Right off the bat, there are no educational requirements for becoming a life coach. There is no master licensing agency or professional union, although the International Coach Federation (ICF) does offer life coach accreditation to some training services. The good aspect of that is that it makes the industry easy for a newcomer to get started in. The bad aspect is that it has opened the field up to people who are unscrupulous. Many life coaches are justifiably regarded as scam artists, collecting large fees while not really making a difference in the lives of their clients. I’m not going to advise you on how to become that sort of life coach – this article assumes that you want to pursue the calling to help people.

The best way to get acquainted with the job is to book yourself sessions with one or several life coaches. Many coaches choose to specialize in a specific aspect of existence – whether it be relationships, finances or nutrition. In your consultations with life coaches, pay close attention to how they phrase advice and gather information. The job is equal parts listening and talking – discovering the blocks to your client’s happiness and giving them the tools to remove those blocks. There are a number of self-help books in the marketplace that can give a prospective life coach a platform to build their program around. These books offer organizing principles that you can use to reinforce your lessons to your clients. Having a physical reference that they can use even when you’re not around can be a very effective teaching tool.

If you are serious about becoming a life coach, it is recommended that you pursue at least one course at ICF-accredited life coaching schools such as the Institute for Life Coach Training. These courses can take over 100 hours of training, but at the end of them you will have a much stronger grasp on the tools that coaching requires. Of course, it is not mandatory to take any kind of educational training before embarking on your new career as a life skills coach, but having an ICF-accredited diploma will make it significantly easier to develop a client base and land well paying life coaching jobs.

Being a life coach offers a lot of flexibility with regards to how you serve your clients. You can work with local clients in person and at the same time, expand your base to an online life coach service or telephone.   

Life coaching is a difficult job, with many pitfalls. Most notably, the life coach has to always seem to be in a position of authority – if you don’t have your life together, you won’t be able to help others with theirs. It’s not a job for those who lack confidence or the ability to connect with people. As with any new business, developing a client base will be difficult at first, but your customers will be your best advertisements – really help them, using all the tools at your disposal, and they’ll appreciate it for the rest of their lives.

1) set goals that you really want to accomplish
2) achieve those goals by determining an appropriate course of action.

For many people, setting goals to accomplish in life can be a daunting task. For me personally, I felt like every day I had a new idea. I couldn’t decide how to narrow my focus to a few things that I would take really seriously. Unfortunately, we only have so many hours in a day and so many days in a life to get things done.

In order to really achieve in an area we must devote time and effort to it, and there is a limited amount of time and effort we have to expend. We must also expend effort keeping ourselves fed, housed, clothed, and sure that we will be able to remain comfortable in the future. Balancing basic needs with other needs can be challenging, and a life coach can help you find the right balance. Ideally, the pursuits we engage in to maintain our basic level of comfort will also be pursuits that we truly enjoy, that help us grow as people and find true happiness.

When we narrow our focus to a few things, we are in a better position to accomplish what we really want in these areas. Once we have narrowed our focus to a manageable number of pursuits, then we must take the time to decide what we want out of each endeavor. A life coach can help determine whether expectations are realistic. Once realistic goals are set, the life coach can then help outline an approach that will make it possible to succeed in these goals. The life coach can also help make sure that no important areas are left out of the overall plan. While individual people have differing needs, almost everyone needs not only to ensure that basic comforts are obtained, but also to find areas for intellectual, artistic, and spiritual development.

Most people also need ample time to spend with loved ones, friends and family. Relationship coaching can make sure that, in narrowing our focus to a few principal goals on which we will expend our time and energy, none of these important areas are neglected. In summary, when life feels out of balance, finding a life coach who can help you set and achieve realistic goals can help you get back in balance. Ultimately, the chance at a well-balanced and enriched life is a chance very much worth taking.

I am currently taking a course to be a personal life coach and in my training we were given a list of 10 questions to ask our new clients. I’d like to share that list with you so you can start asking these questions of yourself. They may seem simple, but they are designed to get the client to open up and start talking about issues the coach can help them with.

1. What do I really want?
This may seem like a simple enough question, but a lot of people don’t really know what they want. They know what their spouses want, or their children, but not themselves.

2. Am I happy with what I’m doing and the situation I am in?
Are you finding satisfaction and happiness with your current situation (job, relationships, etc)? If there’s an area that you answered ‘no’, that’s where you should start.

3. What motivates me?
What motivates you to want to do better with your life? Find what keeps you going and use that as fuel to keep improving.

Making changes is never easy. There are going to be times when you want to give up and go back to your old ways. When that hapens, and it will, ask yourself these three questions. Hopefull they will help you get back on track.

1. Take Good Care of Yourself
When we take care of our bodies, we tend to feel better about ourselves and our lives. Get plenty of rest, exercise regularly, and eat right.

2. Remind Yourself of the Things You Are Grateful For
If you are constantly reminded of the of the things that are right in our lives, challenges and stress don’t seem so bad. Take about a minute a day to appreciate the good things in your life.

3. Look for the Proof Instead of Making Assumptions
How many times have you thought YOU were the reason someone was in a bad mood? That it was what YOU said or did that caused them to turn away from you? It’s a normal fear of not being liked or accepted, but our fears are not usually reality. If you think that you did or said something, don’t hesitate to ask them. Without proof, there’s nothing to worry about.

4. Refrain from Using Absolutes
Try to stay away from using words like always, never and can’t. Those words make it absolute. “You’re ALWAYS late”, “you NEVER listen” and “I CAN’T do that” are lines that will restrict you from positive thinking.

5. Detach From Negative Thoughts
If you notice yourself having a negative thought, detach from it, witness it, and don’t follow it.

6. Squash the “ANTs”
In his book “Change Your Brain, Change Your Life,” Dr. Daniel Amen talks about “ANTs” – Automatic Negative Thoughts. These are the bad thoughts that are usually reactionary, like “Those people are laughing, they must be talking about me,” or “The boss wants to see me? It must be bad!” When you notice these thoughts, realize that they are nothing more than ANTs and squash them!

7. Practice Lovin’, Touchin’ & Squeezin’ (Your Friends and Family)
I grew up in a house where hugs were an everyday occurrence. Positive physical contact with friends, loved ones, and even pets, is an instant pick-me-up. Relationship coaching books can help you work specifically in this area.

8. Increase Your Social Activity
If your were to increase your social activity, you would decrease your loneliness. Make it a point to be around healthy and happy people and their positive energy will affect you in a positive way!

9. Volunteer for an Organization, or Help another Person
Whenever I help someone, I feel good about myself. Whatever you can do to help the community will come back to you in a positive way.

10. Use Pattern Interrupts to Combat Rumination
If you find yourself ruminating, a great way to stop it is to interrupt the pattern and force yourself to do something completely different. Rumination is like hyper-focus on something negative. It’s never productive, because it’s not rational or solution-oriented, it’s just excessive worry. Try changing your physical environment – go for a walk or sit outside. You could also call a friend, pick up a book, or turn on some music.

I know these tips will help you. Positive thinking doesn’t happen over night, but if you keep striving towards it, it will happen.