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Can I actually have a career as a life coach?

can I actually have a career as a life coach

Can I actually have a career as a life coach?

Undertaking a coaching course, particularly one as comprehensive as ours is a big commitment. Financially, emotionally, mentally. So it’s understandable that you may have a lot of questions about whether it’s truly worth it. Perhaps one of the most common questions of all is ‘Can I actually have a career as a life coach?’

The short answer is yes, absolutely. The slightly longer answer is yes, if you really want it and if you’re willing to put in the time, energy and commitment that you would to make any career a success, whatever the term “success” means for you.

In this article, we will explore some of the factors that will contribute to how you can make a successful career as a life coach, including the benefits of undertaking good quality coach training, what personal qualities you need to hone in on, and what’s needed to make a successful career actually happen. We also share a collection of varied case studies from just a few of the Animas graduates that have created successful careers as life coaches to give you an idea of what is possible if you are serious about a career as a life coach.

The Benefits Of Undertaking A Professional Coaching Course

Now, being a coach training school, you probably assume that we believe that undertaking good quality, rigorous and professional coach training is essential for anyone that is serious about making a career as a life coach. And you’d be spot on.
‘Serious’ is the key word here.
While there are undoubtedly coaches out there who have turned their practice into a successful career without any training, the benefits that undertaking formal coach training brings can be instrumental to your development as a coach, and in turn your chances of turning your craft into a career. If you are serious about being the best coach that you can, then selecting a life coaching course that provides you with a firm grasp of coaching skills and aptitudes is a wise move.
online learning
A solid grounding in coaching skills and knowledge allows you to be more flexible, adaptable and versatile to whatever challenges and situations come up with a wide variety of clients. And on top of this, many students say that training has provided them with a massive confidence boost, as they know that whatever arises, they have the knowledge and tools to adapt to what their clients bring to the coaching space.
It can be difficult to know what to look for in a coaching course, however, the coach training that you receive should offer rigorous assessment, real-life client work and provide you with the knowledge that serves as the foundation of your coaching toolbox. A toolbox which you can then continue to add to after qualification through further training, additional CPD short courses, supervision sessions and the all important coaching experience that you build as you continue on your journey.

Work out what makes you ‘you’

Some will argue that it is high-quality life coach training that sets you apart from the “poor” coaches out there, giving you a step up on the competition. While there is definitely an element of truth to this, our slight niggle here lies with the word ‘competition’.

The life coaching industry is certainly growing and some believe on the verge of becoming saturated. But this idea that it is so swamped that making a career from it is becoming harder and harder as it becomes more popular misses the mark by some way. Fundamentally, life coaching is still a relatively nascent industry, particularly in Europe. And there are enough clients out there for all of us as we all have something different to offer.

And this is key to turning your coaching into a career – working out what you offer that sets you apart from the rest.

stand out from the rest

As a coach you are more than just your training. The training acts as a catalyst, but it is your journey of change, growth and transformation as a coach that follows that’s key to understanding what you offer that makes you unique. This clarity may be apparent to you early on. For many it will ultimately emerge over time through practice and experience, and that’s absolutely fine.

Figuring out what makes you unique is what will shape who you most love to work with, and the type of work that you want to do. Armed with this knowledge, you will also have a clearer idea of where your strengths lie and the areas that you need to develop. All of this together will allow you to go about making a career you love a reality.

Patience, consistency & perseverance

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, to succeed in turning your life coaching practice into a full-time career you will need to be patient, consistent in taking action, and demonstrate perseverance in your pursuit. Ask any successful coach, and they will tell you the same.

There will be ups and downs, that’s a given. You will make mistakes, lots of them, and at times you might want to give up. There will be days when you absolutely love what you do, and other days where your motivation is non-existent. However, that is all part of this journey, and if you are able to persevere when the going gets tough, be consistent in everything that you do, i.e. do the work you have to do even when you don’t feel like it, and above all be patient, you stand yourself in good stead to make a successful career as a life coach.

patience and perseverance

We aren’t saying that creating a career from life-coaching is easy by any means, but we are saying that with the right attitude, skills, self-awareness, resilience, patience and determination it is certainly possible.

Animas graduate case studies

Don’t just take our word for it though. Here are some short case studies from just a few of our graduates that have successfully created amazing life coaching careers for themselves, including what they feel were some of the most pivotal elements to achieving this goal.

‘I qualified as a coach in 2012, and I’ve been full-time in my business ‘Mind Body & Soul Energy’ since the end of 2015. In the time since then it really has blossomed, and I’ve guided more than 100 individuals through my programme.

I support conscious business owners to stand in their Soul Power and create a thriving business that they love, (just like I have!) so they can have the impact in the world that they know they are capable of. As part of this, I work with the ancient old wisdom of the Akashic Records to remove energetic obstacles that are keeping us playing it small and pave a new way of approaching business that give us freedom to live an abundant life that we love.

I also have a part-time role as a business trainer for Animas on the ‘Kickstart Your Coaching Practice’ course, as well as mentoring and supervising other coaches, all of which are amazing additions to my energy healing and life coaching business.

The biggest thing for me about making a career from coaching is around tapping into your true power as who you are, and showing up authentically, in life and in business. That for me is the key element: finding you, and your authentic voice, in your business or in the life coaching space.’

Natasha Harris – Energy Healer, Mindfulness Coach and Coach Trainer

About Natasha

‘I came into coaching after being in self-development for 10 years, I realised that I wanted to transition into a career that gave me the ability to make more of an impact. I started with helping clients gain more confidence and clarity in their lives as those were things I’d implemented and had done in my life.

It’s incredible because only three years on now I coach high achievers and leaders worldwide and help them excel to the next level in their life and business.

I truly love doing the work I do because I can help create results that they didn’t think was possible. When I started out I struggled a lot in life and business and just being able to help my clients achieve in months what took me years is truly transformational.

Looking back I would say the key factors that truly helped me create this career, were focusing on becoming a great coach. What I mean is, I studied coaching, I coached as much as I could, I hired successful coaches for myself and just implemented everything I could to continue to grow. Another key factor was shifting my focus from sales to building relationships.’

Siawash Zahmat – High Performance Coach

‘My journey saw me traverse many industries before becoming a coach, but the key turning point came in 2014, when, with a loan from the job centre I turned my plus size running blog that I had been writing for 4 years into a coaching business. In the time since, I’ve used my skills in empowering people to see things different and change their lives, to work with more than 15,000 clients around the world, and it didn’t take long to become seen as a global expert in my niche, which came with it speaking gigs, TV interviews and lots of international travel.

For me, one of the biggest things that helped me to grow this career, is my ability to always show up as myself, with no airs and graces. Not having to put on a front, means that I am able to establish trust relatively easily and this matters, no matter who you are working with.

I’ve learned the more I lean into me, and stop worrying about what other coaches or experts are doing the more success I find.

Just be you…and everything else will fall into place.’

Julie Creffield – Expert Community Builder, Business and Life Coach

About Julie

‘Before I became a life coach, I used to work in high-pressure jobs in law and financial services for over 22 years. Leaving a safe six figure job behind was a scary decision, but the best one of my life.

Admittedly, I still work as a lawyer for two days a week, for a small and very relaxed firm, but these days I earn more from coaching than from my legal job. I now enjoy the benefits of both worlds, the freedom and fulfilment from my coaching business and the regular pay cheque from my legal part time job.

Building my coaching business was not easy. It took me about four years until I figured out how to create a constant stream of client leads with ease. Getting to this place involved trying numerous strategies and failing over and over.

What kept me going was the joy I experience when coaching my clients; and a cast iron commitment to myself to never go back to the hamster wheel of my old corporate life.’

Hans Schumann – Executive Career and Life Coach

About Hans

We hope that you found this article useful!

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Author Details
Justin is a professional writer and researcher and explores topics of coaching, coach training and personal development.
Justin Pickford

Justin is a professional writer and researcher and explores topics of coaching, coach training and personal development.

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