How To Become A (Happy And Successful) Life Coach

Practical success and training tips, do's and don'ts, timing, cost and income information to save you time, money and suffering.

Almost every day I am asked "what's the best way to become a life coach?"

 If you are interested in becoming a coach, here is some useful - and important - information that will help you check out this profession and, if you think it might be a fit for you, get started on the right track.   
-   Steve Mitten CPCC, MCC (Master Certified Coach)

Listen to Steve (1 Min.)

Life coaching is a calling. It is all about helping others.  So if you enjoy people, and would like the flexibility that comes with running your own home-based business, coaching may be a good career fit for you.  

As a life coach, you work one-on-one helping clients; discover what is truly important to them, bring out their best, and achieve the outcomes they most desire. It is wonderfully rewarding work which is typically done over the phone.  And with the proper training (in coaching and business skills) and a consistent effort you can create a profitable business and a comfortable professional income within a few years. (Note - With the right approach you can begin to work with clients, and generate income within 3 - 6 months. And while some coaches fill their practices within 6 months, for the vast majority, it would be wise to assume it will take you longer. More on timing later.) 

Life coaching is growing quickly.  Due to its popularity, high client satisfaction levels and growing demand, coaching has become one of the fastest growing home-based businesses in North America. It has also spread throughout Europe, Australia, New Zealand, South America and many parts of Asia. The fact that 98.5% of all clients are satisfied with their coach (ICF research) speaks to the value of the process and is a good indicator for the future of the industry. And as more evidence-based research comes available, showing the efficacy of coaching, the profession will continue to grow.

Top Reasons Why I Love Life Coaching

by Steve Mitten CPCC, MCC

• It allows me to really make a difference in people's lives.

• Coaching allows me to connect with a dynamic and diverse group of interesting people all over the globe, every working day.

• It provides the freedom to work flexible hours from my home in winter, and the family cabin in summer. (There is never a commute, and I am always close to my family.)

• It allows me to make a comfortable 6-figure income working about 25-30 hours a week and take off about 185 days a year.

• It allows me to continue to learn and grow, and keeps me in a supportive professional community of open, caring and dedicated people.

The 3 Key Success Indicators

What separates successful coaches from those that struggle?

I came into coaching in its infancy.  And watching and working with hundreds of coaches over the years, I have come to a few conclusions about what it takes to succeed in this business. What separates the really happy and successful coaches from the ones that struggle essentially boils down to three main areas:

1) Good Coaches enjoy coaching
Make sure you actually enjoy coaching.  After all, as a coach you will be doing this every working day.  Do you enjoy talking with people?  Do you get excited when you see them succeed?  Do people naturally come to you for advice? Would you enjoy the freedom of self-employment?  

If these statements are true for you, you may want to consider actually hiring a coach for a few months - to get a first-hand feel for this profession that you are considering joining. Is this for real? What is the experience of being coached like?  What are the benefits you see in your life, career or business?  (Just make sure your coach is ICF certified, will chat with you for free - to answer questions and see if there is rapport - and will not require any long-term contract.)  

If money is really tight and you cannot afford to work with a coach, you can at least explore some of the free orientation calls or courses that many of the ICF accredited coach training schools provide.
 ICF Accredited Coaching Schools

2) Good Coaches get great training
If you are going to do something, it pays to do it well. As to learning how to coach, you will acquire your training two ways.

You will learn a little about coaching by working with a mentor coach. Your coach will help you experience the benefits of coaching - so you really know how it all works - help you understand the profession, choose the best school and assist you in the building of your practice. (More on the value of this later.) 

However the main way you will learn your coaching skills is by finding the best ICF accredited training school for you. And you would be well advised to do your homework on the various coach training schools.  There are now over 250 "coaching schools" and more popping up each week.  As of this writing, 44  are actually accredited by the ICF (International Coach Federation.)

Be particularly wary of any school that is not ICF accredited.  I have had many clients who have dropped a bundle on schools that gave them little value. (The ICF sets the highest standards of credentialing and accreditation in the profession. Any school with an ICF accredited coach training program has proven that it has the minimum content, number of hours, instructor qualifications, etc. so all of your training will count towards ICF certification down the road.) 

Like any fast growing profession, coaching has a number of groups offering inferior coaching programs to the unsuspecting.  Some of these programs are well packaged and well marketed.  DO YOUR HOMEWORK.  This even applies to those schools that are accredited by the ICF.   ICF Accredited Coaching Schools They all have different philosophies, approaches, training styles, costs, etc.  Some train in person, some do it over the phone. Make sure you pick the right one for you.  Having taken training from a number of schools, my personal preference is for those that train in person. (I took most of my training at www.thecoaches.com. ) I just found the experience of being immersed in coaching - learning a skill then breaking into pairs and practicing it, getting feedback, and learning the next skill - was a more powerful learning environment.  

3) Successful Coaches master marketing
Please pay attention here. 
This is where far too many new coaches drop the ball. If you want to be very successful as a coach, you will need to learn about the actual business of coaching.  Here I am referring to the actual setting up, operating and especially MARKETING of your coaching practice.  

Some people have launched successful coaching practices with less than $5000 dollars.  However, for most coaches; who want to do it right (i.e. get the best coach mentoring & training, set up a good home-office, marketing materials, web site, etc and thus stand the best chance of future success) you would be prudent to budget at least $10 - 15K for direct expenses over the first year. (Note- if you are not transitioning into coaching from some other income earning activity - that will continue to carry your lifestyle while you are becoming a coach - you will need to budget for all your ongoing personal and living expenses for at least a year.) 

If you have never started a business before, this may seem like a lot. But when you compare it with the cost of buying an existing business, coaching is very inexpensive to get into.  And keep in mind that you can be generating an income within a few months, and this coaching income can go to offset your costs.  When you really hit your stride as a coach, you can recover your investment quickly.

Income Possibilities

Coaching is so young that reliable income numbers have been challenging to come by.  I have seen many claims from a variety of sources that I doubt. In my experience 30% of the profession does the lion's share of the business. (These are coaches that love what they do, are well trained and well marketed. And conversely there are a lot of hobbyist coaches, and  well-trained coaches who did not pay attention to the business side, that are struggling.)

A successful full time life coach, coaching 20 individual clients a month at $350 per client, would gross $7000 per month.  If you work with 25 executive or entrepreneur clients at say $700 per month, you would gross $17,500 per month. Overhead and expenses for a coaching practice are usually quite small, rarely over 15% of sales. (Currently only about 15% of coaches earn over $100K per year.) 

A recent study, commissioned by the ICF and conducted by Price Waterhouse Coopers involving some 5415 coaches around the world found that the average annual salary of a full time coach was just over $82,000. This study found the average income of a part time coach was just over $26,000. If you are an ICF member you can see a copy of this study at PWC STUDY.

In the end, what you achieve is up to you. (As the father of 3 daughters in university, every charge card invoice I receive gives me ample motivation to earn a comfortable 6-figure income from coaching.) And keep in mind that even if you have a full practice of say 25 - 30 clients, you will still have ample time to do other income generating activities that complement your coaching practice.  Many coaches find workshops, writing and speaking as natural activities that both generate additional income and help build their coaching practices. 

Summary

In summary, if you like working with people, have some entrepreneurial ability, and you get great coach training, and take a professional and consistent approach to the business and marketing of coaching, you stand a good chance of joining the top 30% of this profession.  And you can become one of the fortunate souls that make a great living doing what they love. 

In the end, I think coaching is something you are called to do. And if you hear that calling, I am sure you will find the whole process one of the most satisfying journeys of your life.  It won't always be easy. You will have your share of challenges. But the lessons you will learn, the growth you will experience, and the huge satisfaction of having a positive impact on so many people's lives will make it all worth while.  Personally, I enjoyed the whole process of becoming a coach, immensely. (Click to learn a little more about my life as a coach.)

How do I get started the right way?

If you have done your soul searching and research, and are getting more and more excited about becoming a coach, and want to do it right, here's something to consider. 

Before you make any decisions about; quitting your existing job, signing up with one of the hundred coaching schools, blowing a bundle on advertising, or just hanging out your shingle, consider getting some experienced coaching and mentoring. The benefits you would be looking for include:

• truly experiencing the benefits of coaching from an experienced, certified coach - so you know what it feels like to be coached well. 

• learning the differences between the myriad of coaching schools so you can make a good decision on the best, and most cost effective, training route for you.

• understanding the relevancy of the ICF and the process of credentialing.

• understanding the logistics of getting started; phones, office set-up, admin, etc.

• exploring and understanding the various ways of successfully marketing yourself. (Very important for your success.)

• appreciating what is necessary to become a very successful coach.

Many experienced coaches provide this mentoring service.  Just make sure your coach is:

• a graduate of an ICF accredited coaching school.

• an ICF member and thus bound by ICF ethics.

• an ICF Credentialed Coach (has their MCC, PCC or ACC) with at least 3 years experience.

• experienced in different training schools so that they can contrast them for you.

• great at marketing.  ( And has a very successful practice to prove it.)

• confident enough in their ability as a coach that they don't try to tie you up with any long-term contracts.

Alternatively, if you are really tight on cash, you might want to sign up to experience a little coach training directly. Some schools, such as www.thecoaches.com offer a first round of training for under $500. You can take that, find out what coaching is all about, and then decide whether it is a fit for you. If it is, you can continue with your training.

If you would like to work with me.

Coaches are really great people, and I love helping new coaches succeed.  And even though it is the lowest paying work I do, there is always 20% of my practice reserved just to work with coaches. 

My ideal coach client would typically:

• feel that coaching is their calling.

• have high integrity.

• love working with people and be coming into coaching because they truly want to make a difference in other people's lives.

• know that true success is an inside-out job, and recognize you will need to change to get better results.

• be serious about making a successful transition into coaching and yet want to enjoy the process of growth and development.

• want to get the best training and coaching possible so that they can become a masterful and successful coach.

• be committed to do what it takes to create a very successful practice, in the top 20% of the profession.

If this describes you, I know I can make a huge difference in getting your coaching career off the ground quickly. Feel free to give me a call or drop me an email at steve@acoach4u.com and let's arrange a time to chat. My rate for working with coaches is $650 for a set of 3 sessions, which takes the average client 4 to 6 weeks. (I do not require contracts or long term commitments and we will schedule the calls as you need them.) I guarantee you'll get your money's worth out of each call.

Affordable Group Program

For those of you committed to more success, but on a tight budget, check out my most popular group program at 6 Figure Practice.

Be Sure To Check Out this Marketing Bestseller  for Coaches

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You can read all about it at Marketing Essentials For Coaches.

Additional New Life Coach Information

The following are some free articles I invite you to explore.

• Marketing for Coaches  
• Starting a Coaching Practice
• Building your Practice
• Steve as a Mentor Coach
• Buy the book MARKETING ESSENTIALS FOR COACHES