Improv for Coaches™

Approved for ICF and NBHWC Continuing Education Credits

Improvisation is the heart of coaching. It's being in the moment, listening and responding. Play and creativity are not just fun features -- they’re fundamental to powerful coaching.

Hone your coaching skills while having fun. As coaches we are improvisers; we have structures and skills (competencies), but to apply those most effectively, we must be in the moment, listening, connecting and co-creating. 

Using improv rules and structures from theatre and comedy, as well as those tailored just for coaches, we experiment, play and learn. You’ll get comfortable with not pre-planning or getting ahead in your coaching conversations, and trust in the bottomless well of ideas and possibilities that we all (coaches and clients) have access to all of the time. 

In each 2-hour session, you will develop your skills as an individual coach as well as deepen your listening skills for working with groups.

In the series of 6 sessions, the group will form a stable community of improvisers with a shared skill set, allowing for trust and a wider variety of improv structures to explore more coaching skills and challenges (e.g. succinctness, open questions, reflections, skillful interruption, information sharing and more).

Upon completion of the course, you will be able to: 

  • Quickly come into a calm, creative, resourceful state.

  • Actively listen and bring greater precision to reflections of client desires, values and strengths.

  • Bring more playfulness and empathy into your coaching.

  • Find more freedom in your coaching through non-judgment of self and others.

  • Integrate NBHWC and ICF core coaching competencies in ways that support client transformation.

Improv for Coaches Series

  • Limited to 8 participants to allow “stage” time for all. 
No prior experience necessary.


  • 
Six Sessions (2-hours each)
 — $595 / $545 Early Bird. Payment plan available upon request.

  • Course open to certified coaches or by permission of the instructor(s).
 

  • 12 CCEs available for the Improv for Coaches Series: ICF CCEs (core competencies) and/or NBHWC approved (#CE-000026-2).

Improv for Coaches Stand-Alone Session

  • Limited to 8 participants to allow “stage” time for all. 
No prior experience necessary.


  • One, 2-hour session / $95

  • Course open to certified coaches or by permission of the instructor(s).

  • 2 CEs available for this session. NBHWC approved course #CE-000026-1

If you are looking for more than 2 CEs for NBHWC recertification, we recommend the series, as the Board only allows you to count each approved course once every three years. Other organizations may allow you to repeat the stand-alone session multiple times for credit.

REGISTER FOR A STAND-ALONE SESSION OR SERIES

In order to receive CEs for the Series, you must attend all 6 sessions.

If you need to miss one session, we can arrange for you to make it up at a discounted rate.

Course Refund Policy: Refunds will be granted upon request up to four weeks before the first class of your session.

  • Series Beginning April 2024

    TUESDAYS
    April 2, 16, 30 May 14, 28, June 11
    4 - 6 pm PT / 7 - 9 pm ET

    FULL

  • Summer Series Begins June 2024

    TUESDAYS
    June 4, 18 / July 2, 16, 30 / August 13
    10 am - Noon PT / 1 - 3 pm ET

    EARLY BIRD ENDS MAY 7

    REgister

NEW OFFERINGS SCHEDULED REGULARLY

If no offerings are available for the course you are seeking, please join our waiting list in case a spot opens in your preferred section or we offer additional sections.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT IMPROV FOR COACHES

  • "Improv for Coaches offers such a unique and unexpected approach to honing your coaching skills. It’s a great opportunity to bring some fun and play into coaching, to practice letting go of internal expectations and allowing yourself to be silly, and helping bring more flexibility and spontaneity into your coaching! "

    – Marta Regalado, NBC-HWC, A-CFHC

  • "You can see the many wonderful possibilities. This is one of the most fun and interesting Zoom experiences I’ve had in years. As far as connecting people, these were the deepest connections I’ve experienced in a short two-hour Zoom session. I loved it!”

    — Lauren Walker, NBC-HWC, FMCHC

  • I wanted to say thank you for the Improv Classes. Because of them I have flipped my coaching from 66% me talking to 33% me talking. And I feel more solid in my coaching.

    — Donna Stuart, A-CFHC

  • "Improv courses are a double header. First, they are an absolutely delightful gathering of coaches filled with fun and laughter. Second, they provide a venue for tangible growth and intentional skill development. What a combination! Betsy has truly mastered the art of facilitating and cultivating a space in which you can learn AND play—I look forward to participating in more coaching improv in the future to keep my skills sharp and my heart a little lighter. "

    — Louise Buckley, NBC-HWC, A-CFHC

  • “I was apprehensive about signing up for an improv class because I'm not an actress, but this isn't your typical improv class! After the first session, I was hooked. As a new coach, I struggled with being in my head during sessions with my clients. I had those new coach nerves, and I wanted to find a way to relax into my sessions and stop worrying about what to say next while the client was still talking. This class allowed the perfect environment to practice just that. Mindful listening, relaxing into your coaching, all while having fun with a group of coaching peers.100% would recommend this class, and I plan on taking more!”

    — Nicholle Chandler, A-CFHC, NBC-HWC

  • “Improv for Coaches was excellent! It ticked multiple boxes for me: upleveled my coaching skills, stretched me with the mock coaching sessions, and it was fun and fascinating to see how improv principles can enhance the client's coaching experience. And, I earned CE's! Betsy is truly an expert in her craft: highly recommend!”

    – Chris Vasiliadis, NBC-HWC and Wellcoaches Certified Health and Well-being Coach

  • “Thank you Betsy for a completely fun and transformative learning event! Experiential learning is high on my list of priorities and this class did not disappoint. I look forward to taking more courses in the future.”

    – Wendy McLaughlin, MS, MCHES, NBC-HWC, A-CFHC

  • “I loved Improv for Coaches. It really helped me work on shortening my questions and reflections to focus on ones that are powerful and precise, while still having a lot of fun! It is amazing how you can still have a conversation that is meaningful for a client, without all the added words we want to keep in our questions and reflections. I recommend every coach take this course at least once!”

    — Shelby O’Keefe, NBC-HWC, A-CFHC

  • “"I found the improv exercises to be quite fun, not intimidating, but challenging at the same time. I looooved the 3 word exercise, I used it the next day, found that it really helped unearth the values behind our desires, and to shrink our talking down to precision. It facilitated deep listening and clear communication."

    — Sabina, A-CFHC

  • “Improv for Coaches is like a sip of micro-brew Kombucha on a hot summer day--refreshing, cultured, and a little different with just the right amount of fizz. The most delicious coaching CE investment to date! "

    — Noemi S., A-CFHC, NBC-HWC

Instructors

Betsy Salkind, Creator of Improv for Coaches

Instructor

Listen In…

The Strengths Whisperer

Episode 6, What do Comedy and Coaching have in Common?

Betsy Sakind joins Joan Young, National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach, for Episode 6 of the Strengths Whisperer. Through her podcast, Joan helps listeners learn how to put their strengths to use in reaching their goals and growing into their best selves.