Faith: The Invisible Life Coach

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

There are times when we are at our lowest and become desperately in need of all the right answers. Even how much we try to think straight, we are just so overwhelmed by our troubles that we allow it to just fade us away from our capability of being a thinking being. We succumb to the woes of despair when we have nothing supporting us.

We lose belief in ourselves. We need someone or something to bring us out of the dark, lest we yield to death. When all else fail, we are held by one last effort to preserve our sanity. An entity we can not even see or touch or hear, we call it faith – the invisible life coach.

We are dependent on many things in order to live peacefully and in harmony of ourselves and with others. According to Maslow, a theorist during the 2nd World War stated that there are levels of motivation which drives a man to be productive and positive.

Humans start with the basic Physiological needs like food and shelter, then seeks safety with socialization, then seeks love and belonging from the social group, then proceeds with self esteem security from the outcome of the previous three items, then reaches the pinnacle of harmonious human thinking which is self-actualization, being able to integrate all the areas of needs into the self.

It is true that man has a way to gather these needs and actually make it his basis for self contentment, but one major flaw in this is the possibility of a deficiency in getting all these which results to a breakdown of the whole hierarchy of needs and puts the person back in the shadows of gloom.

Though the first five needs are ever present for the individual to gather and integrate, it needs a binding base and a holding top layer. Whenever the hierarchical needs crumble, the person can still hold on to a thin but durable layer to work his way back up, and when he is able to reconstruct until self-actualization, he is able to hold it in place with the same layer.

This is where faith comes in. A sturdy belief in the unseen and believing that it will keep sanity in place is something more than self-actualization as it goes beyond normal human thinking and tangible comprehension.

The souls alternate type of fuel

We have learned to rise above the ashes time and time again. Others may have failed and allowed themselves to be destroyed totally. Yet until we are breathing, we have the capability to turn things around and hurl ourselves back into wellness.

We are given a mind to think of what to do, a heart to keep us strong against pessimistic events, and a body to perform the necessary actions. The soul is the collective being of our mind, body, and heart. It can still exist with a lack of the other, and is seated in the mind.

This altered existing entity no one sees drives each one of us to simply exist. We do not see, hear, hold, or comprehend it, but we know it is there. We know that each of our souls need its own motivation, and it needs a fuel which is ethereal to suit the ethereal life of our spirits.

Faith, among all others is the belief that we could hang on to when the material world fails us. Faith is the food to our soul to keep our most basic existence in place, may it be with something, a deity, or any other unseen object. It participates in our day to day living just like a life coach, only this time; it is invisible, yet stronger than any other life coach that we may encounter.

Coaching in Life for Honor

Oriental Value

Whenever I get to watch Japanese-inspired samurai movies, it catches my attention that the main character has a purpose in undertaking what he is supposed to do, even if it means risking and sacrificing his own life. This purpose of finishing a certain task is not only bound to duty but to something more important, something deeper.

I usually am able to discern that the purpose of being is rooted in honor and self respect. My conscience gives me a coaching in life for honor to be sought.

A samurai is not only concerned with his personal objectives but it is intertwined with a sense of self preservation which is more than what can be perceived tangibly, even by other people. Honor for the samurai is his most cherished and well kept treasure. Without it or losing it would mean shame and a loss of dignity.

It is the pride of the samurai to continue to exist in this world of interaction. Honor is the badge of self respect he commands from other people. It is indeed important.

There was also a time which I remembered during one of my previous jobs wherein I was administering a myriad of online gamers who paid for gaming service. Each day that I worked as a game master, I made sure that there were no exploits or cheats done by the players that would compromise the integrity of the game, as well as the other players.

Self Implication

However, it couldn’t be avoided that there would be anomalies and corruption even in such an ideally conceived work. I was not the only game master working. I had colleagues, some of which had different sets of principles. It came to a point that some sort of dishonesty happening between unethical players and immoral game masters. I was knowledgeable of the “under-the-table” transactions of some of the players to have their online gaming characters hyped up.

Even if I could also make easy money from joining the bandwagon, money was not important to me, and so I confronted these colleagues of mine and talked with them about it. It seemed that there would be no compromise that is going to happen so I decided to resign because I couldn’t blindly work in an honorable manner when my colleagues wouldn’t.

It just implies that I value my sense of self respect and honor. I would rather go do an action if it would mean that I would gain the two before mentioned. Of course there are times when I make the wrong decisions, but not because I deliberately compromised and gave up my honor for something shallow such as money or fame or the like. Honor, like that of a samurai is important to me. It is my badge of respect that I can command others to impart with me as I do with others as well.

I shall preserve and maintain this treasure that I have, and that which others may never get or steal from me. It may diminish with mistakes that I do in my life, but as long as my sanity commands to strive for the betterment of this, I shall remain internally self fulfilled.

If there would be something I may do to increase it, I will do as long as I am able to carry out the task properly. Honor will be one of my root principles as I live in this earth. Honor as a coach in life is intangible yet, it is one of the most concrete things speaking of my identity.

Choosing A Life Coach School

A lot of people want to become life coaches. Life coaching is both a monetarily fulfilling as well as an emotionally satisfying job. But becoming a coach is not as easy as it seems. You need to have the right attitude and the proper training to become an effective life coach. Most often than not, someone who is interested to be in this line of job need to attend a life coach school. So how do you choose a life coach school?

Life Coach School

There is a myriad of life coach schools all over the world but only a percentage of them can really be considered as schools that provide quality training. There are certain criteria that you should consider when choosing a school to train in.

First thing that you should consider is its training program. Although there is no governed education and training for life coaching, there are certain self-appointed groups that are recognized all over the world. These are the International Coach Federation (ICF), the European Coaching Institute (ECI), and International Association of Coaching (IAC).

These organizations provide different training programs of great quality. The school you should choose is an institution that adheres to the standards provided by any of these organizations.

Another aspect that you should consider is experience. How long has the school been in the life coach training business? A school that has been established for quite some time would have had the experience as well as the expertise to train their students effective life coaching techniques.

Feedback is also another factor that you should consider when choosing a school. Know what are the advantages and disadvantages of the school from the points of view of their trainees. Most often than not, feedbacks are unbiased.

Last but not the least, when choosing a life coach school, you should take into consideration the training fees. Life coach training can range anywhere from $3000 - $6000. Make sure that the fees you may incur for the training can be accommodated in your budget. It would also be good to inquire whether the school provide scholarships or other programs that may help their trainees financially.

The School Can Only Do So Much

No matter how good a life coach school is but if a person does not have the right attitude to become a life coach then everything becomes meaningless. There are a lot of people who wants to become life coaches but some of them are there for the wrong reason – money making. Yes it is true that life coaching is a lucrative job and a lucrative business. And yes there is nothing wrong with money making.

But you should keep in mind that in life coaching, you are holding the future of a person in your hands. If you are doing it just for the sake of money making there is a big chance that you will just do the job half-heartedly.

To become a life coach you need to have the proper attitude. You need to have the passion as well as the heart to help people. Make the money making part your secondary goal. Helping people should be the top priority.

With good training from a life coach school plus the right attitude, then you can be a very effective life coach who could make a positive change in other people.

Affordable Life Coach Training

Anybody with the passion, the willingness and the heart to help people can become a life coach. The problem though is that they are not enough to make you a qualified more so an effective life coach. You need training and mentoring. But life coach training can cost with range of $3000 to $6000.

What if you do not have that much money? Does this mean your dream of becoming a life coach is over? Well, not quite. There are ways of having an affordable life coach training.

Scholarship

Just like in schooling, you can also avail of a scholarship to help you pursue your dreams of becoming a life coach. There are different companies out their who are willing to help you as long as you are qualified and have the eagerness to be one.

One approach is if you are currently working as an employee of a certain company. You can inquire whether you have scholarships or programs that would provide you with what you need. Most companies nowadays provide such privileges to their employees since the whole company can benefit from life coaching.

If a scholarship program or training is not existent in your company, you could bring it up with your boss or bosses and suggest the need for one. Most often than not, these programs will be 100% free of charge.

Another approach to this is applying for a scholarship to any of the top coaching academies. One of these institutions is the International Coach Academy.

International Coach Academy is one of the world leaders when it comes coach training. They provide quality, affordable and accessible training. The Professional Coach Training Program they have is certified by the International Coach Federation. Best of all they provide scholarships to people who deserve it. Their scholarship program gives scholars a 50% off from the training fees.

Looking For A Mentor

Another way of having an affordable life coach training is by having a mentor. If you are determined enough, you can look for somebody, a life coach, who is willing to take you as an apprentice. This may not be formal training but it does not mean that it will be less effective. Always remember that experience is better than any teacher or trainer and your life coach mentor has this.

Of course it is not that easy to find someone who, in just a snap of your fingers, would jump in and become your mentor. You need to gain their trust as well as you need to show that you really are determined to become one. A "real" life mentor, once has seen that you have the passion and determination, will help you in any way he or she can.

Self-Training

If none of the above works for you and you still would not want to give up, then this is your last resort – self training. Self training would require you to have different source of information one of which are the books. There are a lot of books that pertain to life coaching but you need not to buy one. These books are readily available in your local libraries.

Another source of information is the Internet. The information superhighway has a plethora of information regarding life coaching. You just need to be cautious though of which information you would use or not depending on where you got them. Choose sources on the Internet that are credible.

Starting Your Life Coach Career

You have always wanted to become a life coach ever since you were a fetus. And now, after months or even years of preparation and training, you have become a certified life coach. Now what? It seems like you have hit a wall and do not know what do to next. Well, here are some tips and ideas that may get your engine going.

Target Market

The first thing you could do is to determine who your target market is. Do you want to be a corporate life coach who helps corporate businesses and their employees or do you want to be a life coach for individuals only.

Next is to determine who you want as are your clients. Do you want your clients to be men or women? Age ranging from 25 to 40, 30 to 50, or 200 to 300 years old? These are the decisions that only you can make. It is all about your preference. You could start out by choosing clients who you can work comfortably with. If you are more comfortable working with men, then do so. If you are more comfortable working with women, by all means, do so.

Slowly by slow you expand your targets. You can start life coaching other than those you are comfortable with. You may have started with men but now you can start with women and try to accustom yourself working with them. You try to become more comfortable.

Be Confident

You have worked hard to achieve what you have achieved and you should be proud of it. Show your self confidence in the kind of work you are doing. You should see yourself as a polished professional that is very effective in the line of work you are doing.

By being confident, you are also building self esteem and more belief on yourself. Once you feel this yourself, you emanate this to your surroundings, environment and other people which include your clients.

Market Yourself

A life coach is not a coach when who or she has no one to coach. As a beginning life coach, you need to market and make yourself known to other people. There are several ways to market yourself especially over the internet. You can write articles and you can even make your own blog site. Content should be about life coaching and other information related to it.

You could also write things about yourself and the services you provide. A tip when writing about yourself is knowing what your strengths and weaknesses are. But you do not want other people to know your weaknesses so you write all about your strength. But one thing you should keep in mind though is to never go overboard as to lie about your weakness and turn it into a strength. The key here is to always tell the truth.

Join Activities for Life Coaches

Every once in a while there will be activities like seminars for life coaches. As someone who is just starting out in this career path, joining these activities will be greatly beneficial.

You can meet other life coaches who have been on the job for years and have had accumulated valuable experience. You can ask them for some tips or pieces of advice regarding your current situation.