If you had to pick one quality or virtue you must have when you become a coach, what would you pick? Would it be honesty? Compassion? Business savvy? Well, for me the one indispensable quality is integrity. Without it, the services of the most knowledgeable, compassionate guru coach in the world will just make you feel like you need to take a shower.

So What Is Integrity Really?

Integrity comes from the Latin word for wholeness or completeness. It has several meanings, including acting according to a moral and ethical code, and acting congruently with the values and beliefs you say you hold. In the context of becoming a coach, and assuming you are a decent human being, it really comes down to honoring your commitments and keeping your agreements. When you become a coach through the JTS Advisors Master Coach University you learn this concept in the accountability training as “being your word.”

Become A Coach Who Is Unstoppable

Integrity is a quality that shows up, or sometimes doesn’t show up, in all kinds of ways when you become a coach. There are some obvious ones, like always being on time for your calls, returning calls or sending recordings or documents when you say you will, and following through in a timely way on any commitments you make to clients, colleagues, vendors, friends and family, and maybe most important, to yourself. Be aware that telling yourself “I’ll get that done tomorrow” is a commitment. Saying to someone else “I’ll give you a call next week” is a commitment. It’s best to specify the details of commitments, like time and date, but even if you leave those things vague, if you say you are going to do something, it’s critical that you be unstoppable in doing it.

Why Bother?

When you are a coach with integrity, you become someone that people can count on. Clients know what to expect from you. They may not always like what you say or do, but they can trust you, because you do what you say you will do. Likewise, when you are always true to your word, you know that when you make a commitment you are unstoppable in keeping that commitment. That gives you the power to get anything done that you want. If you commit to it, you know from personal experience that you can count on yourself to find a way to get it done.

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Dorine G. Kramer
JTS Advisors Strategy and Accountability Coach