Personal Financial Coaching Program Builds Capability

Individuals interested in taking a Financial Coaching Program can become certified through the National Financial Educators Councils’ Certified Personal Financial Wellness Consultant program, which has options that help people build capability to coach others toward reaching their personal finance objectives. You will learn techniques and develop skills to motivate and engage clients of all ages and socioeconomic backgrounds, moving them to take positive financial action.

Financial Coaching Program Process

Participants who enroll in the Certified Personal Financial Wellness Consultant personal financial coaching program undertake more than 320 hours of training; earning the financial coach certification places them among the most highly-qualified educators in the financial coaching space. Educational requirements include completing rigorous coursework and passing a moderated 200-question exam with a score of 80% or higher. Graduates also must conduct coaching practice and submit surveys, test results, and detailed reporting from practice sessions to demonstrate implementation mastery.

 

Financial Coaching Program Standards

The NFEC Financial Coaching Program is based on the Financial Coaching Standards and Code of Ethics, which sets forth the criteria coaches must meet to earn certification. These standards are built around the assumption that a personal financial coach bears fiduciary responsibility to his or her clients and must act in their interests. The NFEC cites more than 12 industry regulatory authorities in its standards, including the CFP Board, Department of Labor, American Counselor Association, and National Board for Professional Teaching.

At present, a personal financial coach is not regulated. The NFEC was proactive in developing its standards for financial coaching so clients and coaches remain protected. The standards also create frameworks for high-quality education programming, professional development, hiring and recruiting financial educators, and performance criteria. This helps those seeking to learn how to start a financial coaching business and those that use the services of personal financial coaches.

Composition of Personal Financial Coaching Program Extras

Coaching Systems

The nucleus of a Financial Coaching Program consists of your ability to understand a client’s entire financial picture. That’s why the NFEC provides its certified coaches with access to systems – including data gathering and reporting software – that empower them to gather and review client credit scores, assets, liabilities, income, accounts, and other financial health indicators. Coaches can use these tools to show clients where they are now, and how future actions will affect their financial wellness.

Suggestions for Personal Financial Coaching Program Proposal

Educational Resources for Financial Coaching

Access to outstanding quality financial literacy curriculum forms another key segment of the NFEC personal financial coaching program. Curriculum has been developed with the guidance of an expert Curriculum Advisory Board, resulting in more than 400 hours of lessons that make a lasting difference in participants’ financial competencies. These practical resources are independent and compliance-approved, with topics covered through engaging, interactive activities.

Graduation from the Financial Coaching Program also gives NFEC personal finance consultants access to the NFEC’s eVolve online learning platform. This eLearning system is flexible to accommodate asynchronous and synchronous activities, with learner options to maximize assimilation and help participants translate learning into action. An adaptive learning framework provides a custom learning experience based on the individual’s interests and needs.

Arrangement of Personal Financial Coaching Program Extras

Topic Expert Support

Completion of the personal financial coaching program also offers you access to expert support when your client needs assistance in areas where you are not yet proficient. The NFEC’s expert team of licensed professionals stands by to aid with client questions you can’t answer – and when you’re first starting out, this situation may occur. You can provide coaching in the areas where you have specific expertise, and another NFEC network coach can step in when a client needs guidance in other areas.

Coaching Track Options

The three groups to which the Financial Coaching Program offers services are organizations, individuals, and entrepreneurs. An organization can receive professional development and training for its staff; an individual may gain credentials to support getting a job in the financial coaching field; and an entrepreneur may tap into resources and training to start a coaching business.

Those who undergo the personal financial coaching program do much more than your run-of-the-mill financial coach. Graduates are prepared to conduct many activities that move people and communities toward financial health. These activities include personal financial coach and counseling, one-on-one or group personal finance certification programs, accountability programs for groups, and teaching courses/workshops.

Today’s economic conditions have increased consumer vulnerability. According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, 49.1 million Americans currently live below the poverty line and more than 68 million are financially underserved. To help address these problems, some organizations are developing financial coaching programs where people receive in-person, individualized, and trustworthy guidance to help them through important money decisions from personal finance consultants.

The National Financial Educators Council has developed one such program. The NFEC’s new Certified Financial Education Consultants (CFEC) curriculum trains and certifies individuals to become life coaches in personal finance. Each graduate of this program has completed more than 120 hours of instruction, the majority of which involves practical hands-on activities and training. What is a financial coach and what services do they provide? It includes a variety of activities that help people from all backgrounds obtain money management knowledge and accomplish financial fitness by developing and sticking to a solid financial plan.

Unlike most financial coaching programs, the CFEC training is independent; so the financial coach group trained by the program has no interest in marketing or selling products. Rather, their main focus is on helping others achieve their financial lifestyle goals. CFEC graduates can serve individuals one-on-one as a counselor or coach, lead family and group accountability programs, and instruct sizeable groups of people either in live settings or through webinars. A CFEC /financial-wellness-coach/ also gains access to various instructional tools, including a Client Management Platform, automated communications systems, planning software, and web-based resources. The NFEC provides CFECs with marketing tools, promotional materials, and training that support them to build viable businesses where they can put their expertise to work toward helping others achieve financial wellness.

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