If you’re a coach, career counselor, facilitator, helping professional, HR or L&D pro, or leader, you already know one of the biggest questions - and sources of pain - for a huge number of people: figuring out the answer to one big question…
What is the work that makes me come alive and how can I do more of it?
It is, in no small way, the question of our time especially now, when:
- Individuals, in all career stages, are rethinking what work means to them, are sitting in the question of what’s next, exploring possibilities and assessing opportunities
- Employees are finding themselves under pressure to quickly get clear about what matters to them, figure out their next move in reaction to layoffs or unanticipated organizational changes, and navigate this season with more confidence and agency
- Organizations are being called on to deliver on the demand for higher-levels of purpose, excitement, engagement, and a sense of meaning for their employees
- Leaders are working to rise to the moment, help team members navigate constant disruption, while also helping them better align their work with what makes them come alive with higher-levels of motivation, engagement and performance, and decreased burnout, and…
Safe bet, you started doing what you’re doing because you grappled with this very inquiry and, like most, still revisit it on a regular basis.
At this point, you’ve done the work you needed to do so that you can be of service to others who are sitting in these questions and trying to navigate these challenges and opportunities.
- You’re committed to helping people figure out their reason-for-being in a constructive, but not contrived or “faddish” way.
- You’ve accumulated professional certifications, spent hundreds or even thousands of practical hours working with clients, colleagues, or team members, and maybe even earned credentials or advanced degrees.
- You are passionate about helping people not only achieve their goals at the highest level but to find and create ways to flourish in their work and life.
- Your contributions make a difference.
Still, you’ve also come to learn that this giant existential question often takes not just time and experience, but a varied set of tools that allow for different paths to awakening and action. The typical process of inquiry and guided experimentation is rarely enough.
So, you turn to specialized assessments, tools, and bodies of knowledge. Things like CliftonStrengths, VIA Character Strengths, DISC®, MBTI®, or the Enneagram, to name a few. Each has its own, well-established place in your toolbox. But, as with all generalized assessments, personality tests, and tools, they tend to give broader-stroke guidance.
And, they’re never quite spot-on when it comes to figuring out this specific inquiry -
What is the underlying impulse for effort or work that gives a person that feeling of coming alive?
How do people find and do work that allows them to feel like they’re fueled by a sense of purpose, doing things that matter, can fully be themselves, energized and enthusiastic about their pursuits, and get to experience the state of getting lost in flow? Shorthanded, they’re longing for work that Sparks them and makes them come alive.
Answering this singular question - deepening this body of knowledge, building highly-specific tools, processes, and programming, providing a powerful certification, and developing other offerings that guide this life-defining quest - is our obsession at Spark Endeavors™.
It began with the development of the Sparketypes and the Sparketype® Assessment, an online tool that allows anyone to discover their Primary, Shadow, and Anti Sparketype®. If you’re here now, we’re guessing you’ve already discovered yours, found value in it, and want to not only learn more about it, but figure out a way to share this body of knowledge and powerful “pro-grade” tools with those you serve.
To date, the Sparketype® Assessment has been completed by nearly 850,000 individuals and organizations generating more than 42-million data points and a wealth of groundbreaking insights. This is a dynamic, evolving body of work, as we continue to deepen into the massive, fast-growing data set that has become one of the world’s largest ever studies on work-like fulfillment. It’s also led to a rapidly growing inventory of tools, processes, and programming informed not just by our “big data,” but also by our own in-the-field engagement with some of the largest companies in the world, along with the aggregated insights from our incredible Certified Sparketype® Advisor community. Still, we wanted more “hard data,” so we went deeper.
Our Phase II Inquiry Study showed even clearer, more granular correlations that match-up with what we’d been hearing and seeing:
The more a person’s work aligns with their Sparketype®, the more likely they are to feel energized and excited, sense that what they do matters, experience flow, and be fully themselves and able to perform at their full potential at work and in life.
And, interestingly enough, they’re also more likely to feel like their life and work has a clear sense of purpose and direction - like they’re doing the thing they’re here to do.
Working to support the tremendous volume of people completing the Sparketype® Assessment, we began to create more tools, like the groundbreaking, bestselling book - SPARKED - published by HarperCollins Leadership, the 60+ page Sparketype® Premium Profile, and the Spark Canvas™, with more in development and rolling out on a regular basis. We’ve also brought this work into organizations and groups through keynotes, learning programs, and custom experiences.
The feedback has been incredible. Still, people asked for something more…
“Is there someone I can work with who understands the Sparketype® body of knowledge and tools and can help guide me in my quest to feel more alive and make better informed, more Spark-centered decisions in my work and life?”
Simultaneously, we started to hear from leaders and organizations who wanted to learn about the Sparketypes and figure out what they could do to help their people and teams feel more connected, motivated, engaged, and effective. They also wanted to know who could help their employees to feel more Sparked in their work.
Then, similar requests began coming in, this time from helping professionals and leaders like you -
- Coaches
- Professional Development Facilitators
- Career Counselors
- L & D
Professionals - HR
Professionals
- Personal Development Pros
- Helping Professionals
- Growth-
oriented
Leaders
Professionals, like you, wanted to explore how they could deepen their awareness of the Sparketype® body of knowledge, leverage our intellectual property, assessment, tools, programming and bring this powerful process to the people they serve, whether clients, colleagues, organizations, teams, or groups. They saw how the Sparketypes could have a powerful positive impact on others and how, with deeper understanding and training, it could empower them to make a bigger difference by helping others come alive in their work and life, and in a very differentiated way. But, they also sensed (correctly) there was so much more to learn and to share in order to help clients unlock the power of the Sparketype® body of knowledge in a more informed, confident, and qualified way.
In response to this growing demand, we developed a powerful and robust training and certification program for coaches, HR and L&D professionals, leaders, and helping professionals to become Certified Sparketype® Advisors (CSA). Our CSAs are sharing the Sparketypes and related programming, processes, and strategies globally with everyone from individual clients and small groups to teams and leaders in some of the largest organizations and institutions in the world.
Our next Certified Sparketype Advisor Training and Certification Program will begin September 12, 2024.
CURRICULUM OVERVIEW | WHAT YOU'LL LEARN
We’ve developed extensive processes, tools, strategies and “flow guides” for a range of use cases, clients and contexts, from one-to-one coaching engagements to larger scale leadership and organizational work.
During your 11-week training, you’ll discover and build competence in the following areas:
- Extensive understanding of the all 10 Sparketypes, their origin, data and approach to application in real-world contexts and scenarios, so you feel wise, clear and confident in guiding clients through an exploration of their Sparketype® profile and turn their awareness into action.
- The role of the Primary and Shadow Sparketype®, how they work together (or cause friction), so you can guide clients in a clear and nuanced way to a much deeper understanding of their key drivers of work.
- How the Sparketypes relate to meaning, flow, engagement, motivation, purpose, and performance, and how to explore these relationships with clients in a clear and inspiring way.
- How the Sparketype® body of knowledge compares to other major type-driven methodologies in the marketplace and how to explore weaving them into a multi-faceted advisory toolbox to create optimal outcomes.
- Understand the Anti Sparketype® and how to help clients both make peace with theirs, and also build a positive relationship with this impulse that leads to better experiences and outcomes.
- How to help clients identify when their unique Sparketype® profile may lead them to struggle or feel triggered, and what to do about it in order to feel Sparked again.
- How to guide clients in understanding when “over-indexing” for the Sparketype® can actually become a bad thing, and what to do in order to express their Sparketype® in a healthy and vibrant way.
- How to facilitate deep, insightful, fun and actionable “Sparked Conversations™” to unpack the way the Sparketypes show up, inform action or inaction, communication, empathy, motivation and performance, both on an individual basis, and also, if relevant, within teams, leaders and organization-wide.
- How to help clients make better decisions with exceptional clarity, based on a laser-focused understanding of their essential needs and key decision-making criteria when evaluating current and future work opportunities, and making decisions about whether to stay the course, Realign, Reimagine, or Reinvent their work and career.
- How to tap a specialized CSA toolbox of exercises, processes, materials, and strategies designed to empower insight and instill confidence, while helping clients feel increasingly more Sparked with greater ease.
- How to support clients through key moments of inflection and growth, using the Sparketype® tools and processes.
- How to help clients better understand how each element of their Sparketype® profile shows up in the context of work, teams, leadership, organizational culture, or entrepreneurship, and tap our specialized tools and processes to better navigate each context.
- How to explore the relationship between Sparketype® elements and particular roles, organizations or industries in a way that both provides guidance, yet also instills a sense of freedom and possibility.
- How to structure a wide array of client engagements with confidence, through the use of proprietary engagement “flow guides,” supporting materials, tools, and processes.
- Learn how to leverage our extensive training and resource library, including your 325+ page CSA training and resource manual, 415+ page Sparketype® Premium Profile resource guide and other workbooks and collateral, so you feel powerfully informed and supported when working with clients.
- How to work interactively with clients with confidence, through weekly practical skill-building exercises in your 6-8 person learning pod, supported by your CSA mentor, so you truly feel like you haven’t just “studied” the material, but have had time and input to build genuine competence and confidence when working with clients from the earliest days.
- And, much, much more. We regularly add to the curriculum with new insights, data and applications, and as an active CSA you’ll get continuing access to this constantly growing body of knowledge.
Hybrid Learning Format
The CSA Training and Certification Program uses a hybrid learning format that is designed to deepen real-time learning, integration and skill-building with well-designed and produced educational content and hands-on instruction and mentoring, while accommodating the need for flexibility among our increasingly global community.
In this format, you’ll enjoy an immersive, 11-week, online experience, where you’ll learn, share, practice, and grow in 8-10 person “learning pods” that meet virtually on a weekly basis for interactive mentoring by an experienced faculty CSA. These weekly, interactive experiences are powerfully supported by specially-developed training content (videos, readings, and exercises) that may be consumed via any connected-device, on your schedule.
This blend provides the flexibility to engage with the training content on your own time, integrate the information, then come together with your "learning pod" and CSA mentor or peer coach to deepen into the ideas, discuss, practice, create supportive friendships, and cultivate competence and confidence from regular input from skilled professional in the field who is actively applying the Sparketype® body of knowledge.
You’ll have the opportunity to immerse yourself in:
- Weekly educational training content taught by Spark Endeavors CEO and Sparketype® architect, Jonathan Fields, delivered in pre-produced video format, so you can consume it anywhere, anytime, from any connected-device.
- Weekly practice and skill-building exercises, with supporting materials and interactive worksheets to take you deeper and provide opportunities to start practicing and building skills with specially-designed interactive exercises for you and your learning pod.
- Facilitated weekly 1-hour Small Group Learning Pods of 8 to 10 participants, hosted virtually by experienced CSA mentors to help deepen your practice, integrate the learning, ask questions, and foster discussion.
- Peer/Buddy pairings practice session with a peer from your Learning Pod to help you gain more experience applying the Sparketype® body of knowledge in a coaching context, you also have the option of partnering with a member of your Pod for ongoing support, practice, and learning.
- 2-hour all-hands virtual orientation & integration sessions with Spark Endeavors founder, Jonathan Fields.
- Two “All hands” Office Hours for the full cohort, where everyone from all learning pods will have a chance to gather, learn and connect virtually.
- 325+ page comprehensive, CSA training and resource manual, along with more than 415 additional pages of in-depth insight about each of the Sparketypes and how they show up.
This blended virtual + cohort + mentorship format dramatically expands access on a global scale, while providing a spacious, 11-week schedule for learning and integration, and plenty of opportunity for real-time practice, skill development and expert guidance. Our CSA community is global and we work to do our best to accommodate different time zones when curating learning pods and assigning mentors.
We’re excited to welcome new CSA candidates into this next-generation training and certification program.
Certification Requirements, Scope & Expectations...
Here is what to expect upon completion of the certification process:
Provisional certification.
In order to help you get “up and running quickly” and begin to integrate the Sparketypes into client engagements in the month following the training, you will get “provisional” CSA status that grants use of the Sparketype® intellectual property, tools and offerings for a limited 30-day window, while you complete any outstanding requirements for full certification, noted below.
Official Certification
In order to attain full certification, you will have satisfactorily completed:
- Completed all assigned training videos, reading materials, and exercises, delivered in our online CSA Learning Portal.
- Attended all 8 live Learning Pod mentoring sessions, participated in 1 Peer Coach Practice Session, and attended the live Orientation & Integration Sessions.
- Guided two people, clients or colleagues, through specified elements of the Sparketype® process, then submitted written reflections for each person (evaluation form to be provided.)
- Completed the online CSA Knowledge Assessment demonstrating foundational knowledge of the Sparketype® framework, processes, tools and resources.
Once ALL elements are completed and turned-in, we will review and confirm satisfactory completion, send an “official” certification letter, certificate and digital badge suitable for sharing.
Once you’re out of the provisional window, as a CSA, you will be credentialed and authorized to guide individuals and facilitate groups using our extensive library of tools, resources and programming covered in this training. We also expect to develop and make available in 2024 additional, more targeted training and specialized certification opportunities tailored to corporate, educational and organizational settings with a specific focus on leadership, engagement, performance, team-dynamics, and communications applications.
Please note, tuition alone does not entitle any participant to full certification.
We care deeply about not just sharing information, but also about true proficiency and impact. Payment, completion of the pre-work and attendance at the weekly mentoring sessions does not ensure certification. In order to “graduate” to active, full certification and be eligible for the full suite of benefits of being a CSA, you must also complete all required practical hours and post-work within the first 30-days (extensions for extenuating circumstances or hardship may be granted on a case-by-case basis). When you say “yes” to taking a spot in the certification, we also expect that to be a “yes” to doing all necessary work to become fully certified. Failure to complete these final elements will result in denial of certification and does not entitle any participant to a refund.
What we are hoping to do here is raise the bar. To convey our commitment to curating and growing a powerful, inclusive, whole-hearted, action-oriented and motivated team of individuals who will come together to form a true impact-driven community. A group of professionals known for a rare devotion to service, intentionality and intelligence, kindness and connection and the ability to access and apply highly-differentiated concepts, tools, and resources that deliver real, measurable, life-changing outcomes.
"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."
- Maya Angelou
Put another way, we’re looking for people who will raise their hands to help us shake the world.
Maybe, that’s you!
Additional Benefits & Annual Certification Renewal
As an active CSA, you will also get continued access to:
- 328+ Page CSA Resource Manual, including updates and expansions
- Access to 415+ page CSA Sparketype® Premium Profile Source Document
- CSA-only Client Infosheets on all 10 Sparketypes plus Shapeshifter
- Access to an online private portal to share experiences, insights and find peer support
- Ability to use the specific Sparketype® processes, tools, resources, presentation template, materials, brand identity, and programming
- Ability to purchase Sparketype® Premium Profiles, and other specialized materials as they become available at discounted CSA prices
- Exclusive access to a quarterly, inspirational Fireside Chat for active CSAs hosted by Jonathan who shares his thoughts on the latest research, hot topics, and Sparketype® insights
- Access to monthly virtual office hours to ask questions, get updates on new offerings and connect with other CSAs from around the world
- Invitations to ongoing peer practice sessions to continue to deepen your skills in a safe, private and supportive learning environment
- Discounts on future trainings, gatherings and other educational experiences
- Public listing on the searchable Global CSA Directory.
Annual Renewal Of Active CSA Status
We are constantly developing and expanding our ideas, research, tools, professional resources, training and technology to serve our CSA community. In order to maintain the highest standards for all CSAs, it will be important for all active CSAs to keep current with the latest developments, advances and offerings.
Similar to most high-level professional certifications, in order to support this ongoing work and access to expanding resources, and ensure all CSAs are regularly investing in growth, engaging with our educational experiences and staying up to date, we require annual renewal to maintain active status beyond your first-year. The current annual certification renewal fee for continuing education, support and listing renewal is $500 (subject to change over time). This will entitle you to continued access to all public and private components of certification noted above.
ICF Accreditation And CCEs
The new expanded CSA training program is now accredited by the ICF for 25 Hours of Core Competencies and 15 Hours of Resource & Development CCEs (continuing education credits.)
This program might be a fit if YOU:
- Embrace the ideals of inclusivity, equality, service, kindness, elevation and impact.
- Are already certified and/or trained as a professional in the area of coaching, career counseling, HR/HCM, L&D, educator, workshop facilitators, organizational development, leadership or similar by an accredited or established certifying body or educational institution.
- Have a minimum of three years coaching/mentoring/consulting/leadership experience, so that you’ll be able to bring seasoned coaching skills and experiences to this training so that the conversation can remain focused on the specific application of the Sparketypes and not on the fundamentals of coaching.
- See the world (and people) with a deeply-curious lens, are open to learning, feedback and enjoy participating in interactive, collaborative learning environments.
- Are willing to share, give as much as you get and come from a place of openness, inclusivity and kindness.
- Love the idea of making an impact by bringing the evolving Sparketype® body of knowledge to people who are looking to reclaim a sense of meaning, purpose, joy, and expression through their work.
- Would love the ongoing support of a well-aligned community as you weave the Sparketype® process and tools into your work and service offerings.
Investment + How you will apply
We understand that the coaching, consulting and training market is tremendously competitive these days. Your ability to offer a powerful set of next-generation concepts, processes, and tools can not only make a difference for those you serve, but can be a real differentiator, both in terms of enabling faster, better outcomes as well as enhancing your positioning in the marketplace.
As a CSA, you will become one of a select number of people who are officially trained, authorized and certified to offer our core programming and easily discoverable by the large volume of Sparketype® Assessment takers accessing the searchable Global CSA Directory.
We wish we could accept all who apply, but because we are committed to fiercely-intentional growth and impact, fit is critically important. That means, admission is application-only, enrollment will be strictly-limited and each certification cohort will be filled on a qualified first-come/first-accepted basis (meaning, once qualified, we’ll extend invitations on a first-come, first-accepted basis) until capacity is reached and we close admission.
Should we be a fit, your investment will be:
September 12th - November 20th, 2024 Session
Early Bird Tuition | Register by September 2nd
$3,000 ($500 savings)
Enroll by September 2nd | $3,000 ($500 savings)
After September 2nd | $3,500
How you’ll secure your place...
It’s all about fit, we never sell. You’ll complete a short application that will let us get a better sense for whether we’re right for each other. Then, we’ll schedule a 20-minute phone conversation to trade questions, so we can get to know you a bit better and you have time to ask us whatever is on your mind.
If it feels like a great fit, we will offer you a space in the program on what we call a first-response basis. That means we will keep interviewing people and extending offers to well-qualified applicants and the first to confirm registration will be in the program. Once we hit our cap, the group will officially close. At that point, even accepted applicants will have to wait until the next available dates to participate.
If this sounds like something you would love to be a part of,
We invite you to Apply for our upcoming programs now
September 12th - November 20th, 2024 Session
Early Bird Tuition | Register by September 2nd
$3,000 ($500 savings)
Enroll by September 2nd | $3,000 ($500 savings)
After September 2nd | $3,500
Jonathan Fields
Jonathan Fields is a dad, husband, award-winning author, executive producer, and host of one of the top-ranked podcasts in the world, Good Life Project®. He is also the founder of a series of companies focused on human potential, currently helming Spark Endeavors, where he developed the groundbreaking Sparketype® Assessment. This tool has been tapped by over 850,000 individuals and organizations to identify, embrace, and cultivate work that makes people come alive, and help leaders unlock purpose, engagement, and potential. His latest book, SPARKED: Discover Your Unique Imprint for Work That Makes You Come Alive (HarperCollins Leadership 2021), is both a rally cry and a field guide to reclaiming work as a source of meaning, joy, and possibility. Jonathan also speaks and facilitates globally for groups and organizations of all sizes, both virtually and in person. His work has been featured widely in the media, including The New York Times, FastCompany, The Wall Street Journal, Inc., Entrepreneur, Forbes, Oprah Magazine, Elle, Allure, The Guardian, and many more.