Divorce Coaches Academy

Tracy Callahan and Debra Doak
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Divorce Coaches Academy podcast hosts Tracy Callahan and Debra Doak are on a mission to revolutionize the way families navigate divorce. We discuss topics to help professional divorce coaches succeed with clients and meet their business goals and we advocate (loudly sometimes) for the critical role certified divorce coaches play in the alternative dispute resolution process. Our goal is to create a community of divorce coaching professionals committed to reducing the financial and emotional impact of divorce on families.

  1. 1D AGO

    Power, Agency, and the Courage to Let Clients Lead

    Send Us a Message (include your contact info if you'd like a reply) The moment a divorcing client looks at us and says, “Just tell me what to do,” it can feel almost cruel not to step in with the answer. But that impulse is exactly where ethics, skill, and real transformation live. We sit down with Andrea Hips, LCSW and certified divorce coach, to talk about power, agency, and why “being the expert” can quietly become the fastest way to take power away from the person we’re trying to help. We get specific about the difference between power and control, and why divorce makes people chase certainty like it’s oxygen. When a client clings to one outcome, we unpack what they’re really reaching for: safety, stability, and relief from overwhelm. From there we move into practical coaching tools for conflict-informed divorce coaching and alternative dispute resolution minded support, including how to slow down decisions under legal pressure, how to build distress tolerance, and how to help clients act wisely while uncertainty stays right beside them. We also name the subtle ways coaches can unintentionally influence choices through tone, affirmations, and question framing. Andrea shares a simple North Star: there are many right answers, and hindsight isn’t something you can buy today. Protecting client agency is not a “nice to have” in divorce coaching, it’s the standard that builds capacity, reduces escalation, and helps clients leave coaching stronger than they arrived. If you care about ethical divorce coaching, client autonomy, and decision making in high-conflict divorce, listen through and take notes. Subscribe, share this with a coach or friend going through divorce, and leave a review with the biggest shift you’re taking from the conversation. Learn more about DCA® or  any of the classes or events mentioned in this episode at the links below: Website: www.divorcecoachesacademy.com Instagram: @divorcecoachesacademy LinkedIn: divorce-coaches-academy Email: DCA@divorcecoachesacademy.com

    29 min

  2. MAR 11

    Behind the Decision: Power, Control, and Clarity in Divorce Conversations

    Send Us a Message (include your contact info if you'd like a reply) We dig beneath “the house,” “the money,” and “Wednesday” to reveal the real drivers of divorce conflict: power, fear, identity, and control. With Allison McFadden, we map skills that shift clients from positional fights to values-based choices they can live with. • why surface conflict hides deeper fears and identity needs • moving from positions to interests for better options • invisible power dynamics in process, timing, and voice • building perceived psychological power and steady presence • fear, defensiveness, and how they close doors • designing protocols and parenting tools to prevent repeat fights • choosing language that de-escalates and humanizes • avoiding professional missteps that entrench conflict • redefining success as durable, client-owned agreements If you're feeling that poll, whether you're an attorney, mediator, therapist, financial professional, or someone exploring the path to becoming a divorce coach, we have an upcoming certification beginning soon. So we've got a New Zealand cohort beginning in March, and we have both the United States and Canada cohorts beginning in April. These programs are intentionally designed not just to teach you the knowledge required to be a divorce coach within the dispute resolution field, but to give you the experiential hands-on training through mentorship and the practice required actually to be able to do the work because it's one thing to learn about it, it's another thing to do it. And information builds awareness, practice builds competence, and mentorship builds confidence. Our certification programs are grounded inside that ADR framework. And if you are a practicing divorce coach but trained somewhere else and you want to deepen your skill set or operate at a different level within the ADR community, our Elevate program was designed specifically for that purpose. Learn more about DCA® or any of the classes or events mentioned in this episode at the links below: Website: www.divorcecoachesacademy.com Instagram: @divorcecoachesacademy LinkedIn: divorce-coaches-academy Email: DCA@divorcecoachesacademy.com

    37 min

  3. MAR 4

    Communicating with Clarity: Why Divorce Coaches Must Educate the Market Before the Market Understands Them

    Send Us a Message (include your contact info if you'd like a reply) We dig into how clear, consistent messaging helps divorce coaches cut through noise, educate the market, and build real authority without slipping into self‑promotion. Jason Harper joins us to share a practical playbook for clarity of purpose, audience fit, and sustainable cadence. • messaging as a professional competency, not an optional add‑on • clarity of purpose across layers: educate, validate, and seed ideas • defining your audience and where they actually listen • choosing platforms that match your strengths and voice • building a breadcrumb trail that validates credibility • service‑first content vs personal narrative as the lead • practical examples that show outcomes, not hype • consistency, cadence, and durability over vanity metrics • differentiating divorce coaching for the wider public • ethics, boundaries, and professionalization of the field If this conversation resonated with you, please share it with a colleague or continue these discussions within your professional community Learn more about DCA® or any of the classes or events mentioned in this episode at the links below: Website: www.divorcecoachesacademy.com Instagram: @divorcecoachesacademy LinkedIn: divorce-coaches-academy Email: DCA@divorcecoachesacademy.com

    33 min

  4. FEB 25

    Escalation Loops in Conflict: Understanding and Interrupting the Cycle in Divorce

    Send Us a Message (include your contact info if you'd like a reply) We break down escalation loops in co‑parenting, why they entrench, and how divorce coaches can interrupt them with practical, evidence‑informed tools. We share the pause protocol, BIF writing, nervous‑system resets, and real‑time awareness checks that end reactive volleys and protect the long game. • definition of escalation loops and why they persist in divorce • reactive communication and negative reciprocity mechanics • amygdala hijack and dysregulation as baseline conditions • pattern entrenchment and confirmation bias reinforcing the story • the pause protocol as an active strategy • choosing structured channels and using BIF for concise replies • loop awareness questions to stop mid‑exchange • regulate first, respond second using body‑based tools • reframing the real goal from winning arguments to stable co‑parenting • the coach’s role as steady, strategic partner If today’s episode was useful to you, please share it with a colleague, leave a review wherever you listen to your podcast, or come find me at the DCA community. And if you would like to learn more about the training we provide to support the professional practice of divorce coaches, please check us out at divorcecoachesacademy.com Learn more about DCA® or any of the classes or events mentioned in this episode at the links below: Website: www.divorcecoachesacademy.com Instagram: @divorcecoachesacademy LinkedIn: divorce-coaches-academy Email: DCA@divorcecoachesacademy.com

    26 min

  5. FEB 18

    The Myth of Love as a Conflict Solution

    Send Us a Message (include your contact info if you'd like a reply) We explore why love and conflict can coexist during divorce and how skill, not intention, changes outcomes. We show how awareness, regulation, and alignment transform automatic reactions into choices that protect kids and shape a healthier family system. • acknowledging care while choosing to leave • love as orientation, not conflict strategy • conditioned patterns and nervous system activation • awareness of triggers and pre‑reaction cues • regulation tools that create space and choice • alignment of behavior with future goals • shifting family dynamics by changing one response • redefining love as practiced stability and restraint If you are interested in learning more about the professional practice of divorce coaching as a form of dispute resolution, please do not hesitate to check us out at Divorce CoachesAcademy.com Learn more about DCA® or any of the classes or events mentioned in this episode at the links below: Website: www.divorcecoachesacademy.com Instagram: @divorcecoachesacademy LinkedIn: divorce-coaches-academy Email: DCA@divorcecoachesacademy.com

    18 min

  6. FEB 11

    When Personal Story Becomes Product: Professional Risk, Market Confusion, and the Future of Divorce Coaching

    Send Us a Message (include your contact info if you'd like a reply) The loudest stories are getting the clicks, but are they serving clients? In this episode, we dig into a growing trend in divorce coaching—marketing that centers personal divorce and betrayal narratives—and examine how story-first positioning blurs boundaries, preloads expectations, and weakens trust with clients and referral partners.  Lived experience can spark a calling, yet without training, supervision, and clear standards of practice, narrative becomes a substitute for competence instead of context for care. We share a colleague’s candid market signal about boundary issues on social platforms and unpack why it matters for a profession that’s maturing under increased scrutiny. From the collapse of experience and expertise to the downstream effects on decision quality, we map the operational risks when coaches promise resonance over results.  We also take a hard look at narrative-led training programs that elevate a founder’s story into “methodology,” and we explain how that shift erodes self-regulation, turns certification into symbolism, and confuses consumers who cannot see the difference between ADR-aligned coaching and scaled storytelling. Then we offer a path forward. We outline how to right-size personal stories—context, not credential—and restore professional sequencing: my experience led me here, and my training allows me to help you. We argue for parity with family law professions where credibility rests on ethics, restraint, and competency, not disclosure.  Expect practical framing you can use today, including a simple audit question for your website and messaging: if your personal story vanished, would your professional value still be clear? The future of divorce coaching depends on discipline over drama and structure over spectacle; clarity compounds trust. If this conversation resonates, subscribe, share with a colleague, and leave a review. Your feedback helps push the profession toward higher standards and better outcomes for clients navigating divorce. Learn more about DCA® or any of the classes or events mentioned in this episode at the links below: Website: www.divorcecoachesacademy.com Instagram: @divorcecoachesacademy LinkedIn: divorce-coaches-academy Email: DCA@divorcecoachesacademy.com

    21 min

  7. FEB 4

    Why Divorce Coaching Needs Clear Standards Of Practice

    Send Us a Message (include your contact info if you'd like a reply) The fastest way to erode trust in divorce coaching is to leave the role undefined. In this episode, we dig into why standards of practice aren’t bureaucracy—they’re the backbone that makes our work predictable, referable, and genuinely useful inside family law, mediation, and collaborative practice. When coaches adopt a clear, ADR-aligned framework, we shift from personality-driven promises to process-driven outcomes that protect clients, respect boundaries, and earn credibility with attorneys and mediators. We unpack the hard questions that clients and professionals shouldn’t have to guess at: What does a divorce coach do? Where does the role stop? How do we avoid confusing coaching with therapy, legal advice, or mediation? You’ll hear a real case that’s popping up across the field: coaches advertising that they “write parenting plans.”  We explain why that crosses into legal drafting and decision authority, and we show the standards-aligned alternative—helping clients identify interests and needs, apply cognitive empathy to understand the other parent’s priorities, center children’s developmental realities, and craft interest-based proposals that can be negotiated for buy-in. That’s not document creation; it’s decision-making capacity building. We also share practical steps to operationalize standards: publish them on your site as a professional anchor, weave them into intake and client agreements for informed consent, and use shared language that mirrors how attorneys, mediators, and therapists think about roles and boundaries. Along the way, we talk candidly about scope drift, social media pressure, and how ad hoc practices weaken referrals and credibility. If you’re ready to raise the bar through training, mentorship, and case consultation, these guidelines offer a path from “how I do it” to “how our profession operates.” If this resonates, read the DCA Standards of Practice, integrate them into your materials, and share them with your referral partners.  Subscribe, leave a review, and share with a colleague. Learn more about DCA® or any of the classes or events mentioned in this episode at the links below: Website: www.divorcecoachesacademy.com Instagram: @divorcecoachesacademy LinkedIn: divorce-coaches-academy Email: DCA@divorcecoachesacademy.com

    27 min

  8. JAN 28

    What Attorneys Wish Clients Understood About Fairness

    Send Us a Message (include your contact info if you'd like a reply) Fair can feel like justice. In divorce, it often becomes a trap. In this episode, we sat down with attorney and managing partner Sara Marler to explore why “I just want what’s fair” derails strategy, inflates costs, and delays peace—and how a trauma-informed, whole-person approach helps clients pivot toward outcomes they can actually live with. Sara opens the curtain on what courts really weigh under standards like “just and equitable,” why judges prioritize clarity over grievance, and how stories of betrayal still matter when they are used to guide better decisions rather than to fuel a courtroom campaign. Together, we map the gap between emotional fairness and legal reality, then show how to close it with reframing, education, and the right team. You’ll hear how validating a client’s experience builds trust, how divorce coaches reduce legal fees by handling the emotional heavy lifting, and why amicable and collaborative professionals consistently deliver faster, more sustainable results than “shark” tactics. We also talk practical tools—mindfulness, targeted parenting classes, curated resources—that help parents stop scorekeeping and design plans centered on children’s needs, not adult ego. If you’re navigating separation or advising clients through it, this conversation offers a clear path from conflict to closure: focus on what you can control, choose resolution over vindication, and measure success by stability, not revenge. Divorce splits one household into two; it won’t look the same, and that’s okay. The goal is a livable outcome that protects your kids, your wallet, and your future self.  Subscribe, share this episode and leave us a review to help others find us.  To learn more about Sara visit her practice website at: https://marlerlawpartners.com/ Learn more about DCA® or any of the classes or events mentioned in this episode at the links below: Website: www.divorcecoachesacademy.com Instagram: @divorcecoachesacademy LinkedIn: divorce-coaches-academy Email: DCA@divorcecoachesacademy.com

    34 min
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4.8
out of 5
20 Ratings

About

Divorce Coaches Academy podcast hosts Tracy Callahan and Debra Doak are on a mission to revolutionize the way families navigate divorce. We discuss topics to help professional divorce coaches succeed with clients and meet their business goals and we advocate (loudly sometimes) for the critical role certified divorce coaches play in the alternative dispute resolution process. Our goal is to create a community of divorce coaching professionals committed to reducing the financial and emotional impact of divorce on families.

Information

  • Creator
    Tracy Callahan and Debra Doak
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2026
  • Episodes
    204
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Divorce Coaches Academy
  • Show Website
    Divorce Coaches Academy

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