How to Become a Life Coach in North Carolina
If you’re driven by trying to make a difference in the lives of other people, becoming a life coach may be the perfect career path for you. In this career, you’ll help clients set goals, and you’ll offer focused motivation and guidance to help them reach these goals. Anyone who has a gap between where they are and where they want to be may hire a life coach to help them identify their passions, create a vision for their lives and get on a productive path.
Other titles for this career include enrichment specialist or executive coach. If you live in North Carolina and are interested in pursuing a fulfilling career focused on helping others to meet their potential, consider becoming a life coach.
What’s Required to Become a Life Coach in North Carolina
There aren’t official requirements for becoming a life coach in North Carolina, or even for calling yourself a life coach. But you’ll find that obtaining formal training or certification helps you to be better prepared to offer the best coaching service that you can, and also offers legitimacy and accountability.
Obtaining certification through the International Coach Federation (ICF) lets the world know you’re serious about your career choice. ICF offers three levels of certification. To become an Associate Certified Coach, you need to complete at least 60 hours of training and have over 100 hours of coaching experience. More extensive training and experience is required to become a Professional Certified Coach (125+ hours of training/500+ hours coaching experience) or a Master Certified Coach (200+ hours training, 2500+ hours coaching experience).
Life Coach Training in North Carolina
Completing a program in life coaching either online or in person can help to make you more attractive to potential clients or employers. ICF offers accreditation to training programs that have the highest standards, so it’s a good idea to choose a program accredited by ICF.
In North Carolina, some life coach training programs include:
- Raleigh Coaching Academy. This program, located in downtown Raleigh, offers the only globally recognized program that focuses on Authentic Leadership. It provides students with 94 training hours toward ICF certification.
- P4 Coaching Institute. Located in Rocky Mountain, North Carolina, this company offers ICF-approved, intensive, three-day classroom or online life coach training, which provides students with an understanding of coaching skills and methods as well as an understanding of the theories and philosophies behind being a life coach.
Salary Potential and Career Outlook for North Carolina Life Coaches
The Bureau of Labor Statistics doesn’t collect data specifically about a career in life coaching. Data is combined with similar careers such as vocational counselors or rehabilitation counselors. The average annual income for life coaches in 2015 was approximately $61,900.
Your earning potential can vary widely based on whether you work for others or have your own business. If you have your own business, you’ll need to spend time marketing yourself to develop a clientele. Many life coaches pursue this career choice part-time while also working at other occupations.
Your Future as a Life Coach in North Carolina
A career as a life coach offers the opportunity to work full-time or part-time. You may work for an organization, or you may want to be self-employed, allowing you to work flexible hours. When you work for yourself, you may choose to help people with a wide variety of life challenges, or you may want to specialize in a particular area such as career transition, health and fitness, relationships or creating a life vision.
If you choose to work on a freelance basis, you’ll need to have skills in running a business that include marketing and accounting. The highest demand for life coaches in North Carolina is likely to be in and around the largest cities of Charlotte, Raleigh and Greensboro.