One of the buzzwords du jour is life coaching. What exactly is a life coach and how do you know if you need one? We are here to address the many misconceptions surrounding the practicality, utility and premise of what exactly a life coach does and who would benefit most from having one.
Life coaching tends to be a very ambiguous term because it can help a whole plethora of individuals spanning every profession, age group, ethnicity and country. It is not cut and dry like earning your Juris Doctorate to become an attorney. However, the International Coaching Federation (ICF) was created in 1995 to establish accredited certification and curriculum programs to set industry precedence and assist in regulating standards. With that being said, it is imperative for an individual or corporations seeking coaching services to receive a comprehensive background assessment to know if the coach is indeed qualified.
At Wright, our life coaches hold at least Master’s degrees in related fields such as Counseling, Social Work, Communications, Psychology, and minimum of 500 additional hours of training. On top of our fundamental rigorous training program of at least 300 hours in one-on-one interaction, 100 hours in human growth and development training, 50 hours in vision realization training, 50 hours in principled living training, 50 hours in team building, our coaches also participate in ongoing courses to enhance their development.
That was a long way to say, we are pretty darn confident that our life coaches know what they are doing! MAKE SURE your life coach is qualified and has ample experience.
WHAT DOES A LIFE COACH DO?
Life coaches focus on the area(s) you are seeking to improve in and support you to fulfill your goals. Life coaches can assist in the realms of family and relationship, professional and spiritual development, career and achievement of financial abundance, as well as help you to eliminate roadblocks in all areas of your life.
That sounds all fine and dandy, but what goes on in a life coaching session?
For starters, depending upon what you want to accomplish, the first order of action is to outline a roadmap of goals and how to achieve them. The best life coaches are trained to hone in on underlying emotions. For instance, if a client is seeking to become wealthy a life coach would identify not only HOW to get there, but WHAT is underneath the desire for wealth – what deeper needs is the person trying to meet by making more money?
Many hidden emotions and truths are unveiled during coaching sessions. The client seeking wealth may actually be trying to meet his deeper yearning for a full and satisfying life by focusing on a much simpler material goal. A client that wants to lose weight might truly be trying to meet a yearning to be loved and accepted. When we understand what deeper needs we are truly trying to meet, we can often find ways to meet our yearnings directly and ultimately become more satisfied.
After learning about life coaches, you might wonder – Do I need a life coach? While you don’t necessarily need a life coach like you need food or shelter, life coaching can help you create a richer and more fulfilling life for yourself. If you have ever wondered if there could be something more in life, sought a higher purpose, wanted deeper relationships, or wanted to make a difference in the world and know you matter, a life coach might just be the thing to help you get there.
Learn more about Wright Living’s Life Coaching in Chicago, Self Development Courses, and Relationship Courses.