Competency No. 5

Debbi Gardiner McCullough (D G McCullough)
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Around 4% of the 55,000 + coaches certified with the International Coaching Federation hold the revered status of Master Certified Coach. Why so few? I'm about to find out. Competency No. 5, the podcast, explores how we maintain presence when we coach, lead, and live our lives. We interview coaches and others whose very livelihood depends upon staying calm and present with those they serve. We also chronicle my attempts (as a self-retired professor and global business reporter from New Zealand) to become an MCC coach. This effort requires beaucoup coaching hours, mentoring, and adhering strictly to the ICF's seven core competencies, especially the deceptively tricky Competency No. 5, maintaining presence. 

  1. 5H AGO

    I certified as a Master Certified Coach! The comfort with silence and the victory feels magical

    I certified as a Master Certified Coach two weeks ago, ending a two-year long odyssey in mindfulness, active listening, and perfectionistic goal setting. Feels amazing finally reaching that top 4% of ICF certified Master Certified Coaches.  This week's episode reads from my Substack post on this victory and especially the growth I felt with my comfort with silence. I stayed comfortably silent with my client in the recordings I submitted ICF assessors for over a minute.  Most of us don't pause for longer than a second in a given conversation (and I was one of them, prior to my coaching MCC experience). I've since evolved and found I can even delight in extended pauses, because that's where the magic begins.   You can join the LinkedIn post here.  Your show host, Debbi Gardiner McCullough, is a communications coach for Google PMs through Fortune 100 leaders, a former reporter for the Guardian, the Economist, and the FT of London. Book her for coaching, training or ICF mentoring here.   Join her active listening and communications workshops on Maven here and here, with a new Listen Like a Boss coming soon.

    17 min
  2. "Silence boosts all your senses. Thoughts become clearer." Coach Amy Krymkowski on the power of pause and silence

    FEB 7

    "Silence boosts all your senses. Thoughts become clearer." Coach Amy Krymkowski on the power of pause and silence

    Leadership coach Amy Krymkowski fell in love with coaching through her work in HR. After observing a coach in action, she found the approach so spacious and like nothing else. "I was in awe with how much progress and awareness came from listening, silence, and creating space through inquiry," she says.  She declared coaching as her primary profession, certified, and joined an outplacement firm as a full-time job search coach before founding her own firm: Better Path Coaching, guiding professionals and leaders through career transformations and transitions in holistic ways. From her Milwaukee, Wi. base she's stayed in love with coaching ever since and all it brings.  While coaching and transformation is what she brings her clients, silence and a practice with observing silence is part of Coach Amy's self care and flow.  In our interview, we hear of her retreats, training, and her discovery on what changes within her, simply from creating space for something no money can buy: quiet, and time to just "be" and think.  You can find Coach Amy on LinkedIn here and Better Path Coaching here.  Your show host, Debbi Gardiner McCullough, is a communications coach for Google PMs through Fortune 100 leaders, a former reporter for the Guardian, the Economist, and the FT of London. Find her on LinkedIn. Book her for coaching, training or ICF mentoring here. Join her active listening and communications workshops on Maven here and here, with a new Listen Like a Boss coming soon.

    35 min

  3. JAN 24

    I passed the MCC Performance Evaluation. (Whoop!) My final step: Passing the Coaching Knowledge Assessment exam

    Last Friday, January 16, I heard from the assessors at the International Coaching Federation that I passed their famously difficult and evasive Master Certified Coaching Performance Evaluation.  I've still the Coach Knowledge Assessment (CKA), a four-hour exam to go, before I get to join the 4% of MCC coaches globally, a rare group of around 2,240 coaches within 56,000 ICF credential-holders worldwide.  But the hardest part (the performance evaluation) is now behind me. I was amazed and cried a lot when I read I’d passed and wrote on what's coming up for me on my Substack here. This is my immigrant dream coming true.  Over winter break, (having submitted my MCC submission in September) I convinced myself I’d need to resubmit multiple times, like many coaches do. I still can't believe I passed with my first shot.   Curiosity, presence, and determination helped me the most, along with the accountability this podcast, Competency No 5 brought. [So, thank you for bearing with me!] In this week's episode, we welcome back MCC Coach Ben Dooley, one of two MCC coaches who mentored me. Ben tells us what that CKA is all about and how to pass it. I've since booked my CKA exam for early February.   Reach out to MCC Coach Ben Dooley via his website, here.  Your show host, Debbi Gardiner McCullough, is a communications coach for Google PMs through Fortune 100 leaders, a former reporter for the Guardian, the Economist, and the FT of London. Find her on LinkedIn. Book her for coaching, training or ICF mentoring here. Join her workshops on Maven here and here.

    29 min
  4. Karen Canham: "I don't do goals. It feels like too much pressure." A wellness coach's insights into moving beneath perfectionism, performance, and returning to ourselves.

    JAN 10

    Karen Canham: "I don't do goals. It feels like too much pressure." A wellness coach's insights into moving beneath perfectionism, performance, and returning to ourselves.

    When Karen Canham struggled with anorexia, her body felt numb. In fact, she couldn't access her body mentally at all, because the eating disorder stemmed from trauma.  Through therapy and recovery, she came out the other side, learned yoga, how to regulate, and reconnect with her body after years of disconnection. Yoga taught her presence. Breath taught her patience.  And after years in the corporate world, her new journey began: Teaching others how to move beneath perfectionism and performance and return to themselves; not through hacks. More so daily practices helping us regulate our nervous system and lead with presence, clear communications, while inviting safety for others to do the same.   In this interview, we experience that shift live time through inquiry and candid sharing. The shift feels unmistakable. Learn from a somatic and wellness coach stories of bravery, presence, and the powerful shifts on what we see before us when we pause, notice, and anchor in our conversation and bodies.  You can find Coach Karen on LinkedIn here and visit KarenAnnWellness here. Your show host, Debbi Gardiner McCullough, is a communications coach for Google PMs through Fortune 100 leaders, a former reporter for the Guardian, the Economist, and the FT of London. Find her on LinkedIn. Book her for coaching, training or ICF mentoring here. Join her workshops on Maven here and here.

    30 min
  5. Nick McCullough: "What got me through my first semester at Harvard? Camaraderie with fellow athletes and extreme time management."

    12/20/2025

    Nick McCullough: "What got me through my first semester at Harvard? Camaraderie with fellow athletes and extreme time management."

    In our final episode for 2025, First Year Harvard student Nicholas McCullough shares how he maintained presence, calm, stoicism, and all those great things amidst a pressured first semester at Harvard University as a footballer and Economics student. He and other student athletes averaged 65+ hour weeks.  In this interview, Nicholas (my oldest son) shares the power of camaraderie with his fellow Harvard athletes (his fellow footballers and other athletes across campus). He shares the importance of managing our time well, choosing quiet places to focus, and managing others' expectations of us when time affluence becomes low.  And we hear of the gifts and opportunities of taking a chance and moving far away from all we know to pursue our dreams. There's some real excitement that comes from being truly anonymous and having no history whatsoever, aside from the new story we create.  My dear listeners of this small but growing show, thank you for following me. This is our last episode until the New Year. Happy Holidays. May you rest, be calm, and merry.  If you're a coach following my documentary on my MCC submission efforts, until I hear otherwise, the ICF will alert me of my pass or fail January 15. I have an essay to write and read on how daunting that feels.  If you'd like to follow Nicholas and support him in his endeavors, you can find his LinkedIn profile here.  Your show host, D G McCullough, is a communications coach for Google PMs through Fortune 100 leaders, a former reporter for the Guardian, the Economist, and the FT of London. Find her on LinkedIn. Book her for coaching, training or ICF mentoring here. Join her communications and active listening workshops on Maven here and here.

    14 min

  6. 12/05/2025

    Why and How I Pause to Applause. Self Coaching that Brings Peace, Calm, and Results

    A simple daily flow of coaching questions helps me feel happier, but also more focused, ambitious, and committed to my work and life goals.  My goals typically seem to come true, in part of this vital practice grounded in maintaining presence in the wake of not knowing. And slowing down long enough to see all that's going great, right now, without wanting nor needing to change a thing.  You can read my Substack post on how and why I pause to applause here.  Your show host, D G McCullough, is a communications coach for Google PMs through Fortune 100 leaders, a former reporter for the Guardian, the Economist, and the FT of London. Find her on LinkedIn. Book her for coaching, training or ICF mentoring here. Join her communications and active listening workshops on Maven here and here.

    12 min
  7. Jeanette Bernard: “Talk with Your Loved Ones Who’ve Passed. Ask and Look for Their Signs. They Will Surprise You.”

    11/21/2025

    Jeanette Bernard: “Talk with Your Loved Ones Who’ve Passed. Ask and Look for Their Signs. They Will Surprise You.”

    When customer operations manager Jeanette Bernard lost her husband Matt four years ago, the flippant comments from others on her need to rebound fast upset her as much as the grief.  “People would say: You’ll be back out there in a couple of months. You’ll be fine,” she recalls of awful comments at her husband’s funeral. “I was so mad. I will never forget Matt. Nor does he want me to.” Now four years later, and the anniversary of Matt’s death on Thanksgiving week, Jeanette still communicates with her childhood sweetheart in her own special way. She finds talking with him, asking for signs of his presence, and remembering him coming to her in her dreams (and one very powerful time when awake) helps her feel comforted. She still feels his presence and his love. And keeping connected with him also helps her function at work and in life.  In a touching episode, we hear Jeanette’s encounters with seeing her husband, how she asks for signs, and how those signs appear, often within 1-2 days. We hear on this upcoming Thanksgiving week her appeal to us all to continue communicating with those we love who have passed away. “They want to hear from us. They want us to remember them,” she says. “So talk to them.” Your show host, D G McCullough, is a communications coach for Fortune 100 leaders, a former reporter for the Guardian, the Economist, and the FT of London. Find her on LinkedIn. Book her for coaching, training or ICF mentoring here.  Join her communications and active listening workshops on Maven here and here.

    22 min

  8. 11/07/2025

    The Harvard Mum Project. Chapter 5: Robust Weeks Exhaust and Weary First Years

    Chapter 5 of the Harvard Mum essay project documents the truer reality of Harvard life now 2.5 months have passed, the pressure has raised, and athletes and scholars (like my son) must juggle robust commitments to their sport and studies.  There's also the inevitable pressure of being an eighteen-nineteen year-old student, often far from home, and admitted into the world's most revered university.  Read from my essay on Substack.  Your show host, D G McCullough, is a communications coach for Fortune 100 leaders, a former reporter for the Guardian, the Economist, and the FT of London. Find her on LinkedIn.   Join her communications and active listening workshops on Maven here and here.

    16 min
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About

Around 4% of the 55,000 + coaches certified with the International Coaching Federation hold the revered status of Master Certified Coach. Why so few? I'm about to find out. Competency No. 5, the podcast, explores how we maintain presence when we coach, lead, and live our lives. We interview coaches and others whose very livelihood depends upon staying calm and present with those they serve. We also chronicle my attempts (as a self-retired professor and global business reporter from New Zealand) to become an MCC coach. This effort requires beaucoup coaching hours, mentoring, and adhering strictly to the ICF's seven core competencies, especially the deceptively tricky Competency No. 5, maintaining presence. 

Information

  • Creator
    Debbi Gardiner McCullough (D G McCullough)
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    67
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Competency No. 5
  • Show Website
    Competency No. 5