“Directions are instructions given to explain how. Direction is a vision offered to explain why.” — Simon Sinek
It’s easy to look up “how” to become a life coach. A quick search on Google will give you hundreds upon millions of search results in the form of directions, instructions, and best practices.
But only one person can tell you “Why”.
You.
When you answer the call to become a life coach, you make the leap. And you are the only one who can bring your dreams into reality.
I have no doubt that you have immediate access to all the tools and resources necessary to build a business. But learning how to direct yourself as a life coach requires the intangible.
This intangible guide is your coaching philosophy. Imagine them as guard rails as you move your dream forward. When designed correctly, a good coaching philosophy will direct your energy towards your ultimate vision and keep you aligned with your core values.
And without them, you can move fast without actually going anywhere. So today we’re going to do some wayfinding. We’ll define what a coaching philosophy is, map out its components, and by the end of this guide, you won’t just have speed — you’ll have direction. Now, let’s set our sights on success and begin our journey.
What is a Coaching Philosophy?
Imagine a set of railroad tracks:
They guide locomotives over great distances and are able to navigate them through various obstacles and terrains.
In a similar way, a coaching philosophy is meant to keep your expectations, intentions, and decisions aligned with how you run your life coaching practice.
A coaching philosophy can:
- Provide a clear set of expectations for you and your coaching clients.
- Positively influence your coaching process and style.
- Establish specific objectives for your coaching business.
- Help you make consistent, heart-centered decisions.
In short, having a solid coaching philosophy is one of the things you absolutely need to become a successful life coach.
Now let’s talk about the building blocks required to make your own.
Components of a Life Coaching Philosophy
You have instant access to unlimited information at your fingertips, which includes millions of “recipes” for crafting your coaching philosophy.
But no two recipes are built the same, and it would take a lot of time to experiment and taste-test even a handful of them.
Time that could be used to accelerate your results as a life coach.
So instead of force-feeding yourself someone else’s templates, I’m giving you the ingredients. Part of the beauty of running your own coaching business is that no one else can tell you how to do it. Savor that freedom – take what works – and release everything else that doesn’t serve you.
Let’s begin.
Principles
I’m sure you’ve heard the term “guiding principles” before.
But what does that actually mean?
Principles are synonymous with moral standards. In an organization, they help create a standard. When new rules, changes, or decisions are considered, your principles can help you determine whether they contradict the moral standards your company rests upon.
Let’s take One World Cacao for example:
This company sources its cacao beans using sustainable farming practices. In turn, they also stimulate the economy and create a positive impact on the Guatemalan community.
A few of their principles include environmental responsibility, ethical trading, and cultural respect. Some of these principles create physical results like a sustainable agroforestry system, while others create spiritual results like the deep connection they share with Guatemalan ancestors and farmers.
That means any business decision they make will fall in line with their guiding principles. Anything contradictory is then either revised or discarded.
Implementation
When brainstorming your own principles, consider the moral and ethical standards you would want to uphold in your own business.
In other words, what is absolutely non-negotiable in your life coaching business?
Brainstorm a few behaviors that you would consider intolerable (such as bullying, price gauging, or manipulation) and use them as a starting point for developing your own guiding principles.
Values
As a life coach and business owner, you’re also a transformational leader. And as a leader, values become essential to your success.
Imagine your values as the white lines on the road. They keep you centered. Without them, your perception and control can waver and steer you off track.
Here at Brave Thinking Institute, we have five of these core values:
1. People
2. Love and Care
3. Integrity
4. Fun
5. Growth
It’s important to note, however, that values are only one part of what makes a team cohesive and a business successful.
Because you can have white lines on the road and still drive recklessly if you don’t believe in the rules.
For instance, “Growth” could be understood as doing everything possible to grow a business even if it’s immoral or ethically questionable. The means of growth can also be detrimental to an individual’s morale, health, and life in general. In other words. even if the means aren’t technically unethical, it could still be damaging to someone in some other way.
To avoid misinterpretation, I encourage you to attach a specific belief to each value. That way, everyone is on the same page about why those values are so “valuable” in the first place.
Beliefs
Let’s take our values a step further by detailing why they’re important. We’ll use our own core values and beliefs as an example:
1. We believe in People. We know that each one of us is far more powerful and contains more potential than any circumstance, situation, or condition.
2. We believe in Love and Care. We bring sincere love and care to every interaction. We delight and surprise each other, and our clients by anticipating wants and seeking to exceed expectations.
3. We believe in Integrity. We live what we teach, and we deliver what we promise.
4. We believe in Fun. We create joy, laughter, and fun in all aspects of our work.
5. We believe in Growth. We grow by achieving our goals and exceeding our best.
These core values and beliefs are the foundational pillars we use to train our coaches and invite our clients to implement as well.
And by embodying these pillars at every stage of growth (even going so far as to add them to our employee handbooks and recite them at the start of each meeting), we’ve been able to create sustainable, extraordinary results.
Implementation
When it comes to establishing your core values, start with the basics.
Think back on the reasons why you got into coaching in the first place. And certainly, don’t rush the process. For example, in our coaching community people freely ask each other questions and provide answers from all stages of experience and types of backgrounds. You, too, can tap into this power of having other coaches support you as partners in believing.
It’s only through this trial-and-error process that you can refine your core values and establish pillars that everyone can grow into.
Code of Ethics
In short, a code of ethics is the part of your coaching philosophy that details how others can expect you to conduct business in an honest and principled manner.
As a life coach, this creates accountability, reasonable expectations, and transparency.
Here are a few lines from Brave Thinking Institute’s Life Coaching Certification Division code of ethics as an example:
- Hold yourself to the utmost integrity when coaching. Live what you teach and deliver what you promise.
- Promise & keep confidentiality.
- Never discriminate. This includes age, race, gender identification, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, national origin or physical ability.
- When you’re a professional coach attending someone else’s event, the ethical thing to do when someone inquires about coaching is to direct them to the programs being offered by the host.
Implementation
Your principles, core values, and beliefs can help formulate your code of ethics.
You can start by listing out your personal beliefs and ethical traits (like honesty and integrity). Then, ask yourself what a high-quality relationship/dynamic would look like and feel like between you, your clients, and your team.
From there, describe the actions or procedures you would take while in alignment with your beliefs and standards. This could be as simple as “I will treat others as I wish to be treated” or as in-depth as breaking down what it really means to “be inclusive” as a life coaching business.
Coaching Style
How you show up and engage with your clients is the baseline of your coaching style. It’s your natural approach to coaching that your clients will come to know you for.
For example, there are some coaches who are straightforward and make it a point to minimize the amount of emotion they attach to their feedback. Or, you could be a coach that leans into vulnerability and tenderness when working with your clients.
Usually, your niche and target audience inform the coaching style you adopt.
Implementation
Notice the energy and personality you bring into your conversations and coaching sessions. Are you more streamlined and directive or curious and evocative?
If you coach trauma survivors, your clients may prefer a calm, gentle demeanor. But if you’re working with boot-strapping business owners, ramping up your energy might help them resonate with you more.
In summary, take your context, audience, and message into consideration as you discover your coaching style. Then, evaluate whether or not your coaching style matches your ethical standards and practices. Consider any changes you can make to your delivery that will still empower authenticity but reach your clients more effectively.
Mission
Your mission statement is the part of your coaching philosophy that summarizes the values of your coaching business. It also:
- Tells others what you are doing and what the purpose of your work is.
- Allows others to answer whether or not they have an interest in what you’re all about.
- Inspires others.
- Informs decisions.
Mission statements are made up of three key ingredients:
- A verb or action word in the beginning.
- The benefit you are delivering.
- Who you are serving.
Let’s look at a few different mission statements using this formula:
Google: To organize information for everyone.
Nike: To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete.
Tesla: To accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy.
Brave Thinking Institute: We empower people to create and live a life they love.
Implementation
When you start drafting up your own mission statement, I recommend keeping it simple and inspiring. A good indicator that you’re on the right track is if you can answer “YES” to the following:
If my mission were on a T-shirt or jacket, I would be proud to wear it!
A solid mission will summarize your values and beliefs, explain why you exist, and define your purpose and audience. All in one punchy sentence.
Purpose
Your purpose aligns what you do (your mission) with why you do it. It’s the heart behind the strategic direction.
Let’s take Disney Institute’s mission and purpose as an example:
Mission (What We Do) | Purpose (Why We Do It) |
Operating a business | Sharing a dream |
Strategic | Cultural |
Motivational | Aspirational (True North) |
Creates “buy-in” | Instills “ownership” |
Provides focus | Fuels passion |
Building a company | Building a community |
Laying bricks | Building cathedrals |
Parking cars | Creating happiness |
(It could also be read as “We operate a business [so that] we can share our dream.” Or “We are building a company [so that] we also build our community.”)
Implementation
Think of your purpose as the “so-what” of your mission statement. Take time to dig into the root of your passion and why you want the results in the first place.
Vision
Your ultimate vision is the final ingredient we’ll work with to help you craft your coaching philosophy.
Think of your vision as your north star. It guides you back to the right path after a detour or obstacle and defines the ultimate result you would love to achieve through your work.
As a side-note, being able to set your own ultimate vision for your business is one of the most valuable benefits of being a life coach. But keep in mind that your vision can evolve with your business in the same way your dreams grow with your life.
For example, the current vision we’re holding is a ten-year goal of “1 Billion Dreams Achieved”.
Our north star keeps our actions, energy, and decisions aligned with what we ultimately want to achieve. And once we achieve our current vision, we will strive for the next one.
Implementation
As you star-gaze for your vision, I encourage you to bring all the elements we’ve discussed in this post together and ensure your vision doesn’t contradict any of your core values, beliefs, or principles.
Think of a few goals that are lofty yet achievable, but keep them inspirational and easily understood.
And as you write out these goals, release the “how” and dial in on “what” it is that you truly want to achieve.
Embody this vision by keeping it close – physically and spiritually. Save them in a binder, your phone’s lock screen, or write them out each day as part of your affirmations.
However, you choose to align yourself with your coaching philosophy, be true to you.
Build Your Coaching Philosophy: Business with Intention and Direction
I’ve provided you with the ingredients necessary to craft your own coaching philosophy. Take what resonates and leave out the rest.
The truth is, you are the highest authority in establishing the direction and intention of your life coaching business, and the only one who can fulfill it.
“The sooner you accept the fact that you will have both successes and failures, the easier it will be to get your business and personal life headed in the right direction.”
– Harvey Mackay
A coaching philosophy will steer you back on track when life’s obstacles attempt to derail you. And while it’s important to know that your success is inevitable, perhaps the most important thing to remember is that you don’t have to take the journey alone.
In fact, as a transformational life coach, you won’t want to.
The most successful life coaches set their own vision, but they also support and learn from the vision of others.
It’s one of the best ways to accelerate your results.
If you would love expert guidance in building your business on a spiritually guided, transformational path, I invite you to enroll in a strategy session with us.
We’ll help you chart out your next best steps and navigate your dream, all within a heart-centered conversation.
You can apply for your free strategy session here.
Until next time – think bravely and act boldly,
John Boggs
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