Should Coaches Be Scared Of The Coaching AI Revolution?

Clare Josa, Research & Training Director

Want to stay in the loop with the latest news and events? Get our free occasional What's On newsletter:

How much is AI going to impact your coaching business this year?

What does the coaching AI revolution hold in store?

We’ve only really scratched the surface on how AI is going to affect the coaching industry and I believe 2024 will see this create revolutionary change.

Whether it's 'self-coaching apps', or coaches automating more of the routine elements of working with clients, or AI-driven marketing, AI is going to change our industry.

Fast.

One of the outcomes is going to be that some coaches who aren't as good as you will get more clients and grow their business more. And that can feel really unfair.

To stay ahead and to keep serving your clients the best you can, this means that you will have to see the opportunities where AI cannot fill the gap or where people have needs greater than an impersonal apps.

And I'm not just talking about 'official' coaches - this applies to anyone who has a 'coaching' element in the work they do, including consultants, contractors, and even line managers and HR professionals.

I was on a call with Daniel Priestley on Friday morning and he said something I found really helped to understand the difference we can still make, to stay ahead in our burgeoning AI-driven world:

Imagine you're a Master Baker, with a reputation for creating the most incredible cakes in the city.

AI is coming and it is going to be able to bake cakes as well as the best bakers.

But that means it's time to shift your energy and focus to the bits where you make the biggest difference - the personal, human, expert bits that AI can't do.


People will come to you because of the unique value you can add that AI-driven bakers (or coaches) can't.

And that means that one of the things we need to focus on this year, as coaches, is deepening our skills, in the areas that matter most to our clients - the bits that AI can't unblock.

No more excuses. No more saying we're 'too busy'. No more telling ourselves we don't want to invest (time, money, energy). We're at a 'differentiate or die' pivot point in the coaching-AI dynamic.

Entry-level or cookie-cutter coaches will, I predict, quickly be squeezed out of the market by AI-based apps. After all, why pay thousands to a coach for something that an app can give you for 50 quid?

My prediction is that entry-level clients will stop paying that premium to work with humans. Makes sense, doesn't it?

But those coaches who have moved into Mastery, with skills that others don't have, will stand out even more than before. And they will own their niche.

There's one brilliant piece of news:

We've been researching this over the past year, and AI doesn't know how to support clients to deeply clear #ImposterSyndrome.

It's great at recommending the coping strategies and sticking plasters that it gleaned from its language model training. But it doesn't have the deeper, trauma-informed, root-cause-clearing skills that cultivate Mastery in a coach who is supporting a client in setting themselves free from the secret fear of being found out as a fraud.

And almost all clients, by the time they get to the point of wanting to work with a Master Coach, will have hidden blocks that are, at some level, driven by secret, self-imposed glass ceilings.

AI can't go there. Nor can foundation-level coaches.

So being one of the very few coaches in the world who has the skills to work with clients at that deeper, root cause level in Imposter Syndrome work means you'll thrive, no matter what AI throws at the coaching world, and your clients will love you for it.


It's a win win. And you can still use AI to do the 'cake baking' bit.


Riding the AI Coaching Revolution Wave

Another thing that Daniel said on Friday is that the actions we take THIS YEAR in 2024 will set our trajectory for the next decade with AI - dictating whether we're riding that wave or left behind in the shallows.

In some ways that's scary. But it also gives us an incredible opportunity.

This really applies coaching.

There has never been a more important time to invest in your skills, and to prioritise moving into Mastery as the next step in your coaching journey.

The world is in desperate need of more certified Imposter Syndrome Master Coaches (and getting that qualification doesn't mean you have to rebrand!) We've got work we need to send your way - we're turning away clients who want to work with Master Coaches, because there aren't enough of them.

Our research shows that 1 in 10 employees is thinking of quitting, every single day, due to Imposter Syndrome or burnout. That's an enormous number of people who need your help. And my Imposter Syndrome Master Coach certification gives you the expertise to do that.

Our research also shows that traditional, classic coaching makes Imposter Syndrome worse (I know, rotten tomato alert). It raises awareness of the problem, but doesn't give clients the tools to prevent self-sabotage. To deal with Imposter Syndrome, you have to be able to help clients to go below the surface to clear out the hidden blocks that were driving this deeply unconscious behaviour.

That's what I've spent the past 20 years doing. And step-by-inspirational-step how-to is what I share with you in my certified Imposter Syndrome Master Coach programme.

In it, you'll learn direct from me how to get the same transformational results I do with clients - and even better, because you'll be bringing your magic to the party, too.

By becoming a certified Imposter Syndrome Master Coach, you'll be making sure you're riding that AI wave, not stuck struggling in the shallows for the next decade.

If you've been thinking about making 2024 the year you move into Mastery and add the life-changing strategies from the Natural Resilience Method® to your toolkit, it's time to take action.

The ONLY chance to join me for my Imposter Syndrome Master Coach certification training is this week - the deadline to apply is 5pm on Friday 12th, because we start on Monday!

Otherwise, you'll be waiting until 2025... and that's a whole year lost, that could leave you stuck in the shallows and swept away by the AI coaching revolution.

Full details of the training and how to apply are here: https://ditchingimpostersyndrome.com/naturalresiliencemethod/

It starts on Monday so best be snappier that a Chat GPT prompt.

It's time to move into Mastery and AI-proof your coaching future.



About the Author

Clare Josa, Research & Training Director

Clare is considered a global authority in the fields of Imposter Syndrome, burnout and toxic resilience, and has been an international keynote speaker for over 20 years.

The author of 8 books, a reformed engineer and the former Head of Market Research for one of the world's most disruptive brands, she blends research-backed practical inspiration with demystified ancient wisdom, to help you create breakthroughs in ways that are fast, fun and forever.

Want to stay in the loop with the latest news and events? Get our free occasional What's On newsletter: