What is Life Coaching?

Coaching is not the same as therapy or mentoring. A mentor provides subject matter expertise, wisdom, and guidance based on their own experiences. Therapy deals with healing pain, trauma dysfunction, or conflict, typically resolving difficulties that impair an individual’s emotional health and psychological functioning. (experiencingcoaching.com) Coaching helps clients move forward with the present time. See “why would someone use a coach” further in the FAQ.

At this time, coaches do not need credentials. But life coaching is becoming a booming industry, and it is in a coach’s best interest to earn certifications from an accredited institution. This lends the coach credibility and assurance that there has been more than adequate training on the coach’s part. Many coaches have BA, BS, MA, MS, and PhDs. These people continue to earn their coaching credentials as well. Amy of Aspire has her AS and BS in Marketing and Business Education, both from Johnson & Wales University, and her MS in Counselor Education from Western Connecticut State University. She attends the Institute of Professional Excellence in Coaching (iPEC) and will have her certification by the end of 2022. Amy will be a certified professional coach (CPC) and an Energy Leadership Index master practitioner (ELI-MP). She will then continue for her ICF credentials, earned by the end of 2023.

• Wanting to pursue a life-long dream
• Longing to become their best self
• Want to pursue career advancement
• Transitioning into a new stage of life
• Looking to grow professionally • Desiring to feel more confident
• Understanding relationships
• Leaving behind emotional baggage
• Exploring their passions and what brings them joy (experiencecoaching.com)

Coaching is not considered a medical treatment, therefore, is not covered by insurance.

This depends on what a client wants to work on. Aspire recommends nine sessions minimum, then after nine sessions, assess if there is a need to continue. Nine sessions should be spaced out weekly, no longer than biweekly. Three months is the average for Aspire clients, and many do continue on.

Coaches are trained to keep sessions and any files from sessions confidential. This helps to create a safe space. In the spirit of safety, if anything is said in a session that indicates you or someone else is in danger, the police/ambulance will be called. Social Services will be contacted if anything is shared about someone elderly being mistreated or that a child is not safe. These upsetting statements are usually shared in a therapist’s office. This is not therapy, but a client can say concerning statements in a coaching session. This is how Aspire, LLC handles it if it happens. Transparency is vital in this relationship. Life Coaches are not protected by confidentiality in a court of law.