FAQs

1. What is the Dare2bU approach?
2. What can I expect from the Dare2bU Academy?
3. How do I choose the Coach/Counsellor that’s right for me?
4. When are the courses?
5. Can anyone take the courses and become a Dare2bU Coach/Counsellor?
6. Can I make a living as a Dare2bU Systemic Coach/Counsellor?
7. How do I become a Dare2bU Coach/Counsellor with a specialty?
8. Why are Dare2bU Academy courses less expensive than other Life Coach/Counselling courses?
9. Is a Dare2bU Life Coach different than a Life Coach or Personal Coach?
10. Is a Dare2bU life Coach also a Counsellor?
11. Why would I become a Dare2bU Systemic Coach/Counsellor?
12. Does the Dare2bU approach have any limitations?
13. How far can I go emotionally with a client as a Dare2bU Systemic Coach/Counsellor?
14. Will I be certified as a Dare2bU Systemic Coach/Counsellor and what can I do with it?
15. How do I become a trainer?
16. Can you explain the systemic-phenomenological approach and constellations?
17. Can you explain the PEM asking method?
18. Can you explain the drawing techniques you offer?
19. What is ‘intervision’?
20. Which Dare2bU course is best for me?

1. What is the Dare2bU approach?

The Dare2bU approach is a new approach for Canada, but one that already has proven its power all over the world. It is the next generation in life coaching and counselling. Dare2bU president and founder Henri van Amerongen has combined his own life experiences with the best techniques from our related academies in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and Indonesia. The technique helps clients: • Find the subconscious blocks or beliefs that keep them from the life they really want • Work through old patterns, feelings and habits • And powerfully achieve goals with long-lasting results

2. What can I expect from the Dare2bU Academy?

Coaching and counselling are all about interaction between people. You can’t learn coaching/counselling skills by reading a book alone or by taking a written course online. Our program is intense and prepares you to be a professional Dare2bU Life Coach or Dare2bU Systemic Coach/Counsellor. Our programs start with the basic coaching/counselling skills and then get into powerful proven European coaching/counselling approaches. A substantial part of the course is personal growth and development. We teach you (in 35 exercises) how to work with clients and discover your own boundaries and limitations as a coach/counsellor. To prepare you to work with ‘real’ clients there are two client days in every course where you have the opportunity to work with fellow students and invited clients. Another advantage is that you are able to work on your own issues if any appear during the course. You will work as a client and coach/counsellor and as an observer. Switching between these three positions gives you a chance to learn about yourself and others.

3. How do I choose the Coach/Counsellor that’s right for me?

The most important thing is finding someone you feel comfortable with. Find out what each one has to offer and see which ones have experience with your question or issue. Sometimes it’s better to choose a coach who doesn’t work in your field. It could be surprising to work with a Coach who has another view on life. You can contact your Coach or Counsellor by phone, e-mail or in a face-to-face session. So distance isn’t an issue. You can even choose a Dare2bU Coach in Europe.

4. When are the courses?

You may start whenever you want with the theoretical part of the course. Both day and evening training programs are available. See our calendar for courses dates.

5. Can anyone take the courses and become a Dare2bU Coach/Counsellor?

Yes. Anyone who is really interested in people can become a Life Coach or Counsellor. Many people are natural-born Coaches/Counsellors, but don’t realize that they are already doing it. Who hasn’t given other people advice or helped a friend in difficult times? If you have children you teach them to deal with difficulties and challenges in life. That is also a kind of coaching/counselling. When helping friends or teaching your children you may be too emotional involved. This emotional involvement can shadow your judgment. A professional Coach/Counsellor is not emotionally involved with clients; it’s something you learn. Normally Coaches/Counsellors are people with a lot of life experience. They use their own experience, skills and personality to teach and challenge others to achieve their goals or get their life back on track. Coaches/Counsellors who can combine their own life experiences and expertise with powerful techniques make very successful and authentic Coaches/Counsellors. In our groups you will find students from ages 23 to 63 from all backgrounds. It is amazing to experience how much they learn from each other. Here are the types of people usually attracted to our courses:

Anyone wanting to make a career change
Volunteers or volunteer managers
Caregivers
Coach/counsellor professionals who want to learn new skills
Managers
Self-employed entrepreneurs and business people who want to improve their performance and business
Medical assistants and nurses
School teachers
Anyone who is motivated to make a change not only in their own life but in other lives, too

6. Can I make a living as a Dare2bU Systemic Coach/Counsellor?

If you are willing to be a professional Coach/Counsellor, you will succeed. If you are authentic and can be yourself in whatever you do, people will be attracted by you. If you think that coaching/counselling is all about teaching other people tricks to achieve their goals or to get their problems solved, you could be disappointed. An average Life Coach/Counsellor can build up a very rewarding practice in one to two years. It all depends on the effort you put in. A lot of Coaches keep their day job when building their coaching practice. An average income for a starting Coach/Counsellor with a private practice can be $50,000-60,000 a year. As with other professions, if you become a specialist in a niche market you’ll earn more than a generalist. There are successful Coaches/Counsellors who earn a six-figure income (or even more!). They are specialists in their field. If you want to start a private coaching/counselling practice, it isn’t much different than starting any other small business. If you’re not an entrepreneur, consider working as a coach/counsellor in a corporation or organization.

7. How do I become a Dare2bU Coach/Counsellor with a specialty?

Throughout your Dare2bU course it will become clear to you what your specialization is or can become. Because you work together with a group during the course, the group will support you to make the right decisions. How Dare2bU president and founder Henri van Amerongen discovered his specialty: During my own emigration process to Canada I found out first-hand that emigration is a very emotional process. There are a few Coaches in the Netherlands who help people with practical things like visas but there was no emotional Emigration Coach, so I became one! I was the only one in the Netherlands, and every time emigration was an issue in the media, they called me for my reaction. I appeared on national radio and television several times as the specialist, and was even quoted in the press. The emotional side of emigration was a new issue. I became a specialist, and I wasn’t even emigrated. Now I know what it is like to emigrate (I came to Canada in April 2007.) and found out, luckily, that I was right about the emotional process and how to deal with it

8. Why are Dare2bU Academy courses less expensive than other Life Coach/Counselling courses?

Our goal is to make our courses approachable and affordable for everyone who wants the opportunity to work with other people. A lower price doesn’t have to mean lower quality. In fact, in our case it’s just the opposite. More students and more diverse backgrounds mean more opportunity to share expertise and learn from each other. Quantity only improves quality in our courses. To keep costs low we don’t use expensive advertising (most students and clients find us online) or offer courses in luxurious conference resorts (we prefer schools or room at churches). Our trainers are professional trainers/coaches and certified by the Dare2bU Academy.

9. Is a Dare2bU Life Coach different than a Life Coach or Personal Coach?

Life Coaches and Personal Coaches have their boundaries in how far they want to go emotionally with a client. A Life Coach will help and challenge you to achieve your goals but usually doesn’t go into issues from your past. If issues from the past come up, a Life Coach will advise the client to see a Counsellor or Psychiatrist. Our experience is that, in most cases, old patterns and beliefs from the past disturb the present. If you try to achieve your goals or want to get your life back in balance, old patterns and beliefs can prevent you from achieving that goal. It’s a subconscious process. If you ignore old feelings, achieving your goal can be more difficult and won’t last long because there is always a chance that you’ll fall back into old habits. We teach Dare2bU life Coaches not only coaching skills but also powerful tools from insight-giving counselling techniques. So if something comes up from a client’s past, a Dare2bU Coach is able to deal with old patterns and beliefs. The advantage of this approach is if you work to achieve your goals it will last longer because the subconscious pattern and beliefs are recognized and even healed. If you recognize the problem, you know what to change!

10. Is a Dare2bU life Coach also a Counsellor?

A Dare2bU Life Coach has learned enough techniques to handle situations as a counsellor if it is required, but that’s not the goal of a coaching session. A lot of problems at work can arise from personal (family) issues at home, or vice versa. To ignore one or the other would slow down the process or even keep the client from achieving a goal. We teach Dare2bU Life Coaches not only the basis coaching skills but also some counselling and even some therapeutic techniques. (Isn’t always nice to have the right tool available in your toolbox?) A lot of Life Coaches are using counselling or even therapeutic techniques to give clients insight on issues from the past. And Counsellors often use coaching techniques. The line between counselling and coaching can be very thin. However, the majority of Life Coaches will prefer the more mental approach and will advise their client to see a Counsellor directly if old issues appear.

11. Why would I become a Dare2bU Systemic Coach/Counsellor?

A Dare2bU life Coach has a wider range than most Life Coaches. A Dare2bU Life Coach doesn’t have to send a client directly to a Counsellor when old subconscious issues from the past appear. Our coaches are able to make connections between present issues and old underlying patterns or beliefs. When clients get insight and feel the connections between past and present issues, then they experience the freedom of making choices in life again. Achieving goals and getting your life back in balance after dealing with old subconscious issues is more powerful this way. And the results will last longer. In other words, you don’t teach your clients new tricks; you give them the possibility to change their lives on a deep, subconscious emotional level. In some situations, working with old issues takes more time and expertise and a Dare2bU life Coach will advise the client to visit a Counsellor. This way the coach can continue the coaching sessions while the client visits a Counsellor for the other issues. Weighing your options: If you want to work with people on only mental approaches, a common Life Coach course is the best option. If you are deeply interested in people and their behavior and want to empower them to make a long-lasting change in their lives, the Dare2bU Life Coach program will provide you with techniques to do so.

12. Does the Dare2bU approach have any limitations?

As with every Life Coach, Personal Coach or counselling approach, the Dare2bU approach has its limitations. And every Coach/Counsellor has his or her own personal limitations. During the course it will become clear for every student what his or her personal limitations are. Facing these limitations will give you insight on where to work on personal growth and development. It’s not the approach but the Coach/Counsellor who makes the difference during sessions. An approach must fit like a suit. If you feel comfortable in a certain approach, then you will be authentic and successful. We teach our students different kinds of proven, powerful approaches so they can choose what fits best. And that’s why personal growth and development is such an important part of the course.

13. How far can I go emotionally with a client as a Dare2bU Systemic Coach/Counsellor?

It depends on your professional background and your personal preference. We spend a lot of time during the course on finding your own boundaries and limitations. At the beginning of the course many students overestimate themselves, and during exercises they are confronted with their own limitations and shortcomings. Sometimes they learn the hard way, but it’s better to do it here in a secure learning environment than with a client in your own private practice. To be a Dare2bU Systemic Coach/Counsellor is a lifetime achievement. Every client will teach you new lessons and some things about yourself. Working with other people means also working on your own personal growth and development. If you’re willing to learn more about other approaches and incorporate them into your work, it will be very rewarding for your clients and for you as professional. The most successful Coaches/Counsellors reach mastership when they are able to combine approaches and make them their own.

14. Will I be certified as a Dare2bU Systemic Coach/Counsellor and what can I do with it?

Certification by the Dare2bU Academy means that you met all the requirements and completed the course. Certification will give you extra opportunities to join coaching and counselling associations, and it can be a strong addition to your resume. The Dare2bU Academy is a new academy in Canada built on proven approaches and techniques (most of them from Europe) and the experience of our president and founder Henri van Amerongen. The potential of the academy is enormous as our partner (the Academy for Coaching and Counselling in the Netherlands) has proven over the last several years. Many of the first students in sister academies in the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium are now successful trainers, coaches and counsellors. Some have become trainers of the academy. Our goal at Dare2bU Academy is to start courses in Nanaimo, Victoria and Vancouver. But it’s not unthinkable that within a few years there will courses available throughout Canada. We offer franchises for certified Dare2bU Life Coaches and Dare2bU Systemic Coach/Counsellors.

15. How do I become a trainer?

As our academy grows our students have the opportunity to become Dare2bU Trainers after they finish one of our Coach/Counsellor courses and have worked as an assistant for one year. Once you have experience as a trainer you’ll have the opportunity to franchise and set up your own Dare2bU training.

16. Can you explain the systemic-phenomenological approach and constellations?

A family or organization can be viewed as a system, where the different parts have to work together in order to function properly. Like in a car, one part can cause the whole system to malfunction. The part (a person) that is having problems can be a symptom of a malfunctioning system, not causing but instead signalling the problem. The idea of a family or organization being a system has been used on a limited basis in counselling but with great success and with amazing, virtually instant results. Results are not only achieved in a short time span but also with a profound and lasting effect. A part of the systemic work is the family constellations work according to Bert Hellinger. This approach has become very popular in Western Europe and now all over the world. Constellations can be used for family issues and for issues with: organizations, marketing, money, love, animals, work, etc. How constellations work: One of the participants with a short question regarding a system (e.g. family, work, the list is endless) and wanting an insight or an answer does a constellation. A constellation is done by asking some of the participants to represent particular family members or system members, and by placing the representatives in the space available. (In individual sessions, objects might replace living people.) By being placed and by moving around in a certain way, usually the hidden dynamics or patterns of the system are made evident. The person with the question is likely to get an insight into his family system or the answer to his or her question. The purpose of constellations is to get more insight and a deeper understanding of subconscious dynamics of the system, what is playing an important role in the background, for example. The uniqueness of this systemic-phenomenological approach is that once the family or organization is represented, the problem or issue usually becomes clear in an instant to the person with the question. He or she can then start to work on and/or come to terms with what has been gained. Usually a huge sense of relief and freedom is felt by the person who had the question. It’s a new approach for Canada, but it has already proven its power all over the world.

17. Can you explain the PEM asking method?

Many clients’ current problems are connected to experiences in the past. Every problem has a starting point. The PEM method uses this starting point and helps the client gain insight into how a present problem or emotion is connected to something that happened in the past. He or she is now able to do something about the problem. The PEM asking method is originally from regression therapy. By using the three elements (Physical, Emotional, Mental) in questioning, you are able to go directly to the ‘question behind the question’ by using the subconscious of your client. Sometimes it’s difficult to find a client’s destructive beliefs by only asking mentally focused questions. By using the other two elements you get more information and let your client make more contact with his or her feelings. You can work with the PEM method at a subconscious level to trace emotionally unresolved matters in a matter of minutes. This method sounds easy, but it isn’t. When you learn this method and use it in the right way, you are able to find, change and heal issues with your client in a very short period of time. It will make your coach and counselling sessions more effective. You can use this PEM method for finding old patterns and beliefs but also to empower, challenge, and even provoke your client. Experience shows that the PEM method is not only highly effective with emotional and many psychological problems but also with physical problems. We offer this PEM method during our Coach and Counselling courses and as a workshop for professional counsellors.

18. Can you explain the drawing techniques you offer?

Many people can’t express their feelings. By using drawings you give your client the opportunity to express him or herself on paper. Another advantage is that the client has more contact with his/her subconscious. It’s always amazing and surprising what happens when you give a client a colored pencil. You might first meet resistance, but if you are able to challenge your client to make a drawing, then you’ll have an extra powerful tool to work with. During the Dare2bU coaching course we offer a drawing technique to challenge the client to draw his/her own future. You will be surprised how many people have no idea what they want in their future. To challenge the client to draw his/her future without any limitations you start a process of awareness and insight, especially when you use the PEM asking method. After this drawing you ask your client to make a drawing of his current situation and the path to his desired future. It’s all about the law of attraction! During the counselling course and the workshop for professional counsellors we teach you to use drawings to find subconscious patterns and beliefs on a deeper level by using the PEM asking method. This drawing method was developed by a regression therapist. We have adjusted it for counsellors.

19. What is ‘intervision’?

It’s a European technique where professional Coaches/Counsellors meet together to give each other more insight on handling particular situations. You might organize an intervision if you’re stuck on the same issue with several clients and you’re not making much headway. The group can offer you tips and tools or help you recognize if the problem is with your own unresolved issues.

20. Which Dare2bU course is best for me?

It depends on your personality and your personal interests. Here’s a brief (and certainly not complete) explanation of the difference between a coach and a counsellor: Coaches are people who are more interested in guiding others to achieve their goals. Coaches of Olympic athletes might never win a gold medal themselves, but they have the skills to inspire others to achieve that goal. Usually they establish a very rewarding relationship in the process. Life Coaches and Personal Coaches challenge their clients from the point they are now to a point where they want to be. It can be a very mental process, where usually unresolved processes from the past are not issues. You hire them for business issues, for performance issues or to help you achieve your goals. Coaches come in all varieties. You’ll find coaches with names like Lovecoach, Moneycoach, Haircoach, Mentalcoach, Partycoach, etc. For many people, hiring a Coach seems more socially acceptable and approachable than hiring a Counsellor. Counsellors are people who are more interested in personal emotional issues of their clients. A Counsellor investigates what’s wrong now and tries to find the cause of the subconscious problem to give the client insight on how to handle it. Counsellors are not Psychotherapists who work with things like traumas and mental illnesses. A Counsellor guides mentally healthy people experiencing issues like grief, divorce, relationship problems, etc. But coaching is also a part of counselling. If you give a client insight about where his/her problems are coming from and how to deal with them, the coaching part helps get your client back on track. If both the Coach and Counsellor descriptions interest you, the best choice is the Dare2bU Systemic Coach/Counsellor course. In this course you learn to work on a deep emotional level and you also learn coaching skills and techniques.