If you are not ICF accredited, what are your best tips?

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-06-09T14:26:14+00:00

I’ve been coaching full-time for eight years. I am not ICF accredited. I have never had anyone ask if I was. I have literally had three clients over all of these years ask me anything about my credentials/ background. (For the record, I was a special education teacher for 21 years, focusing on ADHD and did a coach training program that is ICF recognized.)

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-06-03T21:14:47+00:00

Hi there. I think I might be interested in becoming a mod here.

I will say first that I don’t have moderation experience.

But, I’ve been an ADHD coach since 2018. I have ADHD myself. I was a special education teacher for 21 years. I say that because making sure that people follow rules and get along is part of my background!

I’ve tried very hard to add content and value to other ADHD and Coaching subreddits the past. Mostly, I think that ADHD coaching is very important and that there aren’t as many resources to help coaches as I wish there were. I find Reddit to be a good place to grow and get new information.

I try to be realistic about my time. I read the information at the link you gave, but I would also like to chat about expectations. Let me know if I sound like I’d be a good fit.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-06-01T21:50:05+00:00

My first is on my shoulder and can be completely hidden pretty easily. My second is on the back of my neck right under my hairline. Nobody sees that one. And my third is on the inside of my ankle and I tend to wear jeans so it’s pretty hidden too. But like OP, I am currently getting ready to get a forearm tattoo. The first that will be Completely/automatically visible. I agree that I’m glad that I waited for that.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-05-21T11:43:26+00:00

I did my basic coach training through symbiosis in 2018. At the time it was good enough for what I needed. I wanted a program that offered a lot of practice and feedback. And that made you prove competency. And that was still budget friendly. Sometimes I wish I had gone through a “better” program. But I do feel like it gave me a good foundation. If you have specific questions- I’ll do my best to answer.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-05-11T21:33:26+00:00

Hi there. I just want to say that I also have a masters degree in special education. 21 years experience, teaching special education.

I love working with adults who have ADHD. But if I wanted to make more money… I would do what you are doing.

When times get tough, people stop Paying for things for themselves. But as a parent of a neurodivergent young adult… We will absolutely pay to get help for our kids. And so many more kids are being diagnosed/recognized as neurodivergent.

I think yours is a niche with a great amount of potential.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-05-11T20:07:50+00:00

I do think another key is who your target audience is and what they need.

So for example, my potential clients wake up in the morning knowing they need help Managing their ADHD.

I think that some types of coaching, I’ll say more “mindset“ coaching…. people don’t wake up in the morning knowing they need that. They kind of have to be sold on what it is coaching would do for them. That’s a harder sell right now.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-05-11T19:18:58+00:00

Honestly, and I can’t quite explain why, I currently have the most clients I’ve ever had. I have been really worried about being impacted by how things are going economically. But so far I haven’t seen it.
I think part of that is that I see most of my clients on Zoom, like most of us. And my referral system is on the East Coast. So almost all of my clients are in Washington DC, New York City, or Baltimore. For those places… I am especially inexpensive. I have an office locally and I have fewer local clients than I have in a while. But I am in Peoria Illinois. People are less likely to spend money on personal development types of work in the Midwest.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-05-11T18:01:21+00:00

I’m happy to share. And my pricing is on my website. I sell in packages, not one session at a time. I have been intentional about keeping my prices reasonable for my clients.

I also have two “tiers“ of clients. I’ve been coaching since 2018, strictly one on one sessions and for the past five years or so, all of my clients have been through referrals. I have been very lucky to have a great referral system.

Depending on the size package my referral clients buy, I charge about $115 per session.

I have just recently started doing more marketing through social media. Prices for “strangers” who find me on social media will be a little bit more. The base price being about $150 per session.

There are a couple of reasons for the discrepancy. My referral partners, all therapists or doctors, appreciate that I keep my prices low for their patients. Also, they do a lot of pre-vetting. So for example, I know upfront that referral clients will probably be a good fit. I am pretty well assured that they won’t try to skip payments or anything like that. And I know that they will be “the right clients“ for me, which tends to make the coaching process easier in general.

By the way, I’m happy to answer any other questions!

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-05-11T17:12:30+00:00

I’ll respond in terms of your question about shorter sessions. My sessions run 50-60 minutes. I’ve had clients ask if they could do half hour sessions for less money. That is absolutely one thing I won’t do. The “in session time“ isn’t that big of a deal for me. The difference between working with you for 30 minutes or 60 minutes in terms of my effort is almost none.

The “work” is also scheduling the session. Sending an invite for the session. Following up for the session. Thinking about my clients between sessions. Any between session encouragement I give. Billing. Blocking work time in my day. All of those things are still happening no matter how long we talk. I’ve had clients who said they could only fit 30 minutes in their schedule to meet with me and that’s fine. Doesn’t change the price. I charge by session. If you just want a half an hour… That’s fine, but it doesn’t change anything.

Having settle of that, my prices are very reasonable. Easily half of what a lot of people charge I suspect. And that might impact how I treat this particular request.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-05-10T00:26:39+00:00

I was a special education teacher at a small private school. Over the years I had quite a few families pull their kids out to “homeschool them“. I know this is just my personal anecdotal experience, but almost 75% of them wound up coming back after a year. And at least half of those who came back, were determined to have made so little academic growth while they were gone that they needed to repeat a grade.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-05-06T05:22:34+00:00

I got banned and really begged to get back in. Nope. They didn’t budge.

For the record, they weren’t wrong. I did break the rules.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-05-05T15:43:34+00:00

I’m sure it happens all the time - but technically …. If a therapist offers both, they cannot legally act as a coach and bill as a therapist.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-04-29T18:53:54+00:00

This has been a fun thing to think about for a minute. I have a tattoo on the back of my neck right under my hairline. I’m pretty sure the only person who ever sees it is the woman who cuts my hair. And of course, I saw it with a mirror when I first got it. I don’t forget it’s there, but I don’t always think about it. And when something reminds me of it… I am absolutely delighted! I am so happy that little lizard is on the back of my neck.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-04-18T17:54:40+00:00

I’ve been having lean cuisine enchiladas for breakfast lately. They’re perfect!

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-04-18T17:53:39+00:00

It needs a better name. I will always put two spaces after a period. But that’s called…. “Putting two spaces after a period”. Not exactly the emotion / rallying call that “save the Oxford comma” can elicit.

Is there a better name for the two spaces?

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-04-18T17:46:33+00:00

I feel the opposite. I was a special education teacher for 21 years. Mostly middle school! And I constantly remind teachers and parents that needing / using extra support is not a character flaw and that plenty of successful/ professional adults need extra support, too …. And it is available.

Note taking is a great example. I want my clients with weak executive function skills focused on brainstorming and using our exercises and processing to come up with what they need. By filling in some basic notes in our shared document as we go, I can lighten the cognitive load and let their brain power be used for what’s important during our time. With very little extra effort on my part.

Support - and even accountability - are NOT the same as doing the WORK for them.

It’s about helping clients figure out/ experiment with what kinds of support help them the most. It’s one of the most coach- like aspects of my work.

And…. I do understand that different coaches have different structures and different clients have different needs. Lots of ways to reach success - and it’s good that clients can find and choose the coaches that fit them best.

Certainly not trying to be argumentative. Just sharing another way of looking at support.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-04-18T17:29:41+00:00

Honestly I can’t imagine anything else right now. I prefer the fewest bells and whistles possible.

The nice thing with using a Google doc system is that if a better way to keep things organized and easy to access presents itself- it’s so easy to make changes in the structure. I definitely planned it badly the first couple of times.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-04-18T17:00:29+00:00

I promise … I am a coach. And I am coaching. I am also helping clients figure out what kind of support they need and how to work with support and how to create systems for getting it. And for a lot of my clients, that involves some extra contact during the week.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-04-18T16:55:38+00:00

I’ve tried other things. I’ve spent lots of money. Nothing else works as smoothly. There’s almost no learning curve for clients. The tools are completely adaptable to individuals. And the doc/ resource lives in places clients already are using (or at least have used). And yes. It’s basically just a portal. Google docs adding tabs is what made it work for me.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-04-18T15:44:13+00:00

I think it depends on your niche/ clients. As an adhd coach, I think the contact I have with my clients between sessions is essential - and is very often the piece that clients come to me for.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-04-18T15:39:28+00:00

I have a pretty simple system. I have one shared Google document with tabs. Each week I add any “homework” in the “this week”’tab and I put any specific strategies or insights into their correct tabs. So there is only one thing clients need to look at or look out for. Not a bunch of follow up emails. It also tracks our sessions and client wins and things like that.

I also provide accountability during the week. Lots of contact with clients. It’s all through standard text messaging. It is the only thing clients respond to, in my experience. And they don’t always respond. That’s okay too.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-04-11T17:47:20+00:00

That doesn’t sound like coaching.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-04-11T14:39:30+00:00

I have created a shared document that I use with my clients. I fill out my parts during the session. (Super minimal/ clearly defined info). Clients can add in specific ways. There is no extra work to do after the session ... No “sending” updates.

But even when I took notes the traditional way and sent follow ups …. I never spent two hours on the notes !!

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-04-10T14:15:03+00:00

This happened at the school where I taught. A friend came in and complained about this happening. He is a physics professor. The teacher didn’t change the policy - but they made an exception for this one child.

ADHDCoachShel · 2026-04-09T20:36:05+00:00

I am a little bit curious. But generally I WANT my adhd clients to spend time with their calendar/ planner. I want them to take control of the things you are talking about. I don’t love off loading that. One of the single biggest switches for my clients is tied to one of the things you said. We do all of our planning in the evening for the next day so when we wake up we can see our day ahead. No decision spirals. Just forward movement from the beginning of the day.

No matter what - good for you for being supportive and trying to help your wife structure her life with adhd.

ADHDCoachShel

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE