Coach and Instructor Programs

You know that breaking through the limitations of ego calls for practice, not just words. How can you embody transformational practices and show them to others? You know the world needs leaders who lift up others, not just themselves. How can you be a force for developing more of them?

Here’s your pathless path to guiding others.

Become a certified Zen Leadership Coach or Instructor and “flip” yourself, your practice, and those you help to new possibilities.

  • Radically expand your capacity as a coach, trainer, facilitator or teacher with:

    • the freeing flips of Zen Leadership (ZL), as taught in Zen Leader 1, 2 and 3 (or their HEAL equivalents)

    • the agile energy patterns of FEBI, as made personal in FEBI-4U and applicable to clients in FEBI Certification

    • a regular Zen practice that can start in our programs and continue seamlessly, deeply, and daily with our sister organization, Chosei Zen

    • regular participation in our annual Master Class, where you have a chance to practice and learn with others

  • Become part of the pool we draw from in recommending coaches or staffing our IZL programs

  • Join a like-hearted community of fellow coaches and instructors in mutual skill-building, monthly gatherings, and special interest groups

Image: Master Class 2024, hamming it up with Tiger power inspired by Peter Appel’s Movingness practice

Transformation and Impact:

“When you realize it is time to do your own deep work, learning with the Zen Leader community will help you gain the insights to face your shadows and bring more brightness into the world.”

Luann Barndt, ZL Coach and Facilitator

“As a result of IZL and Zen training, I experience life with more energy and less fear and strain. I am more alive and open with my clients. I no longer try to fix their problems but rather be with them in a still place that allows insight to emerge from the connectedness of the moment.

Dennis Tirman, ZL Coach and ZL Instructor

“IZL continues to serve me in ways I can’t explain…it brought me back to life and to places I didn’t know existed in myself.”

- Cris Nakano, ZL Coach and ZL Instructor

Certification Pathways

Explore our certification pathways or, if you’re already a ZL Coach or Instructor, scroll down to enroll in the next Master Class

Zen Leadership Coach

Learn how to guide others through the flips of Zen Leadership and the energy patterns of FEBI, expanding yourself as a coach and creating profound openings for others.

Who is it for: Somatically-oriented coaches who are drawn to Zen training and embodying wisdom in their life and practice.

Zen Leadership Instructor

Become a ZL Certified instructor, qualified to teach Zen leadership in your work, add your expertise to our curriculum, and join the pool we draw from in staffing our programs.

Who is it for: Somatically-oriented teachers and facilitators who are drawn to Zen training and teaching the flips of Zen Leadership.

FEBI Certified Coach

Add the powerful FEBI tool to your coaching: the only assessment that links mind, body and behaviors and helps you guide clients through embodied practices that make enduring shifts possible.

Who is it for: Coaches and facilitators who are oriented toward integrating mind and body, but may or may not be interested in Zen or ZL.

Master Class

This annual refresh in Zen Leadership expands its creative applications and offers ZL coaches and instructors opporuntities to practice their craft and learn from others.

Who is it for: ZL Practitioners, HEAL Practitioners, ZL coaches and instructors are eligible to attend. ZL coaches and instructors are required to attend at least every other year to maintain their currency. The first year of Master Class is included the ZL Coach and ZL Instructor pathways.

Be Part of a Global
Zen Community

Included with any of our programs and pathways: limitless access to world-class Zen training.

Connect with our sister organization, Chosei Zen, and join the Virtual dojo daily, with opportunities to train in person at our Spring Green or Madison dojos, as well as with groups spreading on 3 continents.

Pathway Benefits

Our coach and instructor pathways build on your prior coaching, teaching and/or facilitation experience.

Ask us if you have questions about qualifying.

Download our guide to the prerequisites, contents, and requirements of each certification pathway.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • The pathways differ in the prior experience required; i.e., coaching vs teaching experience. Both pathways include the full ZL and FEBI curriculum. They also require regular Zen practice with Chosei Zen and attendance at one (for ZL Coach) or 2 (for ZL Instructor) intensive trainings (in-person sesshin or online keishin). ZL Instructor further requires training in how to run a sitting group; i.e., jiki training.

  • Prior coaching experience is required for FEBI Certification and the ZL Coach pathway. Prior teaching, coaching, or facilitation experience is required for the ZL Instructor pathway. No prior experience in Zen is required. Ask us if you have questions about qualifying.

  • We recommend taking the programs in the 1-2-3 order, with FEBI-4U coming before or after Zen Leader 1. But if it works better for your schedule to start in Zen Leader 2 and pick up Zen Leader 1 later, that is also possible. You have to have taken at least one other Zen Leader program before attending Zen Leader 3. You need to complete all ZL programs before taking Master Class.

  • We design our online agendas with options, so that they work with time zones around the world. We also record sessions so that no one has to attend beyond midnight local time.

  • If you’re committed to making a positive difference in your personal or professional life, you fit our definition of leader, and we’re here to help you do it better.

  • No worries, we can transfer your registration forward to a future offering or you may be eligible for a refund. See our cancellation policy here.

  • No. Our training is compatible with any religion or none at all. We introduce physical Zen training, including meditation, to help you break through barriers and free the mind.