Life Coaching 101

Chances are if you have found this site that you have at least heard of life coaching. You may still be wondering, what exactly a life coach does or how life coaching is different than therapy? You may even be wondering if you would benefit from life coaching. 

The main difference between life coaching and therapy is the focus of the work.

Therapy is focused on mental health. It is also diagnostic based, meaning it helps to define the type of trauma, mental state, condition, or dysfunction the person may have. Therapy is often based on resolving issues in the past that are currently affecting the individual, whether they are relationship-based, self-destructive behavior, mental illness, heal past trauma, deal with loss, or even overcome abuse or addiction. 

Life coaching on the other hand is focused on goals. This quote by Tony Robbins explains life coaching well "Life coaching is truly its own unique service designed to help ambitious achievers meet the outcomes that will bring them success and fulfillment." In that regard, life coaching is more future-focused.

Here's another way to think about it: therapy often takes someone from dysfunctional and helps them become functional again. Life coaching is about taking your life from ordinary to extraordinary. 

Life coaching can help you if:

• You have ever found yourself feeling stuck, lost, in a rut, struggling with repeated problems.
• You wish you could improve your happiness.
• You want to improve your relationships with friends, family, or your significant other.
• You feel that want more from life but don't know what that is or you feel that you don't deserve it.
• You want to improve your relationship with money 
• You want to up-level your life to achieve the next level of success faster. 
• There is something you have been working on or a goal you are trying to achieve but have been struggling to do so.

 Before you choose a life coach to work with ask yourself a few questions:

• What is it that I want help with?
• Where is it that I feel stuck in life or challenged in life?
• Do I need someone to hold me accountable?
• Are there certain things that I constantly struggle with that hold me back? 
• Do I have an open mind about trying new things?
• What are my hurdles or blocks that I see as a common reoccurring problem holding me back?

The type of coaching that I practice is called causal coaching. This means that we work together to figure out the root cause of why you have the problem. We look at your thinking and your mindset to see how what's going on in your brain. This has a direct correlation to the emotions you feel and the results you have.

Contrast this to results based coaches who will give you a path to get the results. The problem with this action or results-based coaching is, if you don't address WHY you have that problem then it's likely to repeat itself.

This is why I think causal coaching is so important to keep you progressing forward. It teaches you the skills to recognize your thought patterns and mindset which are the basis of everything. To learn more about that read my blog post on the self coaching model.

Just like choosing a friend, you have to feel a connection with your life coach. If you don't feel like it's a good fit for you, then try another life coach. Each will practice differently. If you like a warm and fuzzy person, you may pick someone totally different to work with than someone else who prefers straight and to the point advice. 

Besides different styles and field of life coaching, there are also different kinds of life coaching programs. You may find that you prefer working 1-1 with a coach for a more individualized experience. You can learn more about working with me 1-1 by clicking here.

I'm part of a group life coaching program with my life coach. My life has changed tremendously with her help and guidance over the past few years. In fact, I loved my experience with her so much that I decided I want to do the same for other women, like you. I also have a business coach I work with. My background is not in business and I value my time, so I gladly pay to work with an expert business coach who can help me grow those skills. 

Nobody is born with all this knowledge of life, so don't be afraid of working with someone to teach you and push you to that next level. In fact, smart people in life never stop learning and growing.

I believe that everyone can benefit from the right life coach. It's sometimes difficult to see and analyze our problems from our own internal perspective. The is a huge benefit of working with a coach is that you get someone's outside more objective viewpoint to consider.

Investing in yourself, in your happiness, in your education, in your future is the best kind of investment that you can make.

Until next time...

P.S. If you love personal development be sure to check out my monthly personal development program, The Make it Happen Academy, Click Here to learn more.