The magic of Re-Visiting
WHY KEEP YOUR META-COACH LICENSE CURRENT?
It was a strange question. At least I thought it as strange. “Why should I keep up my license as a Meta-Coach? Why renew it each year?” I say it struck me as strange because when I consider all of the personal investment to reach certification level that is required to be licensed as a professional coach, as a Meta-Coach, for me it would think it strange to not renew it. Why give up something that I invested time, money, and effort into attaining?
From time to time I get a notice from the State of Colorado for my license as a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), and even though I closed my practice in 1996, I still pay the $250 for the license renewal. I do that, in part, precisely because of the investment I have in it— the many years and the tens-of-thousands of dollars to reach it. Also, if I let it go, it would take a lot to reinstate it.
Similarly, the Meta-Coach License —as a professional license, it says that you are an officially recognized Meta-Coach by the MCF. And you know that it took a big personal investment to reach that status. So when you signed the License Contract and became a part of the worldwide community of Meta-Coaches, you entered an exclusive community. So the idea of paying a small annual fee of $50 Australia dollars (about $35 USD and 25 Euros) to keep up your license strikes me as silly. So if you ask, “Why keep that current? Why keep it up? What is the value in that?” here are some of my answers.
1) To maintain your Professional Standing in the MCF.
Just as the ICF governs the Coaches who want that certification, so the MCF governs Meta-Coaches under the Neuro-Semantic banner. So I think the most important reason is to maintain your Professional Standing in the MCF and to not let your license expire. That allows you to maintain presence in a professional community. And that helps your own credibility.
2) To be recognized by the MCF as a Meta-Coach.
The fact is that when you do not keep your license up, it expires. And that requires two things, the annual fee and continual education. We have not set all of the continual education requirements yet but the MCF leadership team will be doing that at the first of the next year. So if you do not keep the license up, it expires and that means you are no longer a “Meta-Coach as recognized by the MCF.”
3) To contribute to the community of Meta-Coaches.
The way any brand works is that it works by the people who care about it and use it. The more they invest in the branding of Meta-Coaching, in the community, in helping each other, in participating in the MCF chapter meetings, the stronger the brand becomes, the more it becomes known to others, and the more impact it will have. There are thousands of “Lone Ranger” coaches around the world— unrelated to any Certifying Body or Body that holds them accountable as a professional. That forces each one of them to try to create credibility not only for themselves, but also for the field of Coaching itself.
4) To help the MCF Chapters.
We now have some 20 or so chapters around the world. I would love to see 100 chapters by the end of this year. 200 next year. 1000 in five years. Imagine the impact that would have around the world! Wouldn’t that be great?
The fact is that any Meta-Coach can start a chapter —and that’s because the primary purpose is the same as your personal business—to promote the brand of Meta-Coaching. Then beyond that there are additional purposes like supporting Meta-Coaches with their skills, knowledge, and understanding. The Chapters do this primarily by holding practice groups. Andthechaptersareprimarilyfundedbytheannualfee(halfofthefeestayswith thelocalchapter). AndwedoallofthatbecauseoftheNeuro-Semanticprinciple—we can do so much more together than alone or apart. In numbers there is strength.
5) To keep actively involved with the Meta-Coach community.
Investing your time and money as well as your mind, effort, interest, and commitment is a way to stay actively engaged. It enables you to say informed as to new developments, to practice your skills on a regular basis, and to share your discoveries with other meta- Coaches around the world.
Community is the greatest weakness in NLP, it was the greatest weakness in the first human potential movement, and it is also weak in the field of Coaching. Those who live at the lower end of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs operate from deficiency and think only about themselves. To think about contributing to a community requires that a person is living at a higher need level— the need for self-actualization.
For re-visiting Meta-Coaches please click here for more information about:
ACMC Annual License Fees, Continued Education Requirements (CER) and Renewal Procedure