Posted on January 15, 2013 by Cynthia Gunsinger

Life coaching is a practice that helps people identify and achieve personal goals. Life coaches assist clients by using a variety of tools and techniques. Life coaching draws inspiration from disciplines such as sociology, psychology, positive adult development and career counseling. Specialty life coaches may have degrees in psychological counseling, hypnosis, dream analysis, marketing and other areas relevant to providing guidance. However, they are not necessarily therapists or consultants; psychological intervention and business analysis may be outside the scope of some coaches’ work.  Wikipedia

With a cloudy description of life coaching like this and comedic illustrations of who and what life coaches do, some people assume that life coaches are a bunch of quacks. 

• Life coaches are not regulated by the government.
• Coaches do not train like therapists or psychologists. 
• Coaching is often not covered by your insurance provider.  

It’s easy consider life coaches to be pop culture career hoppers who have migrated to an easy profession that in no way tackles human complexity and ambiguity.

This is not entirely correct. Like when you seek any other professional, do your due diligence when choosing a life coach:

1. Training and Education: A life coach who is credentialed by the ICF, who has trained with a reputable coaching school or university is a professional who knows the ins and outs of behavioral science. Accrediting associations like the ICF and universities ensure that each accredited coach has taken the required training, has adequate experience, has obtained mentoring from expert coaches, and has taken his exams.

2. Experience and Knowledge: Though it has not yet been acknowledged, coaching is related to psychological practice. Life coaches provide behavioral science-based support to people who are low on confidence or to those who find themselves in a bind at home or at work. Coaching involves psychology, human dynamics, motivation, listening, and more.

3. Professionalism: It’s all about creating an ongoing professional relationship with the client and discovering goals, building on strengths and eliminating weaknesses to  achieve life goals. It’s about changing his life for the better. Coaching is a very creative and intelligent profession.

Coaching is a new discipline as compared to psychology and therapy, and has yet to get its much-needed recognition. Until that happens, some folks will continue to term it as quack-ery, while others experience the incredible benefit and rewards of working with a professional, knowledgeable and educated coach.

If you want more insight about the credibility of the coaching industry, assessing what hiring a coach would do for you, or to inquire about a specific question, call us 1-800-278-1057