Is Life Coaching Spiritual?
People are constantly looking for ways to better themselves and thus, their lives holistically. This leads them to seek out the most effective ways to achieve this, as well as professionals who can help them along the way. This is where a Life Coach comes in. Simply stated, Life Coaches take what their clients want to achieve and help them figure out step by step how to do it. Spirituality is often part of this process as well, with clients seeking a “full service” experience that includes guidance within all aspects of their lives.
Why Not Just See a Therapist?
While Life Coaches are not licensed to provide mental healthcare, their work with a client may still yield similar results in the sense of the amount of benefit viewed as received. They are still quite different processes. It is thought that therapy is a healing process for things that have already happened in our lives, whereas work with a Life Coach is all about concentrating on the future and making it as bright as possible. It is important to make these distinctions. Therapists have been educated more specifically in mental health and can guide their patients through things like learning healthy coping skills, how to respond (or not respond) to situations as they arise and learning how to heal from events that have occurred in their past. There is, unfortunately, a time constraint within the allotted appointment time for therapy, so this process can take weeks to months, possibly longer. Life Coaches are part of a service industry that can be considered a supplement to therapy but is not considered a replacement for it.
Spirituality is Part of Well Being for Many
It is estimated that 84 percent of the world’s population is religious. Practicing religion is not the only way to engage in spiritual practices, but it is one of the most recognized. Spirituality is defined by Oxford Languages as, “the quality of being concerned with the human spirit or soul as opposed to material or physical things.” Simply put, it is looking beyond oneself to connect with a greater purpose in mind.
How Life Coaching Came to Be
Not everyone has the benefit of growing up with a mentor who can teach them from an early age how to plan, organize and push themselves to achieve their goals and be at their very best, firing on all cylinders. Many people need guidance, a catalyst of sorts, to reach their ultimate goals and fulfill their potential. That is where Life Coaches excel.
In the 1980s, a financial planner in named Thomas Leonard made some observations about several of his clients. They were bright and emotionally stable, but he found that they wanted further advice from him beyond his job description. They sought out ways to better organize their lives and to plan how to achieve their goals. They just needed help figuring out where to begin. Enter the first Life Coaching, or Life Planning, as it was originally named. Mr. Leonard went on to become a founder of several organizations, including the International Coaching Federation (ICF), as well as Coachville, which both offer credential opportunities for Life Coaches.
Life Coach and Spiritual Consultant
There are Life Coaches who emphasize the spiritual aspect of their job and include “Spiritual Consultant” as part of their title. This can bring like-minded clientele to their business, create more of a niche market, and aid in fostering an affinity between the Life Coach and their clients. Just as there are many forms of expressing spirituality, there are different approaches to Life Coaching. Each of their clients will have a different relationship with the same Life Coach, just as each of them has different skills they need to hone. Tying spirituality into the process lends to a fuller experience for those who are involved.
