Life Coaching FAQs

So let's start with the basics.

A life coach is to you and me what a sports coach is to an elite athlete. He or she helps, supports and empowers a person, organization or team to achieve agreed outcomes.

Partnership

The coach is your partner in self-growth. He is there to guide, to advise, to encourage, and to hold you accountable. However, the coach is not the boss. You are. She does not tell you what goals to set or how you should change your behavior, except where you have set those goals for yourself or have committed to a certain change of behavior. She respects your view of your world and stays non-judgmental.

But she will, with your permission, hold you accountable to setting higher standards for yourself. She will challenge you and lead you in breaking through unhelpful beliefs and limitations, and help you create a bigger, brighter and better picture of your life, your work, your relationships, your health, your wealth. Everything.

Process

The coaching process involves actions that you will take and outcomes that you and your coach can expect you to achieve. It involves quality questions that will surprise you, challenge you, pique you and inspire you.

How a coaching session might work:

You and your coach might agree that you will talk on the phone for 45 minutes every Wednesday at 8 pm. Part of the process might involve you completing and sending in an assignment before the call and discussing the outcome during the call. At the end of the 45 minutes, you might agree to set certain goals for the week ahead.

Performance

There are areas of our lives where we can always do more and be more.

Coaching can dramatically enhance and facilitate your personal growth and self-confidence and accelerate your competence and mastery of whatever area you and your coach are working on.

This might mean helping you to:

• discern and own your life purpose
• work your way out if you are stuck in your thinking or your career
• review and plan your career
• boost your mental and emotional health
• improve your sales numbers
• develop more authentic personal relationships.

Does Life Coaching Work?

There is no easy answer to this one.

As in any relationship, it takes two to make it work. You as the client must be motivated, but you also need to find the right coach for you. Without that good fit, you won't get to experience the full value and benefit of the coaching experience and you might feel you've wasted your time and money.

To get the best out of coaching, don't be afraid to shop around until you find the right coach for you.

Many coaches offer a free coaching session so you get to experience how coaching works. Use the free trial to find out whether coaching is for you and - just as importantly - whether David or Juliet or Deborah is the one to help you move from where you are now to where you want to be.

Aren't Coaching And Counseling The Same Thing?

The easiest way to explain the difference is this.

Coaching is about moving forward from where you are now. It is Future Oriented. It assumes you are emotionally stable and ready to make changes that will help you go further in your personal journey.

Counseling is Past Oriented. It involves going back into the past to uncover any emotional or psychological issues that may be causing you to behave in a certain way that is blocking your personal growth. Using counseling therapy, the counselor works with you to heal old hurts and to let go of emotional baggage that's keeping you stuck.

So they are complementary approaches to helping people, but not the same.

What Is Executive Coaching?

Executive coaching has the ability to boost a company's performance, productivity and profit margin while minimising the adverse effects that may result from ineffective systems and processes, weak leadership or dysfunctional interpersonal relationships.

From the employee's perspective, executive coaching can equip her to step up to greater responsibility and position her for consideration for the next rung of the ladder.

For a more detailed write-up on how Executive Coaching can help you and your colleagues, check out this page.

What Is Christian Life Coaching?

Christian life coaching is focussed on your relationship with God and how the truths of the Bible impact the way you live your life. It acknowledges that you were created by God for a divine purpose and that your life is not just about pleasing yourself and achieving your goals, but about fulfilling the purpose for which you are here. The aim is to encourage you to live according to God's will and to depend on His wisdom and guidance rather than your own.

Secular coaching, on the other hand, is humanistic in its focus. The aim is to help you discover your strengths and motivations and what works for you, so that you can achieve what you want in life and live the life of your design.

As you can see, the focus and expected outcomes are significantly different.

What Are Life Coaching Fees Like?

Life coaching fees can start at about USD60 for a 45-minute session and can go up to USD1,000 a month or more.

A coach who specialises in a particular niche would charge more than a coach who coaches all willing clients.

I encourage you to look around and compare options, but don't limit yourself to decision making based on cost alone. We are talking about investing in your personal growth and development so you can enjoy life with all its different hues and intensities, live to your fullest potential, and experience the kind of success that hasn't happened till now.

So think also in terms of the new you that you are working to create.

How To Get Value For Money

Look also at what is being offered.

Will phone coaching do, or do you want support in between sessions?

As a coach, I find that some clients tend to experience a "dip" in energy and motivation between sessions, when the high of achieving a breakthrough has been overtaken by life's routines.

That is why I always include unlimited email support in my coaching packages. That way, my clients have the confidence that they can reach me for extra support when they need it.

Coaching Packages

Coaches usually offer incentives if you pay upfront for a package of coaching sessions over a number of months.

One coach I know of charges USD1200 for a 3-month package and USD2200 for a 6-month package. This works out to a savings of about 10% on the more "expensive" package.

Another coach charges USD85 for a 45-minute session but if you buy 4 sessions in advance, the per-session cost goes down to about USD75.

For clients who want even more support and who can't get enough of the transformation that they are seeing in themselves, I would recommend that you look for a package that includes unlimited email support, pep sessions, and additional free resources such as books, ebooks and DVDs.

The additional investment may be worth it because each of these resources and services will reinforce and add to what you are getting through the weekly session. You gain so much more in a shorter time, which means you are getting more value for your money and saving yourself time, our most precious and scarce resource.

Getting a package is a good option if you feel comfortable with your coach, want to achieve consistently excellent results over the long term, and are ready to commit to your personal development at a much higher level.

Types Of Coaching Services

Coaches typically offer a combination of the following:

• regular phone sessions (usually 45 to 60 minutes) at least twice a month
• micro-coaching sessions (e.g. a 10-minute pep session)
• face-to-face coaching (more expensive than phone sessions)
• email coaching.

With some coaches, you may get unlimited email support in between sessions and the privilege of unscheduled quick 5-minute check-in calls. Ask your coach about this.

If budget is an issue at this point in your life but you feel you need coaching, you may want to start with the free introductory coaching sessions that most coaches offer, followed by budget coaching. Discuss this possibility with your coach, preferably after the initial free session.

How Do I Find A Life Coach?

The easiest way is to type "find a life coach", "hire a life coach" and the like into Google and see what comes up.

Many coaching websites now have a directory function that lets you find a coach in your preferred geographical area or coaching specialty (e.g. health and wellness coaching, business coaching, career coaching). If you know what specific issue you want help with, this can save you time and help you narrow down your field.

Review the coach's bio and client testimonials to see what services they offer, the kind of clients they have worked with and what other people think of them.

Interview several coaches. If they offer free life coaching, grab the opportunity to get more information. It's no risk to you and you will have a much clearer idea of what's out there after speaking with a few different coaches.

3 Great Benefits of a Free Career Coaching Session

• Try before you buy - it's no cost to you and 100% risk-free
• Get clear about what's really holding you back and what makes you tick - the truth might surprise you
• Get practical recommendations and techniques you can use immediately to uncover your life purpose, make great decisions, choose a career, change careers, get out of your mental rut and regain confidence in your ability to change your life

Now, because you've read this far, I know you're an action taker who is ready to create some positive change in your life.

Here's what I'll do just so you can experience the benefits of life coaching.

First, click on the button below.

I Want To Get Coached For Free

This will send you the link to our Free Career Quiz.

After you've completed the quiz (which takes no more than 5 minutes), you'll receive TWO FREE BONUSES:

• Your Free Goals Report by email
• Complimentary coaching session with me by phone or email