"Jon, I want to help these women so badly, but I'm not..." Cynthia's voice trailed off.

"You're not what?"

"I'm not qualified to coach them. I don't have the education or the credentials."

"Who told you you're not qualified?"

"Some coaches in my community. They said that I couldn't help these women, even though I care so deeply about them, because, well, because I'm not a certified coach."

My blood pressure spiked. Unfortunately, this was not shocking to me.

I'm intimately familiar with the community Cynthia's referring to and even many of the coaches in that circle.

Some of the same coaches tried to invalidate my calling a dozen years ago.

Why? Fear. Ego. Scarcity mindset. A wicked craving for power and control over other people's callings.

Whatever their motivation, I told the toxic few where they could shove it - and doubled down on my calling.

I doubt I would have helped close to 2,000 coaches, consultants, and advisors over the past eleven years if I'd listened to those coaches' poison.

And now, a dozen years later, I got to remind Cynthia of that same freedom.

"These coaches are dead wrong. You don't need anyone else to qualify or validate your calling."

I could hear her start to choke back tears.

"Cynthia, are you called to help these women find their joy and hope for life again?"

"Oh, absolutely! This is what I'm called to do! This was my story and the story of hundreds of women I've connected with over the past few years."

"Then, who in the world do these coaches think they are trying to invalidate your calling? Don't let anyone ever try to disqualify your calling."

Does Cynthia have the professional credentials that would better serve her audience? No, not yet, at least.

Does adding Alphabet Soup behind your name 'automagically' make you a more empathetic, qualified person? Not necessarily.

Would having the professional certification add some street cred, skill development, and perspective to help Cynthia show up better? Probably.

What no credentials, designations, training, or degree will ever be able to do is qualify your purpose or calling.

Only you can know with conviction what you're called to do.

Only you can stand with confidence that you're pursuing that burning fire of passionate empathy for the people you can serve.

Others will not understand. Others will work to disqualify. Others will scratch their heads and wonder, "Really? That?!"

It's up to you to shake off their noise and lock into the signal of your calling.

Keep the haters, the doubters, and the indifferent at arm's distance.

And pursue your calling with clarity, resilience, and a dogged determination.

Because what you're called to do is worth the work.

You know this in your bone marrow.

The choice is yours: Let the wrong voices shake you off course, or let your calling guide your work far into the future.

- Jon

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