Alumni interviews

Hena Vissian

Attended our Introduction to the Fundamentals of Coaching workshop and then our Diploma in Transformational Coaching programme, completing in 2024.

Vanessa: Can we start off with you by telling me a little bit about how you came to come on the Diploma with us?

Hena: I knew of Catalyst 14 through my husband. In any event, the Introduction to Coaching was suggested as part of the work that I was doing to try and deal head on with my fibromyalgia. That is, coming to the introduction to coaching might be a good idea because of the insight it gives you about yourself and also as a break from the toxicity of my day job.

At that point I was resisting any kind of treatment by way of medication, and taking a very holistic approach to my recovery, and to get my symptoms into remission. And so, it was one thing in that mix, but I thought I would try to see how I got on: really enjoyed the 2 days, and then Damion had a chat with me and suggested that coaching might be something that I was suited to. He thought it might be a wonderful string to my bow in terms of being a practicing barrister with a coaching qualification. So, a practising barrister who coaches. I think there’s a lot of barristers who have qualified as coaches.I know of a handful of barristers, at least, who have undertaken a qualification who have then left the bar and have become coaches. So rather than it being an alternative career, it is almost like a dual career in terms of adding something to my already existing legal practice, which I have to say really attracted me in the first instance, so I started on the Diploma and thought, you know what, let’s give it a go, see how we go.

Vanessa: Can you talk to me a little about your bit about your experience of being on the Diploma — particularly in terms of whether it met your expectations of what you were wanting to achieve from it, but also about the investment of your time. Is that what you expected?

Hena: I don’t think I did. If I’m perfectly honest, I think I underestimated how much of my time would be needed, and I think in reality to totally immerse yourself in the Diploma, and to give it your best, and to get the best out of it, I think you need to probably about a minimum of 4 hours a week.

Just to do the reading, so not including coaching hours. Because I think in that time you can do the reading, read around topics in terms of modules that are coming up. You need to allow time for that information to percolate, and then reflect in terms of your own practice and any coachees that you might have, as well as apply it to the module that you’re actually going to be attending next. So, I think it’s not just reading for the modules, but reading around and actually getting all of that information: which I’m very good at -doing homework. But what I didn’t feel I had a lot of time for was time for that information just to settle and for me really to be able to reflect on it, to think about it.

I think that that probably would be my reflection in terms of my expectations of the course : I knew it would be work, and I knew it would be a lot of work. I just don’t think I had appreciated how intense, bearing in mind I haven’t studied for 20 odd years. Really getting my head into that mindset again. It’s a different way of studying as well. It’s not like university studying, which again, I really struggled with, because when I first started doing the reading, I went straight to my academic experience, which was, OK, I’ve got my textbook, make lots of notes, and I probably, if I’m honest, wasted a lot of that time in the beginning by being so focused on an academic approach as opposed to a practitioner approach, which is what I think the Diploma actually is. I think once I’d worked that out, I was far more practical in my approach to how I studied, because I think you do have to study but in a really focussed way if you’re really going to get the best out of it.

Vanessa: Can you talk to me a little bit about a bit more about what you mean by more of a Practitioner approach?

Hena: Historically, I’ve been in academia – that has been my educational life. Just strict academia. So school, college, university, even in post graduate diplomas and courses that I’ve done, not non coaching legal, it’s all been very academic. I found with the Diploma to apply yourself in a pragmatic way, in a practical way, was far more effective. Because if you took the academic approach, what you were doing when you were reading the books was just gaining knowledge but how does this actually apply? So how does this apply to me? How may this apply to coachee A, B or C, whoever you’re talking to, and I think it’s really reading around a topic.

So, if you had a module, for example, on imposter syndrome. I think the start point really should be what is it but how does imposter syndrome impact me or my coachee? Therefore, when you look at the reading, you’re looking at it from a certain perspective and I think that then helps you apply it as a coach to your own experience, but then helps with coaching of other people in terms of how they might be able to approach it. Be that, sharing your own wisdom, or asking particular questions. So in terms of a pragmatic practical approach, I think it’s more reading around the subject and practical application of it, as opposed to strictly understanding what the academia says about the topic and being able to rehearse it.

Vanessa: If you were talking to somebody that was considering coming on Diploma or choosing a coach training programme to come on, what would be your top tip in terms of what you think they should be looking for?

Hena: I think from my own experience, the number one question would have to be, do you have time to commit to this course? Do you have time to commit to this course, and when I say, commit to this course, be immersed in the learning. So not just picking up the books, not just turning up to modules. I mean, I, personally, wasn’t one that turned up to modules without being prepared. I always did the reading etc in advance. But sometimes that’s not enough. I think you totally need to be immersed in the process of coaching and being coached, and that way of thinking. So, have you got time to do that? And are you able to commit to that? As I say, it’s not just the physical time, but it’s really having the space to make the best of that experience.

Vanessa: You were talking about how you wanted to add it as an extra string to your bow, build it into your current work. Do you want to talk to me a little bit more about how that’s working out now that you’ve completed the Diploma?

Hena: So, my day job is far removed from coaching. But I think it still had a huge impact, positively, in terms of the way I manage clients. In terms of conversations that I have with them, which can be very, very difficult at times. I think it’s made me more attuned to the responses of others, picking up on subtleties, for example, within a conversation in a conference situation, and even when cross examining witnesses or just holding the space between a question and an answer which has a huge impact. It’s beautiful when it plays out and picking up on the subtleties of not their answers, but their body language and what that may mean, and therefore asking that next question. So, I think for me, applying coaching to my day job has really allowed me to develop an extra layer in terms of a skill that I’ve been honing for the last 22 years. So, it’s really been a positive thing in terms of my learning and development.

I think on a personal level as well, not just professionally, I think coaching has really helped me, because it’s really made me more attuned to my own responses, to people in situations. I’m far more introspective in terms of what I’ve learned about myself and to how I want to present to others. It’s given me perspective as well. I’ve grown in confidence hugely since the beginning of the Introduction to Coaching to then finishing the Diploma, that I think was apparent even part way through. I didn’t have the confidence that I now have as a person, you know. I’m very focused now in terms of what I want, how I want to achieve it. Where my goals are, and what I am going to do to achieve them. They’re so far away, but I’m still working towards them, but I’m far more attuned to that now, and I think it’s allowed me to progress both professionally and personally, on lots of levels, even as a friend, as a mum, as a wife, even in those conversations, particularly in conversations with my teenage daughter!

Vanessa: Was the accreditation important for you?

Hena: I have to answer that in two parts. At the beginning of the process, I would have said No. But the area in which my coaching practice has developed, I would say it’s imperative, because most of my coachees are employed in law firms as solicitors. And so, the start point of a lot of these firms because they’re City firms, is that they don’t just want a recognised qualification. They want the accreditation. Without it I would say I wouldn’t have the coaching opportunities that I have had historically and continue to have. So, from that point of view I would say, Yes, it is important, but I would not have realised that at the beginning of my journey.

Vanessa: Can you tell me a little bit about your coaching practice now, and how it’s evolved since you’ve completed the Diploma?

Hena: My mainstay is coaching within law firms. I’ve found that it’s coaching women in law who are usually at a transitional stage in their lives. And that’s where I started with coaching trainees as they were going through that process of training to then applying potentially for a job within that firm or elsewhere, if that’s what they wanted to do.

I’ve also done a few public speaking engagements which has been really exciting and something I’d love to continue to do. I think it’s an evolving practice, as it were. I’m not quite sure 100% where it’s going to take me at the moment. I feel like I’m still fresh in terms of learning where it’s going to take me and how it’s going to evolve, because unlike a lot of people on my coaching cohorts, I didn’t have that coaching background or didn’t come, for example, from a human resources background where you had a handle on things like that. And so, it was a developing practice for them. Mine has evolved over the course of the Diploma and I think it’s still evolving.

Vanessa: What do you find most fulfilling about being a coach?

Hena: The impact – the impact coaching can have. I think in most cases it’s really tangible. Where you’re able to see how people change their thinking, how it makes a difference to their lives. The choices that they make as a consequence of coaching conversations; be that career progression or on a personal basis, how they manage difficult conversations, their growth in terms of their confidence, self-belief, where you can see people then advocating for themselves, but also for other people. So, for me, I think the impact is the most fulfilling thing that I see in terms of my role as a coach.

Vanessa: Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Hena: A huge thank you to Catalyst 14, because without the support, and the belief that Catalyst 14 had in me, I wouldn’t be having this conversation with you today. I have to say that not only the quality of what was delivered was impeccable, those that delivered it were second to none in their experience, their knowledge, their skill, their patience, but also the scaffolding that goes around it. I am not convinced that anyone would get that anywhere else in the same way that Catalyst 14 deliver it.

Adé Adeniji

Attended our Advanced Diploma programme, completing in 2024.

Vanessa: What brought you to the Advanced Diploma programme?

Ade: I got my certificate in coaching in 2010, and whilst I’ve done short courses between then and November 2022, I really felt that I wanted to reimmerse myself in a coaching environment. I felt I was getting a bit stuck in my practice. I was losing my passion when it came to coaching, I felt like I wanted to grow as a coach. And then the other thing that I was exploring was accreditation.
After I did my coaching in 2010, I never really followed through with my ICF or EMCC accreditation and debated whether I wanted to develop a practice as a coach, or focus on building my human resources and organizational development consultancy

I’d been speaking to a friend who mentioned that she had just completed the Advanced Diploma course. We were talking about systemic work, because I’m trained in constellations, and she had said “I’ve just completed this coaching course where a lot of systemic work was covered”. She went on to say that “It’s very relational and holistic. I think it’ll be something that you’d be interested in”.

And so that’s what brought me to the programme. It was really about upping my skills and getting the accreditation, along with reigniting the passion that I had for coaching in the early months of my initial training.

Vanessa: What investment of your time would you say was needed in the programme? Apart from attending the workshops.

Ade: Preparing for sessions before the workshops was really important. Looking at those forms and completing what I hoped to get from the sessions and then doing the reading. I think when I first started, I was up to date with the reading, but then it kind of slipped, because some of the books are really big and some are really thin.

So halfway through I was still playing catch up with the books, I would say every week a couple of hours.

What also really helped was the fact that, I and others on the course, were seeing clients, which helped with the application of what we were learning. I saw that as an important part of the programme, because one of the intentions I set for myself with each client I saw was to apply at least 3 of the frameworks I’d learned in a previous module into the session.

So I would add that client time as part of the time required on the course . I would say, a couple of hours in terms of preparing for the sessions, and after the sessions completing the post work and post forms, which took about half an hour each. I’m so glad I did that because those forms really helped when it came to the portfolio, as I had all that information required written down.

Then a couple of hours with the reading as well, and then some sometimes watching all the videos.

I didn’t see all of them, but one of the things I did do consistently was reading the articles that we had for each module even if I wasn’t up to date with the books, I was with the articles.

Vanessa: You said that you found it then easier to pull together your portfolio at the end?

Ade: So much easier to do. I’m so glad I did . I did that for the supervisions as well. I completed aspects of that form before and after supervision.

With the case study, I had an idea of the person I wanted to use early on in the course, so I started to keep slightly more comprehensive notes from the beginning. Doing all that paperwork was so important for the case study, because it just made it so much easier when it came to writing the portfolio.

I had all these completed forms, and I just went through them, I also kept a separate journal specifically for coaching.

I would make notes about the themes that were important or relevant to what I’d like to include in the portfolio. And so when I was completing the portfolio, I was able to go through that journal as well to see what I had written in the forms.

Vanessa: Thinking about the course as a whole, what would you say has been the biggest impact for you in completing it?

Ade: I think it was in the first module, which was around presence-based coaching from where I started learning, being even more conscious of the present, my presence when I’m coaching – even yesterday, for instance, I had a client, and there’d be loads of things I was doing before the session.

Before the session started, I told myself that I needed 5 minutes to sit, pause and breathe, feeling my feet on the ground connecting with my body. Prior to the course, I would never do something like that. With the course, what it’s really allowed me to cultivate is the practise of connecting with that presence, connecting with all of who I am. I’m bringing that into the coaching environment and it’s important for me to be conscious about that. It’s also really helped me with using self as instrument in my work with clients.

And then just taking more risks in sessions. And when I say, risk, it’s not knowing where it’s going to go, being okay with the not knowing.

It’s really allowed me to be much more confident in how I’m showing up with my clients.

Vanessa: How would you say your coaching approach has evolved during or since the programme?

Ade: It’s bringing all of me into the coaching, so not just my head, which was often the bit that I brought in, bringing in my heart and my gut as well, and my body and the bodily sensations. So, I might say something as simple as oh, you know, when you said I noticed a tightness in my chest, and I’m wondering what was going on in your body, as well, so bringing that in and paying attention to those bodily sensations.

It’s been really crucial. My coaching feels much more embodied now. It feels much more whole.

I completed with a client recently, and in the last session one of the things she said was, “I felt I could bring all of me into our sessions”, and for me that was fantastic, because that’s one of the things I say during chemistry sessions. I really want this to be a space where you feel you’re able to bring your full experience, and identities.

I think that the holistic embodied aspect is probably what’s evolved in my practice.

Vanessa: What are some of the common challenges and opportunities you focus on in your coaching practice?

Ade: Common challenges. Actually, one that comes up a lot is the body, a lot of the people I’m coaching. I say ‘What’s going on your body?’: many say ‘nothing’. Some say, ‘What do you mean by body?’

So that’s been interesting. I remember exploring this in supervision, because also I’m also learning how to be in my body. What I noticed early on is that when clients were uncertain, I would collude with them by not asking any follow-up questions to do with the body, as opposed to leaning into the exploration.
The other piece that comes up a lot is the wider system: what’s going on? What’s their context, what’s going on in their environment?

That’s another one that actually, prior to the course, I didn’t used to do. It was more about the individual and I didn’t do that as actively as I do now. What’s going on, relationally; organizationally; systemically. What else?

The other piece that’s emerged is around marginalization, dominant identity and intersectionality. So, they could be a woman, or a black woman, or a gay person, or a black person, really exploring their identities in the presenting context as well.

I find that really rich. I have been doing some work with a couple of straight white men which has involved exploring their own broader identities, it has been really fascinating with some of them saying, “ Oh, I never really thought about my identities in a conscious way before.”

That’s been a great opportunity, which I’m really, really loving.

Vanessa: I think you mentioned earlier that the accreditation was quite important for you. Do you want to just talk to me a little bit more about that?

Ade: I think it was important from an internal perspective – from a confidence perspective. Because in terms of the organizations that I’ve worked with -none of them ever asked me if I was ICF or EMCC accredited. What they’ve been interested in is, do I have a qualification – which I do, and do I have experience? And do I have industry experience.

Getting the accreditation has professionalized my coaching practice much more and I feel more confident when talking about the work I do in this area.

Vanessa: What do you find most fulfilling about being a coach?

Ade: I love the example I gave where that client said, “this is the space where I felt I could bring all of me” – that was really amazing. Another client I’m working with at the moment, at the end of our last session, said, “You know this is such a sacred space. And I’m able to share things that I wouldn’t be able to share with people in my life.” I love that. I love creating a space where people have the opportunity not just to reflect on what they want, but also their vision.

We’ll work towards getting that vision; bringing that vision alive. I really love that. I’m working with another client who in one of our sessions talked about engaging in difficult conversations, and in the follow up session, he was telling me about some of the stuff that he did following one of our sessions, and as he was speaking it got really animated. I love it when there’s that shift.

It’s about helping people go, “oh, I never really thought about that before. Oh, that’s new to me.” So, helping people come into the fullness of who they are.

Vanessa: Is there anything else that you’d want to say to anybody considering coach training?

Ade: The one piece that’s not come up yet is around supervision, which is so crucial. Prior to taking the course, my supervision was very haphazard. It wasn’t consistent. During the programme, there was supervision and now I’m part of 2 supervision groups. One is for coach Black coaches, and one is a mixed group.

And that’s been really great. I would say that supervision is really crucial. And for people to make the most of it, during the programme, to prepare for it. It’s an opportunity to learn from other coaches, especially in the group supervision, and to reflect on their own practice, as well.

It’s crucial for my own development and for helping me be even more present when I show up with my clients.

Sally Domingo-Jones

Attended our Diploma in Transformational Coaching programme, completing in 2023.

Vanessa: Can I start by asking what investment of time was needed on your part to complete the Diploma successfully?

Sally: It’s not something to take on unless you are willing to dedicate the time to it. I found that while the online and in-person workshops were great and fitted neatly into my full time work schedule, the assignments took time and planning to fit in. What I liked about it though was the discipline of developing a solid reflective practice. It’s something that I now do automatically after every coaching session and I also journal myself which makes it easier to offer as an option for clients.

Vanessa: What is your number one tip for individuals considering training as a coach?

Sally: Do your research! There are so many coach trainings out there and for me it was important to find a company with experienced trainers who offer a broad range of coaching tools and techniques. The right training will be out there for you, it’s a case of exploring and speaking to different people.

Vanessa: What would you say was the biggest impact of completing this course?

Sally: It’s hard to choose just one as it’s changed my life for the better in so many ways. However, the biggest has to be the confidence it gave me to know I could take the leap to becoming a full time coach and consultant. I’m someone who loves to learn and I’ve spent 5 years on and off learning and honing my skills with Catalyst14 and knowing that I’d received such quality training and had feedback and support along my journey definitely gave me confidence that I had the skills to coach.

Vanessa: Reflecting on the Diploma programme, how has it influenced you personally and professionally as a coach?

Sally: It’s influenced me in so many obvious and subtle ways. Before every coaching session I still use my workbooks to refresh my memory on the many tools and techniques we covered. My reflective practice is also a direct result of the programme. Coaching cohorts become friends and I am in a coaching circle with people from my programme, plus have asked for advice and support many times since we completed.

Vanessa: How has your coaching approach evolved since you completed the Diploma?

Sally: I was particularly inspired by the somatic coaching approaches as it connects my yoga teaching experience with my coaching and I love to stretch along the coaching continuum. I’ve been developing more skills in somatic coaching and trying to bring this into my coaching. I was inspired on the recent CPD day by introducing music and fun into my coaching and have been trying to do this recently.

I am also increasingly interested in team coaching and have been working with teams more recently to help them show up authentically and collaborate more effectively together.

Vanessa: Tell me about your coaching practice at the moment?

Sally: I work with a range of organisational and individual clients. Most of my coaching is done online at the moment although I love to meet people in-person or even outdoors if I can. I tend to coach people in mid-career who have hit a bump in the road, maybe they are struggling with a new leadership role or looking to regain confidence after a period out of work, or they are wanting to work out how to bring more purpose into their working lives and how to align their strengths with their work.

I also work with teams, both in the UK and internationally, helping them to develop the mindsets, skills and behaviours to thrive.

Vanessa: What made becoming an accredited coach important for you, and what advantages has it brought to your coaching work?

Sally: Coaching is really having a moment right now. On the one hand that is great as I believe in abundance and the more people that recognise the transformative power of coaching the better. However, it can seem like every person you meet is a coach and I have certainly received some scepticism from people about coaching. For me, having spent time studying coaching skills and then invested time and effort into getting accredited was so important as I feel able to truthfully call myself a coach and it means when I am meeting new clients I can set myself apart from others. More practically it has also been a prerequisite for some of the corporate work I do.

My next goal is to gain my Senior Practitioner Accreditation in 2025!

Vanessa: What do you find most fulfilling about being a coach?

Sally: Everything! One of the strands to my bow is as a strengths coach, helping people to recognise their own strengths and use them more intentionally to live and work with more purpose, happiness and success. Coaching for me is this, it uses all of my strengths and gives me a way of living out my purpose, to walk alongside others and help them to shine. I feel in flow when I coach and deeply connected to my soul and my clients.

Gareth Lee

Attended our Diploma in Transformational Coaching programme, completing in 2023.

Vanessa: Could you tell me a little bit about how you came to the Diploma programme and how you came to Catalyst14?

Gareth: There was someone in my network who is also a very dedicated mindfulness practitioner and who knows Damion. She recommended him. I had been coaching for some time, but without formal accreditation, and I was considering getting formal accreditation. Many things were important to me within my coaching – one of those things is that it’s somehow grounded in mindfulness – that it is underpinned by and linked closely to the mindfulness practice that I have. And so that recommendation, coupled with a little bit of research, made it clear to me that Catalyst would be a good choice for me. So that’s what really appealed about Catalyst: the very explicit mindfulness based underpinnings of the programme and the work.

And then why, a Diploma of any sort? Learning is a constant evolution. It wasn’t like I felt I was desperate to get an accreditation, as I was already practicing, and it seemed to be going well. But at the same time it’s good, isn’t it? From a hygiene, structural and formality perspective to have that governance around it. And also you learn stuff. Of course you learn stuff, whatever you do, you learn stuff. And I think in being a coach, it’s the essence of what we do. So that constant evolution, that constant improvement, it was all just part of that really.

Vanessa: I’m hearing you talked about the accreditation as not necessarily being something that you were looking for. But maybe has been useful?

Gareth: Yes, I was easy about it. If anything, I’d have assumed that maybe it’s a nice to have, and maybe it’ll unlock some doors at some particular corporates who may have prohibited people who have not got a formal accreditation.

But, inevitably, there’s more to it. Inevitably you learn more than you necessarily bargained for, and it’s definitely worthwhile. If you’re not accredited, practicing as a coach, and wonder if it’s worthwhile, it is. It offers more than you might imagine in terms of access to further opportunities and it improves structure and governance around your practice.

Vanessa: What would some advice or tips that you might give to someone choosing a coach training provider. What sort of things would you say would be important to look out for in a programme?

Gareth: So I think it depends what you want to achieve from it. I think you’d look at the balance of the theoretical or academic type work and the practical elements that lead you towards being able to actually deliver that theoretical content in practice. Some of the courses I looked at were very theoretical, I looked at the EMCC website, which I would also suggest to anybody who’s looking for a course. I’d look at the providers list and the courses that are listed within the EMCC website at the various levels of accreditation.

I am always wanting to strive to learn as much as I can. I was quite attracted towards the courses that were at the top end academically. And yet it turns out that they weren’t necessarily practical. They were typically Masters/PhD courses with just a small handful of universities. Four year courses that would have given me presumably a doctorate in psychology. But then what do I do? How do I actually apply that to my practice? So, the point is stepping back and working out what you want. Is it more the academic substance that I really want to deepen for myself, or is it the practicality and the structure?

Then you really need to get something that has that rigour and can evidence that it has that rigour.

And beyond that, it’s looking into the substance of the syllabus and the teachers.  Just as coaching itself is very much rapport and presence based. Guess what? Learning to be a coach is equally rapport and presence based. Therefore, it helps if you have some sort of connection with, and deep respect for the people training you.

Vanessa: What would you say has been the biggest impact for you in completing the Diploma?

Gareth: There have been several impacts. One is that it’s improved my network of outstanding coaches, which in turn has definitely improved the opportunities for more and new clients.

It offers a better structure for me in which to operate which is definitely more sophisticated and professional than the structure I would have had beforehand. And I’m talking again about those so-called hygiene factors in terms of understanding and investing deeply in items such as supervision, CPD, self-reflection.

I guess it’s just broadened the toolkit. One learns different techniques and tools. And it’s not like my coaching’s been overhauled entirely. It really hasn’t. But with those additional tools, it’s a little bit more refined, and I have more options available to me.

Vanessa: What would you say you find most fulfilling about being a coach?

Gareth: It’s this human connection. And it’s genuinely being of service.

Being of service to those who might benefit from it. There’s really nothing more fulfilling than that; it takes some of us a longer time than others to realize it. But it’s true, and coaching offers that, at least for me, as a practitioner.

Vanessa: Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Gareth: Catalyst14 is a very professional outfit. Damion, as the figurehead, is excellent and really exudes the qualities that I think you’d look for in a well-grounded presence-based coach.

But it’s not just a one man setup, the support that you get as well from the whole team involved. Just quality people from top to bottom in the substantive coaching training roles and on the operational and support side, it’s a very, very professional experience. And so it manages to, let’s say, to be something that feels quite small and personal. But with the sort of clean, smooth efficiency that you’d expect from a bigger, more corporate organization.

Gordon Lord

Attended our Diploma in Transformational Coaching programme, completing in 2023.

Vanessa: Please can you tell me how you came to Catalyst 14, and how you came to the Diploma programme?

Gordon: My background is in coaching people, initially in sport. Having explored a range of executive coaching qualifications over several years, I felt ready to embark on a formal learning programme.

Through my work with The Premier League I was introduced to Damion and was immediately struck by his insight, his quiet thoughtfulness, his sensitivity, his quite extraordinary insight.

I had previously spoken to a number of organisations about their coach development programmes. Damion and the Faculty and Catalyst14 were genuinely interested in me.

So it felt right for me.

Vanessa: If you were talking to somebody that was deciding to do some coaching, would you have any tips for them in terms of what they should be doing?

Gordon: My advice to anybody who is thinking about starting to coach, is just get started! Take every opportunity to have coach-like conversations with people — it doesn’t have to be formal.

Just practice, practice, practice.

Because I’d coached for 40 years prior to embarking on the programme, and thought I knew plenty, but actually realized how little I knew, I’d already made a start. But the start I was able to make with the insights I had from the first two months’ worth of the programme transformed me as a coach.

Vanessa: So can you talk to me a bit more about that, Gordon, in terms of the first couple of months, and the effect that it had on you.

Gordon: I came into the programme with a fairly set view of what coaching was.

Very quickly I realized that whilst there was no judgment on me for how I went about things, I saw that there were so many other ways, and it wasn’t “this is the way” — nothing was offered as a panacea. It was “there’s some things you might want to explore. Here are some different approaches.”

The approach helped me to not feel in any way defensive about my own practice, and allowed me to feel comfortable trying different things. So I took courage from the approach which allowed me just to try some things without fear of failing.

For me personally, confidence has always been an issue. Here, I felt confident that I would grow and improve. Not only through Damion and Liz’s brilliant facilitation, but also from my peers in the cohort. I was with some remarkable people who were all on the same journey, starting in different places and with different skills and expertise, and just that sort of collegiate nature of the experience was really important to me.

Vanessa: So, reflecting on the Diploma programme, what impact would you say it’s had on you personally and professionally?

Gordon: I’ve already mentioned the confidence. It’s gone deeper than that and helped me find a new way of seeing myself. So there’s been a profound impact on me as a human being and as a coach. I think I’ve just taken so much from the experience.

I feel as though I’ve got a range of different tools that I’m still learning about. The resources that Catalyst 14 provide are vast and the programme touches on key elements of those, but I still find myself referring back to the course, literature and manuals, and when I’m exploring something which I haven’t touched on for a while, or something which is relatively new to me, I’ll go and dive into those great resources.

So I think my range and my reach as a coach has improved dramatically, as a result of the experience of beoing part of the Diploma programme.

Vanessa: The Diploma programme is accredited at EMCC Practitioner level. Was the EMCC Global accreditation an important thing for you?

Gordon: When I left the Rugby Football Union 6 years ago, I was asked to consider coaching on a programme with a national organization involved in sport.

I went through a process with them, and I felt I could really contribute. Unfortunately, my lack of an executive coaching qualification meant that I wasn’t able to meet the requirements of the role

I realized that if I wanted to continue to explore my boundaries and work in different environments, there might be an advantage to getting an external

I have to say though that the most significant part of the whole thing for me has not been the qualification itself. It’s been the learning that’s happened as a result of it. The qualifications have been incidental. It certainly has opened doors for me, and it has allowed me to engage with organizations which I would not have been able to.

It’s been really important to me but I don’t want to overstate the importance of the qualification over the learning, because it was the learning where the magic lay for me.

Vanessa: What do you find most fulfilling about being a coach?

Gordon: My sense of fulfillment through coaching comes from seeing others achieve their potential, be it within an organization, or as individuals in their own context. It feeds something in me. I love to work with people to help them achieve their potential. I believe that by doing that I move closer to achieving my own.

Vanessa: Anything else you’d like to add?

Gordon: Yes, for anyone who is thinking of getting started, one of the most significant things for me was the support that came from the team behind the delivery team. Doing this is a significant undertaking! Financially, time wise, commitment wise.

Being granted access to professionals like you and Juliette made it so much easier for me to get set up properly and stay on track. Im so grateful for all your support.

The other thing I’ve noticed is that Damion and his team are incredibly well connected both in sport and in business. That’s important to me. I think the cohort, the faculty, the resources, the intent and the quality of the programme is really significant and the support connections available around that are also hugely relevant.

Mark Olivier

Attended our Diploma in Transformational Coaching programme, completing in 2023.

Vanessa: Mark, can you tell us a little about what brought you to Catalyst14 and the Diploma programme?

Mark: When I was looking for a coaching certification programme, I was looking everywhere across the globe, working for an airline, I could probably displace myself anywhere to go to these programmes and essentially what it boiled down to was the style with which Catalyst 14 was doing their programme. I reviewed the way in which the content was being delivered. Of course, how much there was in person and virtual in terms of training, but honestly just the sensibility that was brought to how you coach in the way that Damion and the faculty was presenting it. It resonated with me. It just seemed to be a good fit with my personality style. And so that’s why I gravitated to Catalyst 14.

Vanessa: Thinking about that time, what would be your number one tip for anybody that was considering doing some coach training?

Mark: It was really about changing my organization’s approach to leadership development. That was my main mandate. But personally it was about helping people change and transform, helping them find new ways, new ways of seeing things. And so for me, I had been mentoring individuals for many years, but I knew that there was something different that came from coaching that I had not been able to experience, which was allowing the individual to tap into their own mindset and their own solutions without guiding them. So what drew me to coaching was this desire to help people empower and unlock the best in themselves. And for that, I realized that there needed to be something different than just mentoring or development programs. There had to be another way. Of course, I heard about coaching before, but I didn’t really know enough about it until I put in the research, and once I understood the principles of coaching and what it could possibly do to unlock the individual’s potential then I said to myself, this is a fantastic programme that I need to bring to my organisation.

Vanessa: What investment of your time would you say the Diploma took?

Mark: It was at the peak of my career. I think I was at the most busiest time I could remember myself, but there was an excitement and energy behind taking the programme because I was developing something for myself and something that would help other people. So that gave me the motivation and the energy behind it. You know, you hear this term transformative growth, and I felt it was only right to put in the hours of the reading, the practice, and the reflecting. And so it was a commitment, but it wasn’t a chore. It was an investment in myself. So it was a lot of work, for sure, but it felt like an investment in myself. And so it wasn’t that daunting.

With the portfolio, I’m not super tech, savvy, but I have an interest and I gravitate to these things because I like them to be efficient. But honestly again, it all boils down to the support that comes from Catalyst 14, and knowing that I could reach out and lean on you for any support, made me feel very comfortable, sort of working my way through the process, finding the information, loading whatever I needed to load, checking in with my supervisor, so all the aspects of support that surround you made it easy for me.

Vanessa: So thinking about now that you’ve completed the course, what would you say has been the biggest impact for you?

Mark: I would say the change in myself. To be quite frank, a validation of my own instincts, reframing how I see things. What it means to be a successful coach, I mean at the very beginning I was a little bit starstruck, I would say, by the faculty, the facilitators, even some of the participants who came from backgrounds in therapy or psychology. And I didn’t have that. And I automatically started to feel a sense of disadvantage that maybe I couldn’t be as good as them. But it just took a little bit of time, and I said, put the effort in; open your mind up to the possibility of how your own personal strengths can really benefit you at this point. And then I felt a shift over time in myself; the self assuredness to be able to establish a coaching practice in my own authentic way. That’s what really grounded me, knowing I could do it the way I wanted to do it, and not worry about what I was lacking. Just let it grow over time. And I did see that change in myself.

Vanessa: Reflecting on the programme, how would you say it’s influenced you personally and professionally as a coach?

Mark: I look at everything differently. How I process stress, disappointment, opportunity, growth. I completely look at it with a new lens. The tools and the reflective practices start to become second nature. And you see yourself applying many of them on yourself as well as on the folks that you’re supporting as a coach, I approach my peers as well as my clients, in a more grounded and mindful way, and the very nature, I think, of being present in any given moment, not to let your thoughts stray or wander, to practice all types of care in its many forms, to yourself, to your clients, in your personal life. I think all of these things have been critical to my success and fulfillment as a coach.

Vanessa: And how has your coaching approach evolved since you completed the Diploma?

Mark: Certainly, in my sense of confidence and creativity, I would say, in applying different tools and methodologies, I think at the very beginning. I just wanted to hone my skill in the most traditional sense which was, follow the T Grow model, don’t miss any of the steps. Make that your foundation. And then I saw the possibility and the excitement behind other models, that either my supervisor or the other faculty members would share with us, and you start to find your comfort zone and your instinct as to when you think a different type of model might actually unlock something quite unique for your client, and the landscape of possibilities just grew over the years. It was actually fun for me, and I found it to be fun for my for my clients, as well.

Vanessa: Thinking about your coaching practice. What are some of the more sort of common challenges that you come across?

Mark: Well again, I’m going to take this from my own perspective. But in my organization, which is very large, it can take time for a culture to evolve and helping my organization understand the very simple thing of the difference between coaching and mentoring and other types of development streams. The aspect of contracting with an employee when that relationship was quite different. Just prior to becoming a coach, many sponsor driven coaching requests require patience and persistence to get others to embrace the right principles and boundaries that I believe coaching is meant to represent, helping them understand what are the conditions, the differences. How do you set up a successful partnership?

All these things help to ground everyone in a very consistent strategy. But it takes time to help my organization really embrace those changes.

The code of ethics, the competencies that we are taught through EMCC and Catalyst 14, provide you with the best foundation to establish a really solid coaching practice.

Vanessa: What difference has being an EMCC accredited coach made to you?

Mark: The word accreditation obviously carries its own weight.

I want to bring the credibility behind what I’m trying to adopt in our organization. And so I put a business case to my organization to say that I think you all appreciate and understand what mentoring is, but let’s bring coaching in, and if I can do that on a level that I’m accredited, and I have the capability of really applying the practice and principles, not just in theory, but in full practice. I think that they’ll come to appreciate it, and it wasn’t very long before they understood very quickly that the concept of coaching was another way for leaders to be able to not just advise and counsel, but guide people to grow and be empowered on their own, and showing the differences and the benefits.

But there was this odd notion that managers and leaders feel compelled to provide answers, to solve problems, to make things happen quickly. It’s how they validate their role. But making this important shift, to help empower others, to ultimately influence them beyond that, help them think for themselves and solution for themselves. That kind of evolution in our culture was extremely important for me to help create, and I believe, having the accreditation, having a solid knowledge and foundation was the way in which I could, if maybe not for lack of a better term, convince my organization that this was the right way to go, because I have the credibility behind what I’m trying to preach.

Vanessa: One final question please Mark, what would you say you find most fulfilling about being a coach?

Mark: Bearing witness to change in others and change in myself.

It’s made me a better person. I know it may sound a bit corny, but it’s actually made me a better person, a better partner, a better professional to be able to see an A-Ha moment, as we say, of clarity, of someone breaking away from being stuck or troubled by something – for me that’s so rewarding.

And I think, on another level, it’s the human connections we make, the trust, the bond we have. I think we have lasting impressions with individuals that we work with, but it’s quite true that being a coach has transformed my own well-being. My ability to manage and process stress resiliency, deal with obstacles. All of these things through the coaching programme have provided me with the motivation, the energy, the desire to help myself and others in different ways. So I’ve seen this great change in myself and those that I partner with.

And I know that that many coaching programmes use this word, but it truly is transformative on so many levels.

Helen Pamely

Attended our Diploma in Transformational Coaching programme, completing in 2023.

Vanessa: Would you like to start by telling us a little about how you came to us and the Diploma programme?

Helen: I’ve been a lawyer for many years. I knew that I wanted to become a coach. I trained as a therapist already, and that was in mindfulness based psychotherapy. So I already actually knew of Damion, and I chatted with him before.

I really loved the kind of core values and the ethos of everything he was about, and also Catalyst and so for me, that just really drew me both to coaching, but also to Catalyst from a values perspective.

It was towards the end of my journey of leaving law, and I had my therapy behind me, and then I wanted to actually accredit as a coach, because I think there are so many people out there who call themselves coaches, and I thought I didn’t want to do that without feeling I really knew what I was doing.

Vanessa: Why do you think you kind of went for the diploma programme? What drew you to that?

Helen: I think it was the fact that I got the accreditation, as for me, it’s really important to get the accreditation although actually, funnily enough, I’ve never been once asked for my accreditation, which I found interesting. I’ve worked for a lot of different law firms and companies and individuals at the same time. I’m really glad that I’ve got it though, because I think it just shows you’ve reached a certain benchmark.

I think the training was really rigorous, really comprehensive. It gave me a lot of confidence, so I think that’s what I wanted. I didn’t want to do something that felt like just a weekend course or something a bit Mickey Mouse, I wanted to come out of it and feel like I was a really great coach, and could hold my head high.

Vanessa: Would you say that the Diploma gave you that?

Helen: Yes, 100%. I really rate Damion. I rate all of the other tutors who teach on the Diploma. I think the quality is so high, and I think what’s really special about it, as well as the way all of the tutors are coaches themselves to really top people, and you can tell that. I think what I loved about it as well was it was really experiential. It’s that sort of mindfulness, meditation, kind of angle in the sense it was coming from a place of authenticity of presence.

I think the group got to know each other really well. So there was that really strong sense of holding within the group. And I think from that you sort of built these deep relationships with people where there was a lot of trust, so that you did open up. You did make yourself vulnerable, and you grew as a person which enables you to be a good coach.

Vanessa: For someone considering becoming a coach and considering doing coach training, what would you say to them? What would be your number one tip?

Helen: People actually asked me this a lot via LinkedIn, as well as friends of mine. I think the main thing for me when people ask me about this is that I generally recommend to people they get accredited. That’s a really big thing, because I know there’s a lot of things out there with all sorts of certificates, whether it’s EMCC, ICF, but get accredited. The other thing is that I think differentiates Catalyst a lot is that it’s a small school. So you have small groups, small classes of 15 or 16 people. So you really do get that tutor time. The tutors know you. You know your group, you get to deepen those relationships.

I don’t know about the other big schools in a lot of detail, but I’ve spoken to a lot of people who studied at those schools, and I get the impression that it’s not always that experiential, it’s kind of like there’s just a lot of people passing through. I didn’t want to feel like a number.

All I can say to people when they ask me about this is, I can vouch for the quality of Catalyst. I couldn’t recommend it more highly.

Vanessa: What would you say has been the biggest impact for you in in doing the Diploma?

Helen: For me, it was really helping me understand how to hold space as a coach. What I mean by that is I was already trained as a therapist, so I knew how to hold space. I’d already worked a lot on my listening skills, on being quite perceptive and helping create a space of trust. But I think coaching is different. Coaching isn’t just sitting back so much.; it was really understanding those skills around holding space, giving people the space to really come into their own and explore themselves and what’s going on for them, but also understanding how to how tightly to hold it at different points, how to challenge, how to help people see themselves in a different way, and I think it was really understanding how to step into that space more. And I think I’ve developed as a coach as well.

I would say at times, I’ll give a lot of space, but if I think someone needs to be challenged, I will step in, and I think that’s the sort of thing that the coaching really helps you with, because before that point I see a lot of trainee coaches where a lot of the time people don’t give enough space, so they’ll ask lots of questions and they’ll butt in, and actually the coachee hasn’t had the chance to fully process what’s happening. Equally, if you sit too far back, actually, sometimes you’re not coming in there close enough to help them pivot or see something from a different angle. So I think it’s almost those really nuanced skills that it can really help with.

Vanessa: How else would you say the Diploma has influenced you personally and professionally as a coach?

Helen: I did the Karuna training before, so that was 4 years of the most intense, deep work. I came out of that a different person.

I didn’t come out of the Catalyst training a different person. I got a huge amount from it, though, and I think it was that thing for me of helping me understand how I package all of these different skills in a way that works in coaching and in the real world. I didn’t have the framework before that point to understand. How can I, in a coaching capacity, help people get to this point? In terms of my own internal process I really loved it. I got a lot from it, but I think probably the personal transformation came before that in a deep sense.

Vanessa: Could you talk to me a bit about what you find most fulfilling about being a coach?

Helen: Coaching, I think, is just a modern day terminology for deepening awareness. It’s really a quest for wisdom, you know, and for me. What brought me into therapy and coaching was actually a spiritual path. And I think for me, it’s that always that personal journey of going deeper, that awareness, finding out who we really are in this world, how we want to show up.

I think there’s nothing more empowering than that. There’s nothing more real than that, or even more important. So if I can be that, if I can go on that journey for myself, if I can help other people connect with those deeper levels of personal growth, of authenticity, of awareness, that’s a huge privilege.

And so for me, there’s nothing more powerful than the coaching journey when it is in its purest form. 

Vanessa: Anything else you’d like to add Helen?

Helen: I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the training to anyone who asks me whether they should become a coach, and where they should train I always recommend Catalyst. I say if you’re looking at different coaching schools and thinking, should I do this? Should I do that? I think one of the most important things is you actually speak with the tutors.

You find out what the course actually involves, and actually just really trust your instinct, because I think so many, so much of our lives, we live in our head. And you think, oh, that looks good on paper. I think, with coaching, it’s all about feeling your way into things. So, see if it feels right for you, that’s what I would trust.

Simon Jones

Attended our Diploma in Transformational Coaching programme, completing in 2021.

Vanessa: Would you like to start by telling me a little bit about how you came to the Diploma programme and how you came to Catalyst14?

Simon: Yes, I was part of the mentoring pool for the Premier League and went through the Foundation Mentoring programme with them. I found it very good, at the time I was Head of Coaching and Development at the LTA (Lawn Tennis Association) and thought it would be nice if tennis coaches were able to experience this as well. Feedback from the programme was sensational. I left the LTA and went into consultancy work and took the opportunity to do the Diploma in Transformational Coaching, with the first few modules already completed through my work with the Premier League.

The Transformational Coaching Diploma is a programme that I consistently now recommend to others. I was investing my own money in this and I wanted to be a learner again myself – so I was very emotionally committed as well as professionally. I had strong drivers. The pre-work was good and I followed it all diligently. I followed up with my reflections and I loved the challenges and uncomfortableness of the workshops. I wanted to be with non-sports people so it was more challenging for me – and it was a really safe space to do this. I wanted to develop areas where I wasn’t as strong.

The only sessions that didn’t land as well for me were mindfulness, they weren’t as impactful for me. I had to work hard throughout the Diploma to keep on top of all the models.

The resources were good and I still use them now. The Diploma was really transformational for me. Learning about yourself is equally beneficial to other learning, and really significant for me in my role and in life generally.

Vanessa: What sort of investment was there of your time in this?

Simon: I’d say 3-4 hours preparation and reflection for each workshop, I made myself do it – if I am preaching this to others, I need to do it myself. In addition, there were the books to read which I really enjoyed but it was all time.. The portfolio did take a lot of time – I found it quite hard at first to organize all the evidence, and with the constant editing, going back and cross checking. I engaged Sandra Goddard to help me which I was pleased I did as she helped me a lot. At the end, I was really proud of the portfolio and thought the whole thing was well worthwhile. I’d say to people considering it – don’t go into this unless you are prepared to commit. Doing the reflective forms as I went along made a big difference.

Vanessa: What would be your number one tip to anyone considering coach training, and the Diploma?

Simon: To intentionally try to be as open minded as possible, park your preconceptions and absorb into it. I was successful 85% of the time at that including parking judgement of others on the programme. Switching away from that helped. You need to be really open, much more so than we are in our daily lives. Be prepared to do the work and catalogue it from the get go.

Vanessa: What has been the biggest impact of completing the course for you?

Simon: The idea of letting people create their own thinking and resist the pressure to find answers for them. Understanding the value of letting people develop their own thinking instead of giving yours.

Vanessa: How has the programme influenced you personally and professionally as a coach?

Simon: One of the biggest learnings for me has been the difference between a mentor and a coach. So coaching in a transformational sense, vs coaching/mentoring in a sports sense. I work with a lot of leaders in an advisory role, a lot of the transformational coaching I apply to supporting their own leadership, it’s not necessarily wrapped up as coaching though. I am working at the moment with a leader who is not asking enough questions and thus missing out on relationship development. I now check and challenge more – the ability to do that in a leadership capacity I got from the Diploma.

Vanessa: How has your coaching evolved?

Simon: I ask more and better questions. I am more aware of what I am doing in that moment. The acronym WAIT – Why Am I Talking is very helpful for me as check.? I now have a better awareness of what I am doing at any one time. It has moved me more from mentor to coaching, and I am more aware of when I am doing each. My coachees are also on that journey with me. The coach’s job is to make the coachee a good coachee, helping them with their responsibility. Contracting also helps with both being more aware and the implications of knowing what is going on in the conversation.

Vanessa: Tell me a bit about your coaching practice at the moment.

Simon: I work two days a week for Chelsea Football Club, and people come to me. I am an advisor with a coaching style. I also maintain a client base of five consistent long working relationships. I also run leadership team formations and programmes

Vanessa: What are some of the common challenges and opportunities you face in your coaching practice?

Simon: The biggest challenge is to park your own ideas. To be aware of your own biases is very hard. In terms of opportunities, apart from generating coaches own thinking, you can role model to them and then they do the same. If I am adopting for example an asking approach, they will see that as me being a role model and use it themselves. Role modelling is a big opportunity.

Vanessa: What made becoming an accredited coach important to you?

Simon: Having been involved in professional sport in my early days, I didn’t finish my formal education and wished I had. I have A levels but I was thinking about a degree. The Diploma suited me as it is a professional qualification but it also something I am really passionate about. In my 10-15 year life plan as a consultant working on different projects, I am doing more coaching and having a professional accreditation is beneficial as otherwise work is gained through just word of mouth.

Vanessa: What is it you find fulfilling about being a coach?

Simon: The feedback from coaching. I love the idea of helping, someone came to me and said “It’s a miracle what you did for me”. This is immensely rewarding and fulfilling as you are helping them.

Vanessa: Anything else you’d like to add?

Simon: I loved the whole process, coaching with Catalyst14, Damion was tremendous. We were a Covid cohort, much of the Diploma was online (it was really good online) so would have been nicer to see people more. The last module was face to face, which was great. I think the skills required are really honed by face to face.