Job Description of a Life Coach
Life coaches assist people with making decisions about how to improve their personal and professional lives. Like counselors, life coaches use questions to help people determine what choices to make.
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Types
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Many life coaches are self-employed, but some work in groups of more than one coach in a professional partnership. Others work for agencies or services that employ several coaches.
Features
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Life coaches help clients establish priorities, set goals and construct concrete plans to achieve those goals. As clients then work toward the goals, coaches hold them accountable and help them monitor their progress, including handling setbacks.
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Skills
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Successful life coaches are good listeners who ask open-ended questions to guide clients in the right direction, rather than simply telling them what to do. Patience, confidentiality, empathy and the ability to maintain a professional emotional distance from clients is also important to the work of a life coach.
Education
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Life coaches often have a bachelor's or master's degree in counseling. In some states, life coaches fall under the category of occupational counselors, which requires a state-issued license to practice and a passing grade on a written examination.
Certification
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The International Coaching Federation (ICF) offers life coaching certification to professionals who take a 125-hour ICF training course or a similar course in coaching, work a set number of hours in the field and receive letters of recommendation from established coaches. This certification is voluntary, but often helps coaches find employment or potential clients.
Compensation
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In December 2009, life coaches averaged annual salaries of $49,000, according to Indeed.com.
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References
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Comments
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Life Coach, everyone should have one...
