understanding of ethical coaching practices, this episode provides invaluable insights and practical tools.

For more real stories, practical tools, and thought-provoking reflections, or to explore upcoming programs, visit jedi.coach.

If this podcast helped you grow, please follow, share, and leave a review – it helps more people find us.

Until next time, keep listening, keep reflecting, and keep braving your story from within.