Life Coach School
How to Choose the Life Coach School For You
If you’ve made the decision to embark on a career in Life Coaching, welcome! Life Coaches have the potential to help their clients make real, lasting change in their lives. They work in close partnership with their clients to determine what they want for their future and what steps they need to take to realize that vision.
The first important step you’ll need to take toward becoming a Life Coach is to choose a training program. The Life Coach training you select should ultimately provide you with the knowledge and skills to coach clients effectively and launch a successful career.
While completing a Life Coach training isn’t a requirement, successfully graduating from a program will show potential clients, employers, and colleagues that you can be taken seriously and have the skills and knowledge you need to help people make powerful changes in their lives.
If you’re not sure where to start or you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed by all the options out there—fear not! Below are some helpful tips to ensure you choose the best Life Coach school for you.
What to Look for In a Life Coach School
As you’re researching which Life Coach school is your best fit, there are a few things that are incredibly important to look for that can impact your experience both as a student and as a future Life Coach.
What you feel is ultimately most important in choosing a school may very well differ from what someone else finds important, and that’s okay! The list below is merely an overview of the top school characteristics we feel are vital to having a successful Life Coaching education.
A robust curriculum
A great Life Coach curriculum will prepare you to help clients in every area of their lives. The training you choose should give you the skills and knowledge you need to do just that. Look for schools that offer a curriculum that includes habit change and coaching training, hands-on practice with clients, the opportunity to work on your own personal growth, and business and marketing training.
Knowledgeable Instructors
Familiarize yourself with who will be teaching the courses at each school you’re considering before you enroll. Instructors should be qualified, experienced, and successful Life Coaches themselves, so you know you’re learning from the very best!
Community
There’s nothing quite like being able to connect with other Life Coaches who are just as passionate as you are about helping people change their lives. A great program will offer plenty of opportunities to interact with fellow students, instructors, and staff so you get the support you need throughout your training and beyond. This will help you feel connected, inspired, and challenged during every step of your journey.
Resources
In addition to a like-minded community, the school you select should provide an array of resources to support you as you train (and even once you’ve launched your career). Such resources might include office hours or mentorship with instructors, coaching demos, in-person learning opportunities, career services support, and a library of reference materials, checklists, and downloads to use with future clients.
How to Identify the Best Life Coaching Schools
When it comes to choosing the best Life Coach school for YOU, it will be a very personal choice. Only you know what aspects are most important to you, your lifestyle, and the goals and dreams you have for your career.
In addition to everything we mentioned above, there are some other considerations that might help you make your decision; but these can be much more objective for each individual.
Student Testimonials
Most schools will highlight their graduates’ personal experiences in some way on their website. We suggest you look for reviews, videos, and blog posts where students share their training experience and what they really thought of the program. This will help paint a picture of not only what it’s like to be a student, but also the success and transformations graduates have had as a result of their training. If you can, look for an opportunity to connect with a graduate so you can hear their account firsthand.
Learning Flexibility
Flexibility is important to many students. If you’re jumping into Life Coaching when you already have a job and/or a family to take care of, a flexible training environment can make a big difference in your overall success. This will look different for everyone, but a truly flexible program might offer:
Self-paced lessons so you can complete assignments when it’s most convenient for you
Frequent office and support hours so you can find a time to connect that fits your busy schedule
Program “fit”
We’ve all heard the saying, “When you know, you know.” Sometimes, when we’re making an important decision, we just have to go with our gut. Choosing the best Life Coach school for you is no different. Pay attention to how you feel when you watch a school’s videos, read their literature or marketing materials, hear from their graduates, or speak with the school’s representatives. Are you excited and pumped up about what your future might hold? Do you find yourself thinking, “Yes! That’s me!” or “I can’t wait to learn more about that!”? If so, you’ve likely found a school that feels like home to you and that is a very important consideration when selecting where to begin your Life Coaching journey! Curriculum, instructors, and resources are all very important, but choosing a school that fits your personality and makes you feel welcome and excited will make your learning experience that much more fun!
What Do Life Coaching Schools Teach?
A great Life Coach school will teach you how to empower others to create transformative change in their lives. At Health Coach Institute, our curriculum is based on behavioral psychology, neuroscience, intuitive listening, habit change, and healthy lifestyle design, all of which come together to help prepare our graduates to help people achieve their goals and get powerful results for themselves through real, actionable advice and support.
Here’s a list of just some of what you can expect to learn in a Life Coach training program:
How to determine what clients want and need from a Life Coach
Which tools will help you get to a client’s core
How to uncover stucks that are keeping clients from creating desired change in their lives
Transformational coaching techniques
Transformational coaching techniques
How to implement coaching programs with clients
Best practices for marketing to clients and running a business
The bottom line is: whichever Life Coach training program you choose should offer a curriculum that prepares you to work with clients and build a successful business.
Now that we’ve covered what to look for in a Life Coach school, let’s talk some more about the importance of objective reviews and where to find them!
Why Life Coach School Reviews Are Important
If you’re still feeling unsure about which program is right for you, reviews are a great place to start. But like any business, Life Coach school reviews can run the gamut from glowing to dismal. Here are a few tips to help you find informative reviews you can trust.
Many Life Coaching schools provide reviews from their graduates on their own websites and in their marketing materials. These are, not surprisingly, likely to be highly praising—which is great! But if you’re looking for a broader, more objective take on the schools you’re considering, you can also find reviews on sites like TrustPilot and the Better Business Bureau.
Keep in mind that no school will have perfect reviews all across the board…it’s simply impossible to please 100% of people 100% of the time, especially since a large part of an educational experience is subjective. But in general, we recommend looking for concrete opinions about the curriculum, instructors, support, community, and how well the school prepares graduates for work in the real world.
Here’s a sample of some of our own reviews from Trustpilot, a third-party review platform, to give you an idea of what to look for.
What an incredible experience I’ve had with the Health Coach Institute! It has had a huge positive effect and impact on my life; I’ve changed so much since the beginning 7 months ago – personally and professionally! It really gives you the support as well as the stretch you need. Their many events and challenges offer you the right tools to bring you forward in life, but as in everything else – you have to want it and work for that yourself .
This being said: The materials are great, the training and self-growth are well structured. However, if you are unwilling or even afraid to change, look the other way. Side effects are connection with your true self, living passionately every day, believing in yourself, and cruising smoothly through life
Thank you, dream team, for making my transformation possible!
—Tanja S.
I did countless hours of research on how to become a Life Coach and where/how to study holistic health. HCI was, by far, the best choice I could have made. I am just about to get my Health Coach AND Life Coach certifications – in just under a year. The energy is amazing, the people you meet and work with are amazing and every single lesson (without fail) teaches you SO much to use on your clients…and on yourself, and your own journey. They even give you programs to use for clients! This was great for me as I was unsure and scared of first steps. With HCI, I didn’t have to worry about that at all as the facilitators and the success coaches were here to guide me (and my classmates) in that journey.
I have recommended this program to absolutely everyone who has come my way wondering about my journey. Amazing experience!!
—Taylor C.
This Coaching Program is outstanding! Everything they teach is in video format, and they have handouts and cheat sheets to supplement your learning style. The Skills Labs and coaching calls are outstanding as well. Any question you could possibly have, they answer for you. The Live events also are a great way to connect with your fellow coaches and build lasting coaching relationships. I recommend it highly to any aspiring coach!!!
—Briget.
Choosing the Best Life Coach School For You
When deciding which school to enroll in, remember that no matter what the reviews or accolades are, it’s most important to choose a school that fits you and will help you build the career of your dreams. Becoming a Life Coach is one of the most personally and professionally rewarding endeavors one can undertake (in our humble opinion!). Sure, it takes work; but it’s also illuminating, fun, and life-changing!
If you’d like to learn more about Health Coach Institute’s eight-month Life Coach training program, connect with one of our Clarity Coaches today!
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