There are plenty of reasons to hire a life coach. You may not even be aware of all the benefits that can come from getting a proper coach.
As with anything, there is certainly a reason to be cautious about hiring a life coach too. Who are these self-professed gurus anyway? Does their following determine whether they can help you solve your problems?
(*Helpful Hint: If you’re hiring a self-professed guru, you’re not going to see a return on your money…)
However, hiring a quality, verified life coach could be what it takes to create the life you’ve always wanted. Today, we’re exploring what it looks like when you’re ready to hire an amazing life coach to change your life.
What a life coach is not
If you’re thinking about hiring a life coach, make sure you’re not looking for one of these things instead.
A life coach is not:
- A therapist: Therapists are amazing and necessary professionals to have in everybody’s life at some point. The difference between a life coach and a therapist is that a therapist specializes in making someone functional by understanding and working through their past. A life coach will largely focus on the present and future to create the results you want.
- A close friend: Although it’s wonderful to have a close relationship with your coach, and friendship may result from it down the line, don’t select a life coach from among your close friends. A close friend may not be able to be impartial to the circumstances you need a life coach to examine.
- A mentor: A mentor will often look to your past and offer you advice or solutions based on how well they know your circumstances. They will likely offer up guidance based on personal experiences, whereas a life coach will remain more objective when guiding you.
- An influencer: Just because someone says a lot of loud words on TikTok or has a large Instagram following (or heck, even if they’ve written a book) doesn’t mean they are qualified to coach you. A proper life coach will have the credentials, experience, and testimonials to back up how effective they are as a coach.
*I just had to throw that last one in there based on what I see on social media (i.e. Rachel Hollis, if you know you know…👀)
What to look for in a life coach
So what should you look for in a life coach?
Depending on your needs, you should look for a life coach with qualities like these:
- A great listener: An amazing life coach will be more interested in listening and understanding you than offering their own perspective. They are the observer of your life and your thoughts, not a commentator.
- Is passionate about their work: You can tell when someone’s heart is in the game for their clients, and when it is not. A life coach should be excited and curious about you, and eager to help you get to where you want to be.
- Is certified and experienced: You can’t just decide to be a life coach one day (I mean, you can, but doesn’t that seem a little untrustworthy?) You should be able to look up the credentials of a life coach you are considering hiring and hear about their previous work.
- If a coach offers a lot of free materials on their website or social media, this is a great way to judge their capabilities and see if they’re a good fit for you.
- Has worked with people like you: If you’re a mom, it’s a good idea to find a life coach that has worked with other moms before. If you’re a student, artist, entrepreneur, or athlete, find a coach that has experience in those areas. Ask your friends who they’ve used before.
And within these parameters, you should also consider different types of life coaches and specialties. Consider what you are hoping to get out of hiring a coach, and maybe one of these coaches can help you:
- Mindfulness Coach
- Burnout Coach
- Intuition Coach
- Recovery Coach
- Entrepreneurship Coach
- Wellness Coach
Truthfully, if you have a specific problem or scenario, there is probably a coach who specializes in just that. Follow the people who are like you, and see who they gravitate towards for coaching.
It can be a lot, and it’s easy to get overwhelmed, especially in the age of the internet. Try not to get overwhelmed at the prospect of too many coaches, and just limit yourself to three good choices if you can’t decide.
Pro-tip: When in doubt, just trust your gut. 💪
When should you hire a life coach?
So when do you know if it’s actually time for you to hire a life coach? Your gut could be telling you many things, but here are some of the most common reasons why you may seek out a life coach:
- You feel stuck in your life: You lack direction and are overwhelmed when making decisions.
- You are frustrated with yourself: You find yourself procrastinating often, and then beating up on yourself for being lazy. Maybe you’re not satisfied with how you show up at work or in your relationships.
- You have a vision, but no plan of action: With the end in mind, how can you make steps towards your goals when you’re overwhelmed? A life coach can help you find the next step to take.
- You have trouble regulating your emotions: Perhaps you experience mood swings or don’t understand why a certain family member bothers you so much. An amazing coach can help you understand how to process these emotions and turn them into something productive.
- You struggle with self-doubt and confidence: A life coach is an amazing tool to help you find your confidence!
- You want to take your life from good to amazing: Maybe nothing is wrong in your life, but you want to make things even better. While a therapist can take you from dysfunctional to functional, a life coach can take you from functional to optimized.
Life coaching can also be a great way to get your health on track, access more creativity, advance in your career, or find more joy in your life. All in all, they are there to help you live a more fulfilling life.
When to not hire a life coach
The benefits of hiring a life coach can be endless, but here are some indications that show it’s not the right time for you to hire a coach:
- You want someone to solve all your problems: That would be nice, wouldn’t it? Unfortunately, a life coach is merely there to guide you while you solve your own problems. If you want someone to give you concrete instructions, you probably need to hire some other professional.
- You don’t have time to invest: Many people are concerned about the financial cost of hiring a life coach, but don’t consider the time it takes to work with their coach. If you don’t have time to work on improving yourself with your coach’s guidance, you could be wasting your time. You need to be prepared to do homework like you would with any class.
- You’re not ready to trust a professional: Good life coaches challenge you. They may ask you to confront some things that are uncomfortable or unpleasant for you. A good coach will be nonjudgmental, but if you’re not ready to follow their guidance, it’s not a good investment.
- You’re overly attached to concrete results: If you’re hiring a life coach to help you become a millionaire next year and marry a prince, you might want to reframe your expectations. A life coach helps you reframe your mindset around your current circumstances, not wave a magic wand to change them.
What happens when you get a great coach?
If you’re thinking it’s time for you to work with a life coach, there are amazing things that can happen!
- You start to feel in control: Your circumstances do not dictate your emotional response when you understand how to manage your mind and emotions.
- You start seeing opportunity everywhere: Opportunity is truly all around you, regardless of how you feel. Another set of eyes in your life can point out how much opportunity there is.
- Your confidence soars: Confidence is often the secret ingredient to creating the life you desire. Working with a life coach can help you find a level of confidence you never knew was available to you.
- You achieve your goals: You will feel empowered to go after anything you want when someone is able to point out how to manage yourself along the way.
So if you’re ready to hire a life coach, congratulations! You’re in for an amazing journey of growth and self-discovery.
Let me know how it goes. 😉
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