What is Life Coaching and How Does it Work?

Posted on April 03, 2012 by Suzanne Goulet, One of Thousands of Life Coaches on Noomii.

Have you ever wanted to do something – in terms of an accomplishment – or have something, or become something, and this idea has been with you for some time, but for some reason, nothing seems to move forward with it? Ever?

How about a change you’re thinking of making, but your not sure which way to proceed or what methods are best to use in order to make that change a part of your life?

Enter Life Coach.

In actuality, there are all different kinds of coaches that specialize in different areas of peoples lives: there are Leadership coaches, sports coaches – (we all have heard of them) there are relationship, spirituality, health and career transition coaches. There is a broad spectrum of coaches and coaching abilities out there, and choosing the right one for you is often, well – a matter of good fit.

Your coach is not going to be someone you go to as you would say, a consultant or a therapist. A consultant is someone you hire to show you the ropes on how to get a certain task completed, i.e. the organizational structure of your company, or, how to get your books set up for your home and business. There are tax advisers, nutritional consultants and a wide array of consultants you can hire to do just about anything for you. But that’s not a Life Coach.

Therapists for example, help people resolve issues of the past that continue to plague them in their performance or happiness in life in the present. They are licensed professionals with years of training and pass state board examinations prior to being able to practice openly with the general public.

A LIfe Coach by contrast becomes certified by internationally recognized associations only after completing a certain number of training and professional, paid coaching hours. There are strict ethical guidelines that they must adhere to, and these have been established as the criteria for individuals to become certified as lIfe or, the many array of coaches and coaching possibilities that are out there. A number of organizations provide excellent training and education to ensure that their certified coaches are some of the best in their field of expertise.

So a coach isn’t a consultant, and a coach isn’t a therapist. So what then does a coach do?

She coaches you into seeing how you can live your best life, and she guides you through the process of identifying what it is that you want, then taking you through the changes that will be necessary for you to get to that new place. Without your coach, you may not ever get there, but in fact, your dreams may remain in a thought stage, or a “some day I’ll…” stage. If you haven’t experienced coaching yet, how far have you come in the last few months with the vision of yourself that you’d like to become?

What is your vision for yourself?
Where do you see yourself living, being, doing, having in the next year?
Do you know what steps you’d like to take in getting there?

These are some of the questions a good Life Coach will ask you – for a good coach never tells you what to do, or gives you advice. A good coach knows that the highest and best answers for your life reside inside of you. And she guides you into the right frame of mind so that you become aware of your own, spirit-filled answers that are always there waiting for you.

Without a coach, these things can be accomplished with a certain amount of effort, diligence, persistence and the ability to act on clarity when you receive it. But, I believe the right coach can assist you to attain your best life in half the time and even less the effort. That’s how our lives were designed to be! With the right ‘guide on the side’, you are reminded weekly of what you say you want to do. Big goals are broken down into little goals, and the little goals are broken down into little steps. And day by day, week by week, you do what’s needed and you do what’s inspired. Sometimes getting to your goal means not doing certain things, and letting them go, out of your life, as habits you no longer need, or tasks now given to others who would be more than happy to do them for you. With more time liberated comes more freedom. With more freedom comes more joy. With more joy comes inevitably, more service to others.

I often coach men completely differently than women, that’s because the things that drive men are entirely different than the things that make women feel entirely fulfilled and satisfied. That right, that’s what I said, "fulfilled and satisfied’’. Because at times for her, knowing that she is all she can be, that those around her are taken care of, that the beauty and grace that is inherent in her naturally is once and for all flowing again is a mighty accomplishment in itself. (not something you guys out there will quite tune in with, but we’ll work on you next week!)

For now, bask in the knowing that if there is anything that you do want to do, be or have, simply pick up the phone, or log on to the internet, and find yourself a coach.

Blessings be,

Suzanne
www.SpiritSourceConnect.com