Are You Ready for PCC? The Shift from ACC to Transformational Coaching

From ACC to PCC: What Changes as You Develop as a Coach?

Do you need 500 coaching hours before you start PCC training?

Lara:
Let’s start with one of the myths. What do you think is one of the biggest misconceptions coaches have about transitioning from ACC to PCC?

Andy:
The biggest myth I hear at the moment is that you need to have the coaching hours first.

I’ve always believed that the more quality coach education you undertake, the better coach you become.

That education can help you as you build your hours because you’re able to provide greater value and a deeper level of coaching to your clients.

I think people sometimes use the hours as a limiting belief:
“Am I ready yet?”

Lara:
Absolutely.

And if you wait until you already have all the hours before completing PCC-level training, then you’ve actually spent those hours coaching predominantly at ACC level.

If you complete the training earlier, you can develop and practise those PCC-level competencies while you accumulate your coaching experience.

It becomes embedded and embodied rather than remaining a theoretical idea of how you should coach at a higher level.

From transactional to transformational coaching

Lara:
What is the main distinction you hear between ACC and PCC coaching?

Andy:
The language the ICF uses is around moving from transactional towards transformational coaching.

At ACC level, coaches often still follow some of those foundational frameworks. That is valuable, but there can be a limit to it.

Another distinction is between coaching the what and coaching the who. At ACC level, you might be working primarily with the situation, challenge, problem or goal the client brings.

There is huge value in that. As you move towards PCC, though, the work becomes more transformational.

You’re coaching the who. There’s an ability to loosen your grip on frameworks and structures, the coaching scaffolding, and become freer, more creative and more intuitive in how you coach and the questions you choose to ask.

And there can be discomfort in that. As you move towards this style of coaching, you’re letting go of the safety net of following a defined structure.

It can feel a little like taking the stabilisers off a bike. You need to find your rhythm. And that comes through practice, through doing the coaching reps.

Lara:
Yes. It’s that transition from coaching the goal towards coaching the person more holistically.

Who are they? What are their beliefs? Their values? Their identity? What patterns are operating underneath what they are bringing to the session?

And, of course, here at the Mindset Coach Academy, we’re particularly interested in those different dimensions of mindset.

What does a strong ACC foundation look like?

Lara:
When coaches are working at ACC level, what competencies do you think are particularly important in creating the foundations for PCC-level coaching?

Andy:
One of the most important things is that they stay in the role of coach.
They have started to let go of habits associated with other roles they might play,  giving advice, being the expert, mentoring or leading someone.

I keep saying to our students:
You’ve got to do less of the work. I’m also looking for structure in the conversation. There is a goal.
There is a destination or topic they are working towards or through. And by the end of the session there are actions, accountability and ownership from the client.

I always say:
If you can start strong, finish strong and consistently stay in the role of coach, you are demonstrating those foundational coaching capabilities at ACC level.

Everybody who comes through our programme and is signed off has to demonstrate that.
Then it becomes about confidence and practice, being able to do those things consistently.

How does coaching presence develop from ACC to PCC?

Lara:
What role does presence play?
How does being present in the coaching session shift as you move from ACC towards PCC?

Andy:
The language I would use is being present with self and being present with the other.
At ACC level, there can be more attention on yourself and on the tools, frameworks and models you’re using.
There is naturally some self-orientation because you’re practising.

As you become more comfortable, your attention shifts more towards the other person and the relationship itself. You are being guided by, or partnering with, the person in front of you rather than being guided primarily by a structure you are following.

For me, PCC-level coaching feels more freeing. It’s more intuitive. You have bigger eyes and bigger ears. You are able to see and hear much more.

Lara:
I love that: bigger eyes and bigger ears. We’re not simply talking about listening to the words someone uses to describe their experience.

We’re noticing: How are they feeling? What changes in their energy? What shifts emotionally? What words do they choose? What words don’t they choose?

Developing that quality of presence during your coach training becomes so important. As your sensory acuity develops, you can lean more into intuition.

It becomes easier to take the training wheels off and move beyond mechanically applying a model into genuine partnership and engagement with the client.

Letting go of the need to fix

Lara:
You mentioned something else that coaches often experience: wanting to jump in and fix.
We want to help people, and sometimes that can turn into:
“I need to provide the answer.”

How do we move beyond that into a real focus on the client?

Andy:
There was a point where I became comfortable with the idea that I might never know the value generated from a particular coaching conversation.
With some clients, you ask a question and they will visibly or verbally show you where that question has taken them.

Other clients give you very little. There is an ICF core competency around coaching in a space of not knowing.
Once you become comfortable there, particularly when you consider the longevity of the coaching relationship, it becomes really freeing.

Before that point, I often see coaches doing too much work. They want to provide value because they get some of their own sense of worth from demonstrating that value. If you can let go of that, you can coach what is actually in front of you. You can trust your intuition and the relationship. You can ask what you believe is the most appropriate question in that particular moment.

You become focused on the relationship rather than clinging to models, structures and frameworks. That is a significant shift. But it requires becoming comfortable with potentially getting it wrong. Comfortable with not knowing. Comfortable putting the relationship first.

Some coaches are holding everything so tightly you can almost see it physically, their shoulders are practically up around their ears. When you release some of that, coaching becomes more playful. More curious. And, I believe, more beneficial for both coach and client.

Where does the coach’s ego fit?

Lara:
Absolutely. There is a release of ego in that too.

There may be no visible signs during a coaching session that somebody has had a huge insight.
In fact, change often happens outside the coaching environment.
You have the conversation. The client walks away. Ideas percolate. Insights emerge later.

Sometimes it’s only when they are in a situation where they might previously have felt anxious, for example, and suddenly notice the absence of that anxiety that they recognise something has shifted.

So there’s an interesting question around validation. What validation are you seeking as the coach?
Where does your ego come into needing to ask the clever question rather than the question that might genuinely unlock something for the client?

Andy:
It’s interesting, and probably slightly subjective. From my own experience, I know at the end of a coaching session whether I have been the coach I needed to be.

I know that when I’m prepared and present, I’m a better coach. I hear more. I observe more. And that affects the questions I choose to ask.

There are sessions where I walk away thinking:
“Yes, I did a good job there.”

And there are others that feel much more difficult. But coaching is a relationship. Sometimes a client arrives highly self-aware, accepts every question and explores it fully. Those sessions can feel incredibly fluid.

Other times somebody arrives with a lot going on, and there are limitations on what they are capable of in that particular moment. As the coach, you need to adjust.

If I can reach the end of the session knowing that I have not allowed my judgement, bias or assumptions to dominate, and I have supported the client to move forward in a way that is meaningful for them, that can be enough.

I was the coach I needed to be for that person that day. You become comfortable with the fact that not every coaching session will leave you with a warm, fuzzy feeling that you have changed somebody’s life.

Preparing yourself to coach at greater depth

Lara:
You mentioned preparing for coaching sessions. Are there differences in how you prepare at ACC compared with PCC?

Andy:
Initially, as you shift from one level to another, you may set more conscious intentions.

You might say:
“Today I’m going to focus more completely on the client.”
Or:
“I’m going to be less formulaic and less rigid with GROW or another framework.”

Over time, people discover who they are as a coach. They discover their natural strengths.
And again, this comes through practice because it is a different way of coaching.

ACC often feels quite natural initially because following a framework or structure is familiar.
Most of us live in environments full of procedures, structures, rules, regulations and processes.

Then somebody says:
“Now let go of that.”

And some people understandably think:
“But I need that!”

The reality is you already have what you need. You have to give yourself permission to be playful, curious and work with whatever presents.

For me, being able to do that means taking a few moments before the session to become present myself. Wipe the slate clean. Clear everything else away. Be ready for the client. That preparation looks different for everybody.

Some people might need half an hour. For me now, five minutes may be enough.
It’s about knowing yourself and understanding what you personally need to arrive fully in the session.

Why teach frameworks if you eventually let them go?

Lara:
There’s something important here because throughout both our ACC and PCC programmes, we do teach models and frameworks.

We teach models including GROW, CLEAR and strengths-based coaching. We move into deeper neuroscience-based modules, positive psychology and other tools coaches can integrate into their work.

So people might say:
“Well, hang on. You teach all these models and then tell us to let go of them?”

Absolutely we do. Because we want you to understand the intention behind those models.
We want you to know the framework and the structure. Then, through enough practice, it becomes integrated. You develop as a coach by coaching.

Eventually, you are not gripping the framework so tightly because you understand it deeply enough to use it more intuitively. The scaffolding is there. You simply don’t have to stare at the scaffolding while you are coaching.

And that frees you to pay greater attention to the person in front of you.

You can become more present rather than constantly thinking:
“What is the next question I’m supposed to ask?”

Slow down and then slow down again

Andy:
For me, another important part of this is the ability to slow down. We live in an increasingly fast-paced world, and coaching pushes up against that.

I regularly tell people:
Slow down. And then slow down again. That can mean adapting to a completely different way of being.
We spend our days rushing around doing things. Then we enter a coaching conversation and need to stop.

Slow down. Sit with ourselves. Sit with another person. Become curious about what emerges.

As you slow down, you begin to develop that intuition about where the conversation needs to go.
There are lots of fantastic models within our programmes. Some you might use once or twice a year.
Others you may use frequently and adapt effortlessly for different clients.

The important thing is to slow down enough to notice what is happening for you and what is happening inside the coaching session.

Then make a conscious choice about the question you want to ask or whether a particular framework would be useful.

At PCC level, there is also more permission to appropriately share what you are noticing in yourself. You are inviting clients to become more aware of themselves. And naturally, as you do that, you will become aware of what is happening for you too.

Sometimes sharing an observation can deepen the relationship. You can be vulnerable in a way that serves the conversation. Again, this builds partnership. And it is why all our programmes contain so much practice.

You need to experience these things yourself before you can effectively invite somebody else through the same process.

How do you know if you are ready for PCC-level development?

Lara:
Let’s talk to the coaches listening who are wondering:
“Am I ready for a PCC-level training experience?”
“Am I ready to undertake the training and mentoring that will ultimately support me towards a PCC credential?”

At the beginning of our conversation, we talked about the myth that you need 500 coaching hours before you can start PCC training. But actually, waiting until then can put the cart before the horse.

We want coaches to develop PCC-level skills so they can practise and integrate those capabilities while building their hours. That strengthens confidence. It strengthens credibility. And importantly, it strengthens capability.

If you develop those deeper coaching skills earlier, your clients get to experience them while you continue developing. So, what would you say to someone wondering whether they are ready for the next level?

Andy:
There’s a slightly blunt side of me that wants to say:
I cannot tell you when you will feel ready. I can make recommendations.

But based on more than 15 years working in coach education, I would say that many coaches are ready earlier than they believe they are.

In my own development, I completed my ACC, PCC, MCC and NLP training before I had accumulated the 100 coaching hours required for my ACC credential.

I believe that made me a better coach. I was practising those skills, frameworks and tools as I accumulated my coaching hours. Then I practised more. My coaching changed.

I always wanted to develop towards MCC-level coaching, but there is a progression to get there.
Some organisations will ask coaches to have completed 25–50 hours of coaching before beginning PCC training.

The important thing is that you are actually coaching. You need somewhere to practise and integrate what you are learning.

We also see people coming through our programmes who are already demonstrating elements of PCC-level coaching during their ACC development.

So I cannot tell somebody exactly when they are going to feel ready. But sometimes, based on what I have observed, my answer is: You are ready now.

If you are open to learning, willing to explore new models and frameworks, and curious about both coaching and yourself, that matters enormously.

Because these programmes teach you how to coach, but they also teach you a huge amount about who you are.
And that development makes you a better coach regardless of when you ultimately apply to the ICF for your credential.

Signs that you may be ready for the next level

Lara:
I think coaches may also begin to recognise it when they are reaching a limit in their current coaching.

Perhaps something emerges during a session and they find themselves thinking:
“I’m not quite sure where to go with this.”

They may feel that they are reaching a ceiling with the client. That can be a signal that another layer of education, tools, frameworks, understanding and integration would help them move forwards.

It is not about dismissing the foundations. It is about building on them.

The Mindset Coach Academy pathway from ACC to PCC

At the Mindset Coach Academy, we have a clear development pathway from ICF ACC through to PCC-level coaching.

Where you begin depends on where you currently are in your coaching career.

Our ICF ACC Level 1 Coach Training provides the foundational coaching competencies, ethical practice, mentoring and evaluation needed to develop towards the ACC credential.

The Professional Mindset Coach Certification develops deeper transformational coaching capability and currently includes 65 hours of ICF Level 2 coach education, alongside methodologies including NLP, Time Line Therapy®, hypnotherapy and Mindset Dimensions.

And our Master Mindset Coach Level 2 Training & Mentoring is designed for experienced coaches progressing towards PCC-level mastery, combining further Level 2 coach education with PCC-level mentoring.

So wherever you are in your coaching career, the aim is not simply to accumulate credentials.

It is to keep growing the skills that allow you to become a more effective and impactful coach in whatever niche you work within.

One piece of advice for coaches considering PCC

Lara:
Andy, as we wrap up, what is one piece of advice you would give somebody who is considering PCC-level training?

Andy:
The obvious thing that comes into my head is: Get on with it.
That might sound a little blunt. But you have to step into it.

The other thing I would say is to start by noticing your coaching. If you are questioning whether you are reaching the limit of the value you can create because the coaching is becoming quite formulaic or feels a little “same, same”, that might be a sign you are ready to develop further.

You will learn a huge amount through the process. Not simply about coaching.
About yourself. Who you are. And who you are becoming as a coach.

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