How Do I Become A Life Coach? An Answer To One Of The Most Common Questions I Hear.

I wanted to write this blog post because I get this exact question all the time. Here’s what it sounds like, “I’m really interested in coaching, how do I become a professional life coach?”

The coaching industry is still relatively young, there are many different types of coaches and hundreds of coaching programs. It’s an unregulated industry, and just like in the wild west, people can do anything they want. What this means, is anyone can hang out a shingle and call themselves a coach. 

There is a wide range of schools and a variety of training styles.  There are coach training schools where you can take an online 4-hour training and at the end, you receive a certificate that says you are a certified coach. Compare this with other coach training schools, colleges and universities which provide a rigorous curriculum with 100+ hours in training supervised practice and feedback on your coaching skills. 

For the purposes of our discussion today I’d like to rephrase this common question to “How Do I Become a Certified Life Coach?”

Here are some suggestions for you

1. Why do you want to be a coach? Ask yourself a few questions to decide why you think you might like to be a coach. Most coaches are kind and caring people, who are motivated by a desire to help others. And I've found many feel called to this profession.

• Do you like the idea of helping others?
• Do you enjoy speaking with people and watching them succeed?
• How do you feel speaking closely with people who are having a tough time?
• Do people always confide in you and ask for your advice?

2. Experience coaching for yourself. Many people think being a coach sounds like fun, they think it’s all about telling someone else what to do or giving advice. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Coaching is a discussion where the coach helps the client understand their situation and decide what the client wants, their goals and what fulfils them and finally what do they choose to do to overcome their challenges.

The best way to experience coaching is to hire your own coach and experience it from a client’s perspective. Give yourself ample time, I suggest you engage your professional coach for at least 3 months of regular coaching before you decide whether you really like it or not.

3. To become a skilled coach, attend a quality training program and get your coaching certification.

There are hundreds of coaching schools out there. If you do a Google search for coach schools it’s mind-boggling. Do your homework. Just because a website looks attractive doesn’t equate to the quality of their training.

I recommend attending an established school with a level of training that adheres to an ICF accredited coach training program. The International Coaching Federation ICF has established standards, however, membership is completely voluntary.  I would recommend you first do some research at the ICF’s website https://coachfederation.org/

On this website, you will find many quality schools that are accredited through this global organization. So, this is a great place to begin to research training options.

 Some considerations as you decide on your coach training: 

• Do you want to attend training in person or online?
• What is the cost of the program?
• How long is the training program?
• How much time outside of class is required?
• Are the faculty members certified as coaches at an expert level?

 Do some in-depth research and look closely at the website and specifics of the training programs that appeal to you. Does the coaching course align with your values? Does it give you ample time to practice coaching and work with clients in a supervised environment where you will get feedback to hone your skills? Does it fit with your lifestyle and the potential coaching niche you are drawn to?

 Once you have narrowed it down to a handful of schools that seem like a good fit, speak with some of their past students and where possible attend an orientation session or demonstration call.

4. Practice coaching as much as possible. The more you practice the more your skill set will improve and the more comfortable you will be.

5. To be a professional and successful coach, pay attention to the business side of coaching as well. It’s important for you to be aware that once you decide to set up a life coaching business you are self-employed. Check out my post on the Essential Checklist To Starting a Successful Coaching Business. and grab my free Printable checklist by clicking here. It tells you the steps you need to take to start your successful coaching business.

The business and marketing of your coaching services is just as important as the coaching itself. If you can’t find the clients you want you will quickly become frustrated and disillusioned. There are many excellent coaches who give up on their dream of being a full-time professional coach because they can’t get enough clients or make enough money to sustain their practice.

I’ve found that many otherwise wonderful coaching schools do not pay enough attention to this aspect and I believe they do their students a disservice.

If you want to learn more about how to set up your business and effectively market your coaching services look through my blog for other articles on specific topics related to your business success.

So now it’s your turn.  What other questions do you have about being a successful coach? Send me an email at info@candymotzek.com  I’d love to hear from you, I personally read every single email I get, and maybe I’ll answer your question on another one of my blogs 😊

 I’m here for the long haul! My goal is to help you, have your dream coaching practice. How’s it going? Is it everything you hoped it would be? Leave a comment below. I can’t wait to hear from you.