Back in 2007 when I started my business I got certified as a Life Coach.
Although there are always personal conversations I have with clients, I’ve never marketed myself this way.
What is a Life Coach?
Is that someone who is going to tell me how to live my life?
If that’s so I don’t want to talk to him/her…
Life Coaching has becoming more acceptable and mainstream recently, but I’m not comfortable with that title.
It could be because of the certification I earned from iPEC. When I started as a coach I thought I needed to be certified to prove my credibility, but to this day no one has ever questioned me about it.
During my 6 month training, I only connected with a few people in my cohort and used less than 10% of the info they taught. In fact when people contact me via LinkedIn asking about iPEC I tell them it was a waste of money.
The only 2 people I’ve met with the title Life Coach at one point in their career that I respect are: Jenny Blake and David Vik. Yet both are thought leaders and entrepreneurs which is why I admire them.
My gripe is this: being labeled a Life Coach is vague and the imagery associated is fluffy.
When I worked with a coach nearly 15 years ago it was for his expertise in a specific niche. Great coaches are consultants who use coaching techniques.
See, coaching is not an answer to “what do you do?”
Rather it’s the “how you do it.”
For example I run an online test prep company now which I focus on the sales, support and customer service for. I contract tutors to work with students while I coach my team.
I’ve found over time that I can use coaching in whatever I am doing as a career. It defines my style, not my job title.
Don’t call me a Life Coach.
Growing Forward 