It’s hard to deny the popularity of life coaching these days. Everyone goes through hardships and difficulties in life and there are people who need all the help they can get when it comes to dealing with such difficulties. And this is where life coaches come in. But with the popularity of life coaching, it’s inevitable that there will be those who are simply in business to take advantage of that opportunity. Some of these so called “trainers” don’t even qualify as one and are just out to steal your money. While there are others who may seem to know what they are doing at first glance, but when examined closely, their tutoring style is mostly perfunctory and not to mention overpriced and ineffective. Fortunately, there are signs to look out for that can help you spot life coaches with a poor mentoring style.
Bad coaches are not thorough and listen superficially. An excellent life coach is a very good listener because they know that it is one of the most important foundations of a good coaching practice. Life coaches are there to listen to whatever you have to say. They have the ability to put aside everything that concerns them personally and put 100% of their attention on your case. Good coaches will often dig into the little details of your situation if they think they can help. There are many people who have been pleasantly surprised by how much they really felt heard during a coaching session.
Bad coaches are fixed with positive thinking. It is a very common practice for a life coach to instill positive thinking into the mindset of their clients. Positive thinking is actually a very good mindset to encourage in order to boost attitude and help with personal growth, but as long as it is done in moderation. But success doesn’t just depend on positive thinking. You will also need hard work, willingness to sacrifice, determination, endurance, self-knowledge and even a pinch of luck among many other things. Therefore, it’s best to avoid coaches who encourage positive thinking but deprive you of the harsh realities of life.
Bad coaches have a tendency to control the conversation. A good coach knows that the agenda to work depends on the client. And that includes the issues and problems that need to be addressed, the means on how to proceed, and the goal-setting process. A good life coach will only watch and offer their suggestions and advice when needed. Basically, he or she knows that training is about what you think, not about them. If you feel like a coach is taking over your kidneys and bringing up topics you don’t care to discuss, then it’s best to avoid them.
A good life coach knows that you didn’t hire them to help you fix yourself and impose their ideas and opinions on you. So watch out for these telltale signs of poor training practice.