The Coaching Crowd® Podcast with Jo Wheatley & Zoe Hawkins cover art

The Coaching Crowd® Podcast with Jo Wheatley & Zoe Hawkins

The Coaching Crowd® Podcast with Jo Wheatley & Zoe Hawkins

By: Jo Wheatley and Zoe Hawkins
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The Coaching Crowd® Podcast is a weekly podcast for compassionate, courageous leaders, HR professionals and high achievers who are passionate about helping others to find alignment in their lives through coaching, and who are thinking of training and developing as a coach. Hosted by Zoe Hawkins and Jo Wheatley, Founders of Global Coaching Training Company "In Good Company", based in the UK, (https://www.igcompany.com). Zoe and Jo are Master Accredited, Award Winning and Multi Award Nominated coaches, coach trainers and coach supervisors. They are authors of the best selling book 'Deciding to Coach: The Mindset & Business Strategy For Aspiring Coaches'. Each episode focuses on a different element of what it is to be a coach and you'll listen in as Zoe and Jo discuss the topic through different lenses. You'll discover practical tools and resources you need to support your coaching as you learn all about becoming a qualified and certified coach. This podcast is a go-to resource for learning more about coaching and the mindset needed to be a world class coach. You'll learn how to enable clients to truly know who they are, what their hearts call for and how to understand their values, beliefs and unconscious needs. Coaching goes beyond professional success and personal fulfilment and focuses on supporting everyday mental health. As you learn more about coaching, you learn to coach yourself. You are In Good Company with The Coaching Crowd®. In Good Company offers accredited coaching qualifications for individuals and organisations around the world, as well as ground breaking accredited CPD for coaches such as the trade marked Emotions Coaching Practitioner Training. You can join our courses and learn more about our communities here www.igcompany.co.uk and take our free quiz to find out which coaching course is right for you www.mycoachingcourse.com.© 2026 In Good Company Career Success Economics Personal Development Personal Success
Episodes
  • How To Find Coaching Clients

    How To Find Coaching Clients
    Jun 29 2026
    What if finding coaching clients is not the biggest barrier to becoming a coach, but one of the most powerful parts of the learning process? In this episode of the podcast, we explore one of the most common questions we hear from people who are training to become coaches, thinking about starting a coaching qualification, or wondering how they will complete their coaching practice hours: where do I find coaching clients? We know this question can bring up a lot of anxiety. Before someone begins a coaching qualification, it can feel as though finding clients will be the hardest part. There may be worries about asking people, not knowing where to look, feeling visible online, or wondering whether anyone will actually want coaching from someone still in training. Yet, in our experience, this fear rarely becomes the reality. Throughout the episode, we talk through the practical numbers first. For a Level 3 coaching certificate, you may need two clients. For a Level 5 coaching diploma, you may need around six clients. For a Level 7 senior and executive coaching qualification, you may need around eight clients. When we put it like that, the process begins to feel much more manageable. It is not about finding dozens of people. It is about finding the right people, creating a strong enough pool, and being prepared for the fact that some clients may not complete all their sessions. We also reflect on how powerful your existing network can be. Your cohort, friends, colleagues, workplace, LinkedIn connections, Facebook groups, local community groups, professional networks and voluntary organisations can all become potential places to find coaching clients. The key is not to hide your coaching journey. It is to share it from the beginning, allow people to follow your development, and then clearly invite the right people to come forward when you are ready to begin coaching. A big part of the conversation is about confidence and specificity. If you are looking for coaching clients, it helps to explain who you want to support and what kind of coaching opportunity you are offering. For example, if you are training at senior or executive level, you might want to coach leaders who are new in role, navigating change, or developing confidence in leadership. When people can see themselves in your invitation, they are much more likely to reach out. We also speak about the value of using your workplace, not only as a source of clients but as a way of bringing coaching skills back into your organisation. Even if you are funding your own coaching qualification, your employer may still benefit from your development. Coaching is a leadership skill, and offering coaching across different teams can create a genuine win for both you and the organisation. The episode also opens up the idea that coaching clients can be found in places that matter to you personally. Local charities, hospices, GP surgeries, animal shelters, community groups, business networks and professional associations may all include people who would deeply value the opportunity to experience coaching. This is where finding clients becomes more than a qualification requirement. It becomes part of stepping into the identity of being a coach. What we came back to again and again is that finding coaching clients is about being visible, asking clearly, asking more than once, and being willing to move beyond your comfort zone. There are opportunities for coaching everywhere. The task is to notice them, speak about what you are offering, and trust that people are often far more open to coaching than you might expect. For anyone training to become a coach, this episode is a grounded reminder that you are not on your own. You have networks, cohorts, communities and resources around you. Finding clients does not need to be the reason you hold back from coaching training. It can become one of the first real steps into practising, learning and becoming the coach you are developing into. Timestamps 00:00: Introduction to finding coaching clients We introduce the episode and the common concern many trainee coaches have about finding practice clients. 00:58: How many coaching clients do you need? We break down the coaching practice requirements for Level 3, Level 5 and Level 7 coaching qualifications. 02:00: Why you may need extra clients We explain why it is helpful to have additional potential clients in case someone cannot complete all sessions. 02:30: Using your coaching cohort We explore how cohort swaps and referrals can help trainee coaches find suitable practice clients. 03:00: Sharing your coaching journey We discuss why sharing your learning from day one can build visibility and trust across your network. 04:15: Using LinkedIn and your wider network We talk about LinkedIn, social media and asking your network to connect you with people who may benefit from coaching. 05:34: Being specific about who you want to coach We explain why clarity around your ideal coaching ...
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    18 mins
  • 5 Reasons To Train In Group and Team Coaching

    5 Reasons To Train In Group and Team Coaching
    Jun 22 2026
    What becomes possible for us as coaches when we move beyond the privacy of one to one conversations and begin working with the energy, complexity, and potential of groups and teams? In this episode of The Coaching Crowd podcast, we explored why so many coaches are choosing to train in group and team coaching, and why this area of coaching practice feels increasingly relevant in today's professional landscape. We wanted to bring this conversation to the podcast because coaching is no longer limited to one to one development conversations. More organisations, leaders, teams, and individuals are seeking collective development experiences. They want spaces where people can learn together, reflect together, challenge one another, and feel part of something more connected. That matters because so many people are experiencing disconnection, pressure, and exhaustion. Group coaching and team coaching can create powerful spaces where people feel seen, heard, and supported by others who may be facing similar questions or challenges. In a professional context, this also gives coaches the opportunity to work more systemically, supporting culture, communication, leadership development, and organisational change at scale. During the conversation, we reflected on the size of the opportunity for coaches. Group and team coaching are not new, but more coaches are now asking how they can broaden their work, move into organisations, support teams, run development programmes, and offer more than individual coaching sessions. For coaches who have mainly worked one to one, this shift can feel exciting, but also intimidating. We spoke about how group dynamics and team dynamics are far more complex than individual coaching. When you move into a one to many setting, there are more relationships, expectations, emotions, roles, and patterns in the room. This means coaches need more than confidence. They need structure, skill, presence, and an understanding of the psychodynamics that can emerge when people come together. One of the key reflections from this episode was that training in group and team coaching can benefit you even when you are not yet sure whether you want to specialise in this area. It develops your systemic thinking. It helps you see your one to one coaching clients as part of wider systems, including families, teams, organisations, communities, and cultures. That naturally expands the quality of the questions you ask and the way you support clients to understand themselves. We also explored how training in this area can open doors. Many coaches begin with one to one coaching in an organisation and then get asked whether they can support a team, design a programme, facilitate a workshop, or help with a leadership development initiative. Those moments can be exciting, but they can also create doubt. Having training behind you can give you the confidence, credibility, and practical tools to say yes to those opportunities. Another important theme was the need for coaches to think strategically about their business. Group and team coaching can help create more scalable offers, more variety, and more routes into organisational contracts. It can sit alongside one to one coaching, leadership development programmes, workshops, internal coaching roles, and wider organisational development work. We also reflected on the human nature of this work. Modern coaching is not only about performance. It is relational, emotionally intelligent, and systemic. In a world where artificial intelligence is changing how people work, human relationships are becoming even more important. Knowledge may be increasingly available, but connection, trust, culture, and shared understanding still require human presence. That is why group and team coaching feels so valuable. It supports people to understand how they relate, communicate, collaborate, and make progress together. It also gives coaches the chance to engage with the living, breathing reality of organisational culture and human behaviour. In the episode, we also shared more about our Group and Team Coaching programme, including the five phases that sit at the heart of the course: Grounding and Gathering, where we explore how to set the work up for success and orientate people into the coaching experience. Roles and Responsibilities, where we consider the role of the coach and the roles that people naturally take up in groups and teams. Options and Opportunity, where we explore coaching methodologies, practical activities, and ways to work creatively with groups and teams. Union and Understanding, where we look at group dynamics and the complexity of human behaviour in collective spaces. Presence and Progress, where we focus on closure, endings, progress, sustainability, and how groups and teams recognise and carry forward change. We also discussed the mindset of a group and team coach, because this is emotional work. How we resource ourselves, what we believe about groups, and how we ...
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    19 mins
  • When to Stop Mentoring and Start Coaching

    When to Stop Mentoring and Start Coaching
    Jun 15 2026
    Have you ever found yourself giving great advice, only to realise the person in front of you still cannot move forward? In this episode of the podcast, we explored one of the questions many leaders, managers, mentors and people-focused professionals face: when is it time to stop mentoring and start coaching? We began by reflecting on the close relationship between coaching and mentoring. They are often treated as separate roles, but in reality, they can sit on a continuum. Mentoring is often about sharing experience, guidance, wisdom and practical advice. Coaching, on the other hand, helps someone explore what is getting in the way of their growth, decision making, confidence and long-term development. As we talked this through, we recognised how easily managers and mentors can fall into the pattern of answering every question, solving every problem and becoming the person everyone turns to for direction. That can feel useful at first. It can even feel rewarding. But over time, it may lead to dependency, firefighting and frustration. If every conversation ends with advice, the mentee may never build the confidence to find their own answers. A key theme in this episode is the difference between helping someone know what to do and helping them understand how to do it in a way that feels possible for them. Someone may know the next step, but still feel blocked by fear, imposter syndrome, uncertainty, beliefs, emotions or organisational pressures. That is often the point where coaching becomes powerful. We also reflected on the limits of labels. The question may not be whether we are a coach or a mentor. The better question may be: what does this person need from us in this moment? Sometimes they need knowledge. Sometimes they need challenge. Sometimes they need emotional space. Sometimes they need a thinking partner who can help them work beneath the surface. For mentors, line managers and leaders, this episode highlights the importance of recognising repeating patterns. If a mentee keeps returning with the same concern, the same confidence issue or the same barrier, more advice may not be the answer. Coaching skills can help uncover the deeper obstacle and support sustainable growth. We also explored the emotional experience of the mentor. If we begin to feel frustrated, tired or unable to help, that may be a sign that we have reached the edge of what mentoring alone can offer. Rather than blaming the mentee, we can see this as an invitation to expand our own skills and capacity. One of the most important reflections from this conversation is that coaching can help mentees move beyond reliance on the mentor. Great mentoring should equip people for life beyond the relationship. Coaching supports that by helping people build self-trust, self-awareness and the ability to make decisions for themselves. We also talked about how this can show up in organisations. A new employee, or someone stepping into a new role, may benefit from a mentoring approach at first. They may need guidance, structure, advice and practical support. But as they grow in confidence and competence, the relationship may need to evolve. That is where recontracting becomes important. We can have honest conversations about what support is needed now, what has changed and whether the relationship should become more developmental. Ultimately, this episode is about working with people in a way that truly serves their growth. Mentoring has huge value. Coaching has huge value. The real skill is knowing when to offer guidance, when to step back and when to create the space for someone to discover their own way forward. Timestamps 00:00 Welcome and episode introduction 00:51 Coaching and mentoring as a continuum 02:19 When mentoring reaches its natural edge 03:14 Coaching the gap beneath the goal 04:56 The limits of coach and mentor labels 05:52 Repeating patterns, confidence and imposter syndrome 07:36 Moving from the what to the how 08:40 Helping mentees grow beyond the relationship 10:03 When the mentor no longer has the answer 11:28 Why mentors benefit from coaching skills 13:05 Recontracting the relationship as people grow 14:47 Coaching training and next steps Key Lessons Learned Mentoring and coaching are closely connected, but they serve different purposes at different moments.Mentoring often focuses on sharing knowledge, experience and advice, while coaching explores what is getting in the way of action and growth.If a mentee keeps bringing the same challenge, theme or confidence block, it may be time to move into a coaching approach.A mentor's frustration can be a useful signal that advice alone is no longer helping the person move forward.Coaching helps people build self-awareness, self-trust and the ability to make decisions beyond the mentoring relationship.Managers who rely only on giving answers can become trapped in firefighting rather than developing their team.The shift from mentoring to coaching often happens when someone knows ...
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    15 mins
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I have listened couple of episodes. They were great and downloaded all of the others as well.

Great podcast

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