Why belong to the ACO?

"I belong to the ACO because I believe in and am deeply committed to the future of ADHD Coaching and ADHD Coaches.
The ACO is an exciting, inspiring and revolutionary catalyst for the long term growth and well being of our profession. Any ADHD Coach who is in it for the long haul should be a member".

Help us spread the word about the ACO:
Please forward this newsletter to appropriate friends who might not otherwise know about the ACO.

First Annual Meeting at ADDA convention
Saturday, May 6, 4:30 - 7 pm

     The ACO has a display table at the ADDA conference starting on Thursday in Orlando. The board has been racing flat out to have everything in order to meet our members and prospective members at this annual event. Stop by the table and say hello.
     Pick up your membership button and a copy of the first ever directory of members! We are a pretty impressive group!
     Plan to meet your colleagues at the first annual meeting and reception on Saturday, May 6 from 4:30 – 7 in the Cedar/Marathon Room Well have hors d'oeuvres and a cash bar. (Thanks to MJ Johnson for pointing out that we had the date wrong in the last issue. We want to be sure that if you're in Orlando, you find the event!)

Welcome New Members

      The Membership Committee is calling all members to welcome them to the ACO community. They are polling the group to learn how the ACO can best meet the needs of our members and to be sure that if you want to be involved, you get a job. If the committee misses you, please return the call.
     If you haven't done so already, be sure to sign up for the Members Listserv so you can keep in touch with your colleagues and get answers to your questions or have a conversation about your concerns.
      We had set replies to go back to the poster, so it was difficult to get much of a dialog going. But now replies are set to go back to the whole group. Please be careful about what you post. All mail from the listserv will come from members@adhdcoaches.org. The beginning of the subject will be [Members]. Post to that group by sending an email to members@adhdcoaches.org.

ACO Round Table Teleconferences

      The next Round Table call will be on May 16 at 8 pm Eastern time. The topic of the call always matches the theme of the current issue of Circle. This time it will be dealing with the relationships of your clients or, perhaps, the partner of a person with ADHD. We all know that ADHD affects more than just the diagnosed person. Check out the new calendar of events for information about the dates of the calls and the topics we'll be discussing.
     We've had a few of these teleconferences. They've proved to be lively, intimate and useful. The board is grappling with the concept of taping and saving for posterity the content of the calls. Under what circumstances might we, as individuals or as an organization, not want that available for the future? But in the mean time, if you missed a call and want to hear what was previously recorded, send a note to teleclass@adhdcoaches.org and request the call in info.
     To sign up for the next session, please send an email to teleclass@adhdcoaches.org .

More Teleconferences: Coaching Support for Coaches

      Here’s another opportunity to talk regularly with other ADHD coaches about your sticky wicket ADHD coaching issues. Do you have a client-issue you're struggling with? Maybe you have a particular coaching issue you'd like to get some input on? Or do you want to just bounce some ideas off a fellow coach to help you coach better? Then this is your opportunity. Pauline Laurent hosts the ACO's new monthly Coaching Support for Coaches call.
      Coaching Support for Coaches is scheduled for the fourth Tuesday of each month at 8:00 pm Eastern Time. Mark your calendars now for the next session: May 23th at 8:00 pm Eastern!
      This call is open to all ADHD Coaches. Please RSVP by email to Pauline at plaurent@gutsycoaching.com or call her at 707-578-4226 for the bridge line and access code to participate in this call.

Use the ACO Logo on Your Site

     The ACO is committed to promoting ADHD coaching and coaches worldwide. Increasing its visibility on the web is key to that goal. One of the ways to improve search engine ranking is by increasing the number of links to the ACO site. Please use the ACO logo on your website and link it to www.adhdcoaches.org. For information about how to display it check out the website. You’ll be asked to log in before you can see the info.

The ACO celebrates one year anniversary

by Glen Hogard, ACT

For every fire, there is first a spark. In the months leading up to the 2005 ADDA conference in Tucson, AZ, Tammy Cochran, a coach from Bellbrook, OH, prepared the spark that grew into the ADHD Coaches Organization. In a PowerPoint presentation to an ad hoc group of coaches who gathered in free time at the convention, Tammy fanned that glow. Her outline of the structure for a professional organization that would serve all practicing ADHD coaches grew in less than a year into the ACO.

Following that first meeting, an online Yahoo!Group was formed which included everyone who attended that first meeting. Other ADHD coaches who heard about the group were quick to join; people who, like Tammy, saw the great need for a nonprofit organization run by members and who were committed to the value of training of ADHD coaches.

A steering committee, which initially included the whole group, met weekly. That group refined the initially sweeping ideas into a workable organization, an organization which was practical and not overreaching, covering the most important values and addressing critical ethical issues. Subcommittees were formed. The mission statement and bylaws were written.

Perhaps the first great public milestone was the publication of the definition of an ADHD coach:

First and foremost ADHD Coaches are coaches.
The ACO endorses and accepts the coaching paradigm of the International Coach Federation (ICF). In addition to meeting all requirements and qualifications of a coach as defined within that paradigm, ADHD Coaches have specific training and expertise in coaching people and/or groups affected by ADHD.

This milestone was followed quickly by two others. In December of 2005, the ACO was incorporated in the state of New Mexico. In January of 2006, the first dues paying members joined. As of the publication of this newsletter, the ACO is almost 60 coaches strong.

During the first year, the ACO built a solid base for a responsive and supportive community of professional ADHD Coaches. But now the time has come to expand the community based on the opinions and ideas of the larger community of members.

The ACO values the experience and expertise of each new coach. The organization needs the members to help build a lasting organization with the greatest value for today and for the future.

If you are an ADHD coach, you need to belong to the ACO.
If you do belong, you need to participate in the growth of the ACO.
If you haven't joined yet, do it now.

Coaching Partners who don't have ADHD –
An Important Niche for ADHD Coaches.

by Sarah Wright, MS, ACT

As coaches we all know that when one person in a relationship has ADHD, both partners are affected, and the success of the relationship often hinges on having both partners understand what ADHD is all about. Before, and even after diagnosis, this understanding can be hard to come by.

A study by Gina Pera, a Silicon Valley-based journalist and coordinator of CHADD’s Santa Clara Support Group for Partners of People Who Have ADHD, found many common problem behaviors attributed to people with ADHD.

Think about the possibilities when you're doing your marketing plan.

If you are a member you can read more on line.
           Join now!

Coaching the Third Entity

by Ken Zaretzky, MCC

Two people make a relationship which can sometimes get in the way of progress of either individual’s agenda. That Third Entity, the relationship, can have all the facets or characteristics that any individual would possess. Most important, it has an agenda that may not be congruent with either or both of the individuals in the relationship.

Coaching a relationship really isn't significantly different from coaching an individual. You use the same tools and techniques. Powerful questions, metaphor, the whole deal, you just present coaching to the relationship instead of the people who make the relationship.

If you are a member you can read more on line.
           Join now!

Making your Find a Coach listing work for you

Sarah Wright has written a two part series with some tips for making your directory listing more valuable. We are working to figure out about how to make adjustments to the data base (without causing it to crash). In the meantime, using these suggestions should make it easier for prospective clients to find the right coaches in the Find a Coach directory.

If you are a member you can read more on line.
           Join now!

Talking about clients.

by Kerch McConlogue

Once I asked a lawyer friend how her colleagues use client's stories without divulging confidential stuff.

She said, “Start all stories like this, ‘I have a client named Jean…’”

Is that a woman or a man? Who knows?

If you really HAVE a client named Jean, there are other names you could choose. How about Sandy? Casey?

I, as either teller or listener, can manage a reasonable persona for Jean. And I can make the story more personal. I can also change it at will. It’s easy. I like that.

Thanks for reading.

It would be great if you'd contribute. What is your particular expertise? Drop me a note and let's talk about it.

At this time we can't pay writers who submit articles to this newsletter, but we'll give you credit and links as appropriate. Articles received by the 15th of the month will be considered for the upcoming issue. Sometimes we'll elect to hold an article for later publication. Writers' guidelines are available on line at this minute at newsletter.adhdcoaches.org/writersguidelines.html

I'm looking forward to making this publication top notch. So if you've got any questions, comments, concerns or gripes, please drop me a note. It does no good to grumble alone!

Onward and upward!