Do I Need A Qualification To Become A Spiritual Life Coach?

I have seen many discussions / arguments over whether a coach needs a qualification or not. I believe that the answer is very much dependant on your definition of what a coach does.

The main argument I hear against a qualification is that coaching is about life experience. And many might say that if you are assisting someone with their spiritual path, experience of your own journey is more important than a piece of paper. If, however, you are advising someone, and showing them the path that you have taken, this is more along the lines of mentoring. Coaching is something different. A good coach can coach you through a situation, whilst never having been through it themselves. It is about asking questions and allowing you the space to find the answer and the way forward from within you.  Spiritual coaching has the added dimension of creating and holding the best energy and space for the client to allow them to access their own higher self and tap in to their true meaning and purpose in life.

People are much better at giving their thoughts, opinions, or advice than they are at listening and asking questions with no attachment to the outcome. This takes practice.

Reasons To Have A Coaching Qualification To Become A Spiritual Life Coach

1. On a good coach training course you will learn foundational skills in coaching that include listening deeply to your clients, creating a safe and sacred space in which they can explore their own thoughts, feelings, and ideas, and asking powerful questions to elicit deeper thinking. Not everyone has these skills at their fingertips and it takes practice. All of which you should get on a good training course.

2. There are a lot of people calling themselves coaches out there in the world, so qualifications/certification and accreditation (these 2 are different things) are going to become more and more important to differentiate yourself in the marketplace.

3. On a purely practical level, you will also need to show your qualification in order to get insurance, and to become accredited by a coaching organisation, if that’s a path you choose.

4. The personal growth and evolution you will get on a coach training course is quite something! All the participants need to practice their skills, so they practice on each other, This allows for significant opportunity to explore your own values, meaning and purpose, plus your connection to you own spirituality.  

My Journey To Life Coaching

 After I finished training in NLP I was told I didn’t really need a qualification in life coaching to become a coach. But that didn’t sit right with me. I had some skills with certain NLP tools, and I could fix a phobia in 20 minutes. But could I be a coach? I didn’t feel that I had enough knowledge or experience to do it properly. Some years later I trained as a coach, and added coaching to my training business. I still found further learning, courses and CPD essential to add to and maintain my skills and to keep moving forward. 

When anyone asks me, ‘Do I need a qualification to become a life coach?’, personally I would say yes, absolutely. But make sure you find the one that’s right for you. There”’ be more articles on this subject to follow!