Who is the personal coach and what does he or she do? Personal coach and life coach are used interchangeably, and they both work with clients to help change their lives. They help change lives and realize goals and dreams through inquiry, support, and encouragement.

The Personal Coach Helps the Whole Person

Career coaches helps with career issues, executive coaches help individuals become better executives, so it would be logical to assume that a personal coach helps individuals become better people. To become a better person, all aspects of someone’s life should be addressed, analyzed, and ameliorated. Here are some of the most common areas of a person’s life which can be supported by the personal coach.

Career Coaching

Individuals spend roughly one third of their lives at work; it is important to find happiness in a career. Coaching can help clients find ways to enjoy their work and work environment. Coaching can help clients enjoy their work and reach their full career potential. Finding that ideal life-work balance is also stressed in coaching sessions.

Health Coaching

Coaches are not physicians, but they do have access to knowledge and tools which can help clients discover healthy lifestyles. Nutrition, fitness, toxic-free environments, and stress-free living are all part of health coaching. Modifying behavior and learning new healthy behaviors and habits are additional benefits of coaching.

Relationship Coaching

The personal coach can also work with clients on social interactions. Learning how to have fulfilling relationships with family, friends, and spouses is crucial for living a happy life. Learning to identify healthy relationships and jettison bad ones is one way that relationship coaching helps clients find happiness and contentment in all their relationships.

Spiritual Coaching

Spirituality is important to many people. Spirituality is not all about religion; it is mainly about purpose and a true sense of self. Spiritual coaching is about finding core values and meaning in life. Many personal coaches can help with this aspect of life.

The personal coach is not a god, or a guru, or a superman (or superwoman). Personal coaching is about being a partner with a client and providing structure, guidance, knowledge, and support. Coaches help their clients take a objective look at the current state of their lives and then identify goals and aspirations. Taking these determine goals and aspirations, they help clients develop road maps to reach these goals. These road maps are created with realistic and relevant actions that can be taken by the client.

The personal coach recognizes that everyone has great, perhaps even unlimited potential, and that this potential is developed and nurtured from within themselves. The coach is a partner, a guide, an advisor. The coach does not tell a client what to do; the coach asks a client what he or she wants to do and then helps guide him or her there. Personal coaching can be thought of as a mirror that reflects the clients image, and then can be thought of as a personal treasure map guiding the client to his own personal pot of metaphorical gold.

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Fred Philips
Business Coach
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