Great Alternatives to Traditional Therapy
We can need feedback from another person at times, particularly when it comes to analyzing our personal lives. It can sometimes be difficult to identify goals and also know how to achieve them. This is particularly true when figuring out how to navigate your personal relationships. In these situations, you may benefit from life coaching or relationship coaching.
Much like traditional therapists, life coaches help you find ways to move through different obstacles in your life. If you face obstacles with your interactions with other people, a relationship coach may be just what you need.
Here, we will explore what these coaches do and how they can be beneficial to you.
How is Life Coaching Different From Traditional Therapy?
While sessions with a life coach may feel therapeutic, it is not the same as traditional therapy.
Purpose and Focus of Life Coaching
Life coaching is designed to be directive and goal-oriented. Life coaches will often provide homework to complete between sessions to identify your goals and accomplishments. Traditional therapy, on the other hand, is meant to be far more open-ended. Traditional therapy is often based on how you’re feeling on the day of your session. It is usually centered on delving into any personal insights or interactions you may have experienced between sessions.
Training and Accreditation for Life Coaches
Another primary difference between the two is the number of certifications and professional experience needed to begin practicing. Traditional therapists have years of training with supervised clinical hours. Therapists also have the tools to help you process traumas and work through the causes of particular behaviors. Their focus is generally on improving your general emotional health, while life coaches focus on what decisions you can make to achieve your goals.
Like therapists, life coaches can also help you work through what’s holding you back from your goal. However, they don’t provide the same level of emotional support and healing. Since there are fewer regulations to become a life coach, you will want to research potential coaches before choosing one. It is generally best to choose a certified life coach to ensure they have received in-depth training.
What Exactly is Relationship Coaching?
Relationship coaching is a specialized form of life coaching. It is designed to help people find greater satisfaction in their relationships, both romantic and otherwise.
Relationship coaches will try to help you discover what you want from your relationships. They can help you:
- Navigate difficult issues
- Assess and face your fears
- Uncover your real feelings
Experienced relationship coaches tailor their advising to your specific needs. In some cases, they will work with both members of a relationship. This is especially helpful when there are significant communication issues between the partners. In other cases, they may only need to talk with just one partner.
Relationship coaches will encourage their clients to let go of distressing thoughts associated with their relationships. This can help people to imagine their ideal concept of a connection.
These coaches can also guide people who are single and looking to build a relationship. They will help analyze your romantic history and identify previous issues to work on for healthy partnerships. This can also encourage open communication and more effective conflict resolution. This analysis can help you to discover what you actually want out of a potential partnership.
Who Can Benefit From Relationship Coaching?
No matter what type of issues you are experiencing, everyone can reap the benefits of professional coaching. You can find coaches who specialize in different types of relationships for a very tailored experience. They will help you uncover the essence of what you want from a partnership and how to attain it.
Relationship coaching is helpful for many situations besides romantic partnerships. Maybe you and a family member are experiencing a lot of friction. Perhaps you are having difficulty in connecting with your coworkers or boss. A life coach will act as a personal trainer for your emotions. They will help you to identify patterns of thinking and reframe interactions from new perspectives. Your coach can also help you find actionable steps to meet your goals to improve your relationships.
How Can I Become a Professional Life Coach?
If you are interested in becoming a life coach to inspire others, there are a few steps to reach your goals:
- First, you will want to consider what specialty you may be interested in. Do you want to focus on friendships, families, professional connections, or romantic partnerships? As you study how to be an effective coach, you may also decide to focus on how nutrition, exercise, or spirituality may influence and positively affect your clients.
- While you don’t technically need a formal certification to work as a life coach, it can help build your practice. Though not required, many professional coaches do decide to get accreditation from a professional organization. This means that you will likely want to get a life coach certification and stay in the same league as your competitors. Many certifications generally require yearly training updates to maintain the certification. This will help make your practice seem more credible to potential clients and make them feel more comfortable choosing you.
- If you already hold an undergraduate degree, you may qualify for entry into a Master’s in Life Coaching program. Consider a Masters program if you’re looking for a more research-based in-depth study program. You will focus your studies in the areas of psychology, sociology and business coaching.
- Once you have finished professional training, you will want to focus on building your clientele. This means establishing a professional online presence. To do this, you can build social media pages for your practice and even create a personalized website. Make sure that your contact information is clearly visible on all of your business pages. This way, potential clients can reach out to discuss pricing or to set up a counseling meeting.
Consider Making Life Coaching or Relationship Coaching a Part of Your Life
Relationship coaches can be beneficial in your everyday life. They can help you work through active conflicts with other people or build stronger connections. However, since relationship coaches are less regulated than a traditional therapist, be sure to research potential coaches before asking for help. Whether you plan to become a coach or you’re eager to work with one, we hope this guide helps you start your journey.
If you are considering becoming a life coach, there are several ways to begin. Check out our list of top life coaching certification programs for more information if you’re ready to make life and relationship coaching a part of your life!