How to Become a Life Coach in Arkansas
Life coaching is a great career for anyone who is interested in flexibility, the option to start a small business and most importantly in helping other people. To become a life coach in Arkansas isn’t difficult. It takes less time to get into this industry than many others, and you can start working right away.
Life coaches work with their clients to help them in a number of ways, including:
- Creating goals to improve their lives
- Developing action-oriented steps to achieve those goals
- Holding clients accountable
- Listening to their concerns, problems and successes
- Helping them celebrate goals achieved
Steps to Take for a Life Coach Career in Arkansas
There are no official requirements in Arkansas or other states for being a life coach. You do not have to be licensed or certified, for instance, or even have any training or specific education. However, the best way to be successful in the industry is to first graduate from high school or earn a GED. Next, you should find a training program for life coaches. These take between a few days for those that are intensive, to a few months to complete. Finally, work toward getting certified by a nationally-recognized coaching organization.
Training Programs for Life Coaches
With no regulation in the industry, look for programs that are approved by a reputable organization, like the International Coach Federation (ICF). Two options include:
- American Life Coach Academy. This school offers in-person, self-paced and online options for training to be a coach. With no in-person program available in Arkansas, the online program is a great choice. It takes four months to complete and includes peer coaching. When finished, you will be prepared for ICF certification and to begin working with clients.
- Coaching Changes Lives. This training program offers a combination of learning styles, including online and virtual. It also offers specializations like wellness coaching, executive coaching and public speaking coaching. The professional program includes 70 hours of training, virtual classes and group coaching sessions.
Getting Certified as a Life Coach in Arkansas
While you don’t have to be certified to start working as a life coach in Arkansas, you should work toward ICF certification to show clients and employers that you have been trained and have experience. ICF offers three certification levels:
- ACC. To be an associate certified coach you must have at least 60 hours of training and 100 hours of work experience. Most ICF-approved programs will include these hours.
- PCC. Professional certified coaches have completed 125 training hours and 500 coaching hours.
- MCC. As a master certified coach you must have at least 200 training hours and 2,500 coaching hours under your belt.
Life Coach Salaries
Salaries for life coaches vary a lot. Reported salaries include employed life coaches, independent coaches and those that coach part-time on the side and earn a living from another job. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the average annual salary for life coaches in 2015 was $61,900.
The BLS does not report on life coach salaries regularly, though. It also does not record salaries by state for this career. According to Ziprecruiter.com, life coaches working in Arkansas earn an average of $56,249 per year.
Beginning a Career as a Life Coach in Arkansas
Life coaching is a growing industry, so you should be able to find work as soon as you’ve trained for this career. In Arkansas, you will probably find the most work opportunities in and around Little Rock, Fort Smith and Fayetteville.
You may choose to work independently and find clients on your own, but you can also find employment for more regular hours and earnings. Large companies often hire coaches to work with their staff, but you may also find work with a coaching or consulting company.