Brain-Based Coaching Certificate®
Why Coaches Trained in Neuroscience Coach Differently
Most coaching programs teach you a process to follow. The Brain-Based Coaching Certificate® teaches you how the brain works: so you understand why the process works, and what to do when it doesn't.
Built on the Results Coaching™ methodology and refined over 25 years, the BBCC draws on contemporary neuroscience, positive psychology, adult learning theory, and behaviour change research. You'll learn to apply proprietary, evidence-based frameworks including the SCARF® Model, the Dance of Insight™, and the CREATE Model™: not as scripts, but as tools you can adapt to any conversation.
- Recognize what's happening neurologically when a coachee is stuck
- Facilitate insight and turn it into well-designed action
- Help others build sustainable new habits grounded in how the brain actually changes
Your Coaching Pathway
Choose to start with BBCS, continue to the full certificate, or enrol in both from the start. Each stage builds on the last.
Brain-Based Conversation Skills®
Standalone or Part 1 of the full certificate
30 ICF-accredited hours
Brain-Based Coaching Toolkit®
Requires BBCS completion
28 + 10 mentoring hours
Brain-Based Coaching Certificate®
ICF Level 1 accreditation pathway
68 ICF-accredited hours total
Not sure which path suits you? Book a 15-minute call with our team.
Learn More
Speak to an Education Consultant
Trusted by leading organisations worldwide
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Why Brain-Based Coaching?
Based on decades of neuroscience and Dr. David Rock's Results Coaching™ methodology, Brain-Based Coaching teaches you to help people think differently: not just behave differently. You'll learn to facilitate insights, enable sustainable change, and work at the level of thinking itself, where behaviour originates.
The programme draws on five interconnected bodies of research: contemporary neuroscience, positive psychology, adult learning theory, behaviour change theory, and systems thinking. You'll master proprietary, evidence-based frameworks including the SCARF® Model, the Dance of Insight™, the CREATE Model™, and the REVIEW Model™: not as scripts, but as tools you can adapt to any conversation.
Designed for professionals who value evidence over intuition and want proven methods that work with how people actually think and learn: whether you are new to coaching or looking to deepen an existing practice.
Evidence-Based, Not Intuition-Based
Every technique is grounded in neuroscience research. You will understand not just what works, but why it works: and be able to explain it clearly to clients and colleagues who expect evidence.
Change Thinking, Not Just Behaviour
Most coaching focuses on what people do. Brain-Based Coaching focuses on how people think: the mental models and neural patterns that drive all behaviour and decision-making.
From Impasse to Insight to New Habits
A clear, structured progression: identify where someone is stuck, facilitate the conditions for insight, translate that insight into well-designed action, and embed new habits grounded in how the brain actually changes.
The Foundation: David Rock and Linda J. Page's Coaching with the Brain in Mind demonstrates how understanding neuroscience allows coaches to achieve real, measurable results: through evidence, not guesswork.
What is Brain-Based Conversation Skills® (BBCS)?
BBCS is a practice-rich programme that teaches you a neuroscience-grounded approach to facilitating insight, enabling action, and building lasting habits. Across eight modules, you will learn to recognise what is happening neurologically when someone is stuck, and how to facilitate the kind of thinking that moves people from impasse to meaningful, sustained change. Whether you are new to coaching or an experienced practitioner, it provides a structured, evidence-based foundation for more effective conversations in any context.
Can be taken as a standalone course or as Part 1 of the full BBCC pathway.
Earn 30 ICF-accredited training hours.
BBCS — Brain-Based Conversation Skills®
What You'll Learn
- ✓ Brain-based communication using the SCARF® Model
- ✓ The neuroscience of insight and the Dance of Insight™
- ✓ Turning insight into well-designed action with the CREATE Model™
- ✓ Emotion regulation techniques including labelling and reappraisal
- ✓ Building sustainable new habits using the REVIEW Model™
- ✓ The TAPS Model™ and the neuroscience of behaviour change
What's Included
- • 8 modules across 30 hours (23 live + 7 self-study)
- • Flexible formats: spaced, accelerated, intensive, or immersive
- • Live sessions via Zoom with a diverse EMEA cohort
- • Peer coaching practice with facilitator feedback throughout
- • Dedicated online learning platform with progress tracking
- • Certificate of completion, 30 ICF-accredited training hours, and digital badge
What is the Brain-Based Coaching Toolkit® (BBCT)?
Building on Brain-Based Conversation Skills, the Coaching Toolkit takes you from having powerful conversations to running full coaching engagements. Over 12 weeks, you will learn to set brain-friendly goals, deliver effective feedback, navigate unconscious bias in decision-making, and guide coachees through the complete arc of a coaching partnership: from the initial contracting conversation through to completion. Integrated mentoring and performance evaluation are built into the programme, not arranged separately.
Prerequisite: completion of BBCS (Brain-Based Conversation Skills).
Prefer to commit to the full certificate from the start? You can enrol in the complete BBCC pathway and save with our Spring Bundle. View pricing.
BBCT — Brain-Based Coaching Toolkit®
What You'll Learn
- ✓ Set brain-friendly goals and manage full coaching engagements
- ✓ Deliver effective feedback using a neuroscience-based approach
- ✓ Navigate unconscious bias and support better decision-making
- ✓ Optimise focus and cognitive capacity using the Healthy Mind Platter™
- ✓ Build new habits and guide coachees from contracting through to completion
- ✓ Embed ICF core competencies through integrated mentoring and practice
What's Included
- • 12 sessions over 12 weeks (24.5 hours live + 14 hours self-study)
- • 7 training modules (14 hours)
- • 5 Coaching in Action group mentoring sessions (7 hours)
- • 2 individual mentoring sessions with experienced NLI coaches (3 hours)
- • Performance evaluation against ICF core competencies
- • 28 ICF-accredited training hours + 10 mentoring hours
- • Certificate of completion and digital badge
What Our Participants Say
From first-time coaches to senior HR leaders: what participants across EMEA say about the programme.
"Brain-Based Conversation Skills is one of the best courses I have completed in my career. It has changed my whole approach."
Heather Matla
HR Director, LEGO Group
"I learned so much about the brain and how it impacts our behaviour and decision-making. NLI sets itself apart by providing a more effective and engaging coaching experience."
Natasa Kulessa
Agile Coach, Vodafone
"I gained a huge amount of knowledge and really understand the fundamentals of how neuroscience works. It has elevated the way I have coaching conversations."
Edward Del Monte
Global Head Commercial Performance, Standard Chartered Bank
"The BBCS content is very rich and really amazing. The facilitators did a great job covering the material in a very interactive way. The peer coaching part was amazing."
Nadim
HR Leader, Middle East and Africa
Have questions about the programme? Speak with our team.
Programme Comparison
Choose the programme that fits your goals. All options are delivered in dedicated EMEA cohorts with live Zoom sessions scheduled for EMEA time zones.
BBCS
Brain-Based Conversation Skills
Part 1 — standalone or pathway
Next cohort: April 2026. Speak with our team.
BBCT
Brain-Based Coaching Toolkit
Part 2 — requires BBCS completion
Next cohort: April 2026. Speak with our team.
BBCC
Brain-Based Coaching Certificate
Full Certificate — Part 1 + Part 2
We will confirm your place, apply the bundle discount, and discuss payment options.
Not sure which option is right for you? Book a 15-minute call with our team.
EMEA Education Team
Find Your Coaching Pathway
Not sure where to start? Our education team will help you identify the right programme, clarify the ICF accreditation pathway, and confirm availability for upcoming EMEA cohorts.
Most enquiries are resolved in a single 15-minute conversation.
Prefer to read first? Download the Programme Overview.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about the Brain-Based Coaching Certificate
