Choosing the path of a life coach means helping others find their best self. But how? If you’re new to life coach jobs, here’s what you can expect.
Looking for a rewarding career that allows you to help others become their best selves?
Then there’s great news for you! Life coach jobs are not only some of the most rewarding but some of the fastest growing!
Some people are naturally born mentors. They see the potential in everyone to become their best selves, and they want to help them do so.
Do you want to help others with the wisdom you’ve accumulated in life?
Are you looking for a career change that will allow you to be your own boss AND to grow as a mentor?
If you’ve been nodding your head “yes” throughout reading this, then this article is for you! Become a life coach by first learning about the nature of life coach jobs!
What Is a Life Coach?
To put it as simple as possible, a life coach is someone who helps others become their best selves.
Life coaches are people who have a wealth of personal knowledge and wisdom to mentor others. They can be young or old, male or female, college educated or not. They can have other careers they want to stay in, or they may be looking to pursue something entirely new.
Life coaches want to make a difference. They want to help people be more confident and content. They want to help others transform their way of thinking and find fulfillment doing so.
Life coach jobs are perfect for those who place a high value on personal growth. They also believe in the power of changing one’s perception.
Bottom line: Life coach jobs are about self-growth. A good life coach has the knowledge and skills to help others grow, and he or she will grow in the process, as well.
What Do Life Coach Jobs Entail?
A life coach helps people see where they want to be and who they want to be. This is the simple definition, but there is much more to life coach jobs.
Listening
Life coaches don’t tell people what to do. They help people see and work towards being their best selves.
People don’t think the same. The nature of this industry is encountering all types of people who think in an infinite number of ways. It’s a coach’s job to understand their clients and adapt to their way of thinking on an individual basis.
Clients need to be able to create their own breakthroughs. They need the space to create their own breakthroughs, but they a life coach to guide them.
Raising Self-Awareness
Perception is often the root of suffering. Negative and fixed perceptions can create personal and professional problems.
Most people who seek the help of life coaches are struggling with personal doubt. It’s often the fundamental obstacle standing in most people’s way.
Life coaching is not about changing people’s way of thinking. It’s about recognizing the aspects in their thought processes that create their suffering. It’s your job to help them become aware of this.
Being Inspired AND Inspiring
The best life coaches are those who have gained wisdom through their experiences. And they want to share these experiences to help others.
They’ve learned some pretty tough lessons throughout life. But they’ve grown into their best selves through them.
Part of listening and being a life coach is being reflective. Life coaches have had a lot of time to reflect on their own lives and how they can bring the best out in others.
Setting Goals
A life coach helps their clients set goals. They don’t tell people which goals to set. They guide people in creating their own goals.
One of the ways you can help clients achieve their goals is to set small-term and long-term goals. The key is to be realistic. You don’t want to set people up for imminent failure.
You want to remain inspiring throughout the process. Your clients will face challenges along the road towards achieving their goals. It’s vital that they have you to keep them motivated.
Taking Risks
Life coaches need to be open to listening and adapting to people’s way of thinking. One of the ways they can accomplish this is to take risks and try different resources.
The client also needs to be open to taking risks. You can do this by talking through example or by telling stories about how taking risks helped you in life.
That’s why the greatest life coaches are those who have experienced and learned a lot. They’ve taken risks in life and learned from them.
Life coach jobs entail a lot of different techniques. You have to be open to always improving your coaching method and trying new techniques.
What Are the Personality Traits of a Life Coach?
One of the beauties of life coaching is the variety of personalities in the industry!
Life coach jobs are suitable for all types of personalities. But there are some basic traits that are necessary for all life coaches to have.
Empathetic
No way of thinking is ever the same. You’re going to encounter many kinds of clients who think from you.
That’s why you have to have a natural ability to understand others and their ways of thinking.
Compassionate
At the heart of life coaching is having genuine compassion for those around you. A true life coach is someone who genuinely cares about those they help.
Patient
Bettering oneself comes with a lot of growing pains. You want your clients to feel comfortable throughout this process.
Patience is a virtue, and the best life coaches have it.
Positive
No one is a lost cause. You have to believe in everyone and that they’re capable of reaching their full potential.
The only way anyone can better themselves is by having a positive attitude. As a life coach, you have to demonstrate this as much as you preach it.
What Is a Life Coaching Session Like?
All inspiring life coaches will wonder what coaching sessions actually entail. Field experience and shadowing other life coaches is a great way to see what sessions are like.
But just like coaching personalities vary, so do coaching styles and methods. Ultimately, one’s coaching style will depend on their own unique approach.
But it will also depend on a client’s preferences. You have to be open to trying new things to ensure that every client is comfortable in their environment.
Clients are opening up to you and sharing personal information about themselves. They need to be able to trust you and the environment around them. Confidentiality is important.
Coaching sessions usually take place at the coach’s home or office. They can also take place in public, like at a cafe or in a park. But this will ultimately depend on what the client is comfortable with.
Part of the perks of life coaching is that it can be done remotely by phone or over a video chat service like Skype.
When you start out, chances are you’ll be doing a lot of in-person sessions. But over time, you may have clients reach out to you from all areas, near and far.
Sessions typically last anywhere from 30 minutes to a couple of hours. As you accumulate experience as a life coach, the better you’ll become at timing out your sessions.
Salaries vary depending on experience and reputation. People who have been coaching for longer usually charge more by the hour. On average, life coaches charge anywhere from $25 to a couple hundred dollars per hour or session.
No matter what, the coaching environment should be a positive one. It should be a learning environment that allows for a constructive, two-way dialogue.
How Do You Become a Life Coach?
There are several ways to become a life coach. But to set yourself apart from other coaches, you’ll need to do the following:
Take a Certification Course
Life coaching is an unregulated industry for the most part. But those who have credentials are more likely to get hired than those without.
One of the great things about life coach jobs is that you don’t need a degree or years of schooling to get one.
In fact, the main prerequisite is being someone with wisdom and knowledge to share with the world.
But the best life coaches are certified. Life coaching courses are offered online or as classes.
Aspiring life coaches usually need anywhere from 125 to 300 hours of training. Certification courses will train and prepare you to be the best possible life coach you can be!
Market Yourself
People in the most need of life coaching often don’t have the resources to seek it out. If you can locate where people are in the most need of self-help, then you’re off to a great start!
We live in a world where any and all professionals can market themselves on social media. Life coach jobs are often attained online these days. But while this type of marketing is essential, it is not the only way to market yourself.
There are many ways to market yourself. But relationship building is one of the most important ways.
You want clients to recommend you to their friends, families, and coworkers. After all, people are more likely to seek out someone who has helped someone they know.
Self-Study
You want to be as well-rounded as possible. And you can by constantly reading and staying updated in the industry.
This doesn’t mean that you need to go back to school to get a degree. It does require that you stay current with the industry and look to others for inspiration.
Make it a priority to read the work of other life coaches. Attend skill-building workshops and conferences. Always be working on becoming a better coach.
Jump Start Your Journey As a Life Coach Today!
Becoming a life coach is an opportunity in itself to grow as a person. Life coach jobs take years of work and dedication, and it will always be a challenge. But if you can accept the challenge, then you’re already halfway to becoming a life coach!
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