Life Coach Accreditation
Life Coach Accreditation
With the advent of technology and the increase in competition, stress and unhappiness have become a commonality amongst people today. More and more people want to achieve more but are either afraid of doing so or do not know the right way to do so.
Dependence on professional counselling for almost all aspects of life, including career, relationships, problems with self confidence, lifestyle related problems and the like have become very common.
While there is an increase in demand for counselling, most people are also aware that they want positive inputs regarding what they want and what they can do to achieve it. This is where life coaches and business coaches come in and contribute a great deal.
What is life coaching?
Life coaching, simply put is the ability to create awareness amongst people of their actual needs and the ways in which they can achieve them. This field derived its inspiration from sports, where coaches tended to every doubt and thought of the player and motivated him or her to perform beyond his or her abilities.
Stretching beyond limits or imagination is something that business coaching believes and this according to most coaches will instill self confidence in an individual.
Today, life coaches concentrate on results rather than principles or theories surrounding the problem and this is done with the help of positive inputs given to the individual.
Reasons for popularity in life coaching
The fact that the entire concept of life coaching is based on results rather than reasons is the main reason for its popularity. Building confidence in an individual by making him or her achieve what was erstwhile deemed impossible is the route taken by most life coaches to get maximum results.
Secondly, life coaches believe in giving positive inputs to create a positive attitude in the individual. By creating a positive attitude, you are actually making certain changes in the behaviour, lifestyle and maybe even the career of the individual, which will go a long way in creating happiness. Changes in thoughts or behaviours have been known to create wonders in a person.
Thirdly, this is a very easy method of working with individuals and can be done by phone, which makes it really convenient for both the life coach as well as the individual. Given our busy schedules, this aspect certainly helps most people in opting for life coaching or business coaching as against a traditional appointment with a psychologist or psychiatrist.
Recent trends in life coaching
It is pertinent to note that what started as a small coaching session given by a sports coach to a sports player has now become a full fledged industry that covers many sectors. Even in the field of life coaching and business coaching, such sessions were restricted to businesses for ensuring better business strategies and helping employers retain their staff.
However, today life coaching is all encompassing and has broadened its net to include problems relating to relationships, the need to succeed, coaching to find balance in life, health and fitness regimes, effective communication, personality development and last but not the least overall life improvement coaching. Given the wide spectrum of areas where life coaching is possible, it is not surprising that it has become a billion pound industry in the UK.
Given the increasing importance of life coaching in our lives today, it has become important to regulate the industry so that people do not get duped and are steered in the right direction. A simple step like asking for accreditation details, as well as affiliation to coaching associations, is a good starting place and will help individuals in seeking the right person to work with as their life coach.
All the best,
Natalie Dee
London Life Coach & Business Coach
Out of all the Life coaching accreditations, which one is the best (NLP, ICF, CPCC etc)?
I want to be a life coach but I am a lawyer and know nothing about psychology except for a few books I have read. I want to become a good life coach. Doing a psychology degree first would have been my best option but I am 37 and need to work. Is it still worth doing a psychology degree first?
It makes absolutely no difference whatsoever, which type of “accreditation” you pursue, because “life coaching” is not state regulated. The accreditation mills will happily take your money, but they offer you NO protection. They are NOT – NONE OF THEM – “legitimate”, as far as preparing you to offer psychotherapeutic services in the USA.
In addition, unless you are actually licensed by the state in which you reside, to practice psychology, you would be breaking the law by doing so, and could EASILY be sued and/or prosecuted. No genuine agency providing malpractice insurance to mental health practitioners will touch a “life coach”.
Short answer: don’t waste your money on “life coaching” accreditation. It’s an unnecessary waste of time and money. If you want to provide therapy – get an actual degree (bare minimum of a master’s degree) and a state recognized credential (e.g., LPC, LMHC, psychologist).
Nurture Your Goals
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