While life coaching is becoming more mainstream with each passing year, a lot of people ask, either out loud or just in their minds, what is life coaching and why do people hire life coaches?
Not For The Faint of Heart
Contrary to common (mis)belief, there is nothing cliché, fluffy or airy about life coaching. Coaching is, as a matter of fact, a process of bravery, honesty, integrity and the will and want to create more, to be better, to be happier. There is nothing cliché about that! Life coaching asks you to look yourself in the mirror (to see the good, the bad and the ugly) to identify where you currently are, your areas of growth and what the path to your goals look like for you and so much more. It isn’t always easy, and takes a good measure of bravery to face yourself in this way. To read more about life coaching, visit our FAQ page.
The Idea Behind Life Coaching
So lets break down what life coaching really is, in simple terms. Life coaching is a way to better yourself and your life (personal growth and professional development all in one!) where the life coach is focused on several key areas of your life. The idea being that all areas of your life (health, career, life balance, personal growth, finances, relationships etc.) are all pieces of your puzzle, and if one is missing or out of balance, the rest of the puzzle is incomplete or suffers as a consequence of that imbalance. Therefore, any or most topics are welcomed to the table at coaching sessions. That does not, however, mean that you do not set up specific goals in specific areas of your life. These identified goals will always be kept in mind regardless of the topic of the day (remember that puzzle… i.e. the bigger picture!). And that’s one of the important roles of your life coach, to keep that bigger agenda, to help connect, bridge and keep movement in the desired direction.
Are There Different Types of Life Coaches?
While there may be people out there calling themselves life coaches because they consider themselves highly experiences in… well, life, most life coaches are highly trained and certified professionals. Now, life coaches can also focus on niches within the bigger picture, and often times they will change their title to ‘business coach’ or ‘health coach’, for example. They may still, or may not, keep a wider focus though. Each coach is different and therefore their approach and way of seeing the coaching relationship will be different. That is why it’s important to learn more about each one’s approach. To read more about ours, visit the FAQ section.
Who Hires a Life Coach?
People tend to believe that coaches only work with people that need improvement or fixing. Or, that coaches are hired only when a problem needs to be fixed. In actuality, it’s mostly the opposite. The coach comes from a place of seeing their clients as whole and resourceful. And coaches often work with people who are already successful, where companies see bright futures for the individual or simply for individuals that they know they have more within them and are looking for someone to help harness that and apply it more effectively/efficiently than they are able to themselves. Just like a professional sports coach!
So the questions is not really why hire a life coach. Instead, ask yourself, ‘Why not try life coaching?‘ Contact AiM coaching today for a free sample session!
– Mia McFadyen, Life Coach