How to Become a Life Coach

A Guide on How to Become a Full-Time Successful Life Coach

Looking for expert guidance on how to become a life coach? Get first-hand advice from a life coaching professional who has been transforming lives in London for over 16 years.

If you've achieved success in your professional sphere—and you thrive on helping others—you may make a great life coach. But simply wanting it isn't enough. It's not like it might appear in movies and TV shows. Life coaching is a privilege and a massive responsibility. Why? Because the success, happiness, or fulfilment of your clients lie in your hands.

Make no mistake, life coaching is not easy. But if you're good at it, there's no reason why you can't build a successful life coaching business over time.

My name is Jake Smolarek, and I'm a professional life coach with a long track record of helping exceptional people achieve exceptional things. It might surprise you to hear me refer to myself as a F***king Legend, but that's exactly how I describe life coaches who have achieved what I have for my clients.

If you'd like personalised help from a successful life coach who has helped clients such as ITV, the BBC, and the FA, book a free discovery meeting today. This will be your chance to find out more about the coaching process and put a plan in place to achieve your goal.

If you'd like to find out more about how to become a life coach, however, keep reading!

What Do Life Coaches Do?

Life coaches help people strive for happiness. But what is happiness? Well, as any certified life coach will tell you, happiness is a subjective state of mind. What constitutes happiness for you may mean nothing to someone else. And what constitutes happiness today may be completely irrelevant to you tomorrow.

Life coaches start by working with their clients to understand what happiness means to them. It may mean being content with life. It may mean starting a business and making a fortune! It might mean finding the perfect work-life balance without jeopardising professional prospects.

If the client doesn't know what happiness means to them, an experienced life coach will do some digging. Together, the aim is to create an ultimate vision for life...a dream, you might say.

Once the client has a dream to strive towards, the life coach can help to tackle all the obstacles in the way of achieving it. In many ways, a life coach is a problem solver.

Whether a client approaches you for help with communication skills, for help quitting alcohol or achieving the big promotion they've been chasing for years, your job as a life coach is to tackle the problems in the way of success. And in many cases, this involves getting the client to look within themselves for answers and honest assessments of any strengths and weaknesses at play.

Why Become a Life Coach?

If you want an idea of what it's like to be a life coach in the UK today, take a look at my CV. As well as the clients I've already mentioned, I've been approached by the likes of the City of London, Brentford FC, Crystal Palace FC, to name a few, for my life coaching expertise. If you think working with high-profile clients is exciting and glamorous at times, you're absolutely right!

The best life coaches can earn serious money. Yes, that's not guaranteed. And even if you do end up with a seriously impressive annual income, it won't come overnight. I built my coaching practice up from the ground—and it was a long and arduous process. The more work you put into it now, the greater the rewards will be further down the line.

But, eventually, there's a great work-life balance out there for the best life coaches. You'll get to decide how many clients you take on, how often you work, and when you take holidays. And while I prefer to work from my office in the Angel/Islington area of North London, many people decide to run their life coaching business from home.

Want to help people, choose your own hours, rub shoulders with high-profile clients, and make lots of money? Work hard at becoming the best possible life coach you can be.

How Do I Become a Life Coach with No Experience?

You can't simply decide one day to become a life coach. No one will take you seriously—particularly if you're charging standard rates for life coaching in London. But having some experience can give you a serious headstart.

Think about your professional career so far. Did any of your responsibilities involve coaching? Were you a mentor to your subordinates? Were you charged with the development of employees? While not exactly the same as life coaching, these responsibilities can demonstrate a natural aptitude for the profession.

If you have a natural talent for life coaching, you probably already know. Maybe you have a knack for assessing a person's strengths and weaknesses. Perhaps you know how to deliver feedback in a positive, productive way. And if you're really a natural, you probably know how to do both.

I'm a successful life coach, and my approach has always been results-driven. That said, I also value patience as a secret ingredient of success. If you are patient and have a natural ability to get the best out of people, you can become a life coach with little to no experience.

If you have the potential to become a champion, reach the pinnacle of your field, build a successful and profitable business, and become one of the best life coaches in the UK, I can help. But you have to decide right now if you have the time and persistence to see this through.

Can You Help Me Become a Successful Life Coach?

The honest answer is it depends on you. I know I have the skills, experience, and natural talents to help you achieve your goal, but you have to commit to our journey together. If you do, I'll invite you on a journey I've mapped out over many years as a life coach in the UK.

I call it: Learn. Practice. Master. Become a F***ing Legend.

Learn

Take it from me; you'll never stop learning in life. It doesn't matter whether you're a novice or a seasoned life coach with many years of experience under your belt, life itself is an education.

You might think you've already got what it takes to start a life coaching business, but I'm telling you that unless you've transformed the lives of coaching clients, you've got a long way to go.

There are many ways to learn. I can teach you my approaches and share my experiences with you. That's right! Life coaches need to be coached. In addition, you should read as many books as you can on the subject, watch videos, and continuously apply your learning in real-world settings.

Practice

While there are some very good life coach training courses out there, nothing takes the place of practice in terms of developing your skills. That's why you MUST take every opportunity to apply what you've learned with real people.

One idea that might work while you're at the beginning of your coaching career is pro-bono work. Yes, you heard me right! Offer to work as a freelance life coach for free. After all, why should anyone trust you with their future if you have no track record of success?

Reach out to experienced life coaches for advice. OK, a lot of them won't want the competition, but some will be pleased to give you some tips if you have the right attitude. As an established life coach in London, I help new and aspiring life coaches all the time. Think of what I do as "life coaching for life coaches".

One final point: Create a personal brand that differentiates you from the hundreds of other life coaches in the UK. Every top life coach has their own style and persona. Yes, this will mean that you'll alienate some people, but that's OK. You're not going to be everyone's cup of tea; if you were, you'd struggle to stand out. For example, I'm the results-focused, no-bu****it coach who doesn't give a f**k about what people think of him. But I have two decades of results to back up my approach.

Create a personal brand, and develop it over time.

Master

Over time, you will develop a style and approach that works for you. When you run into problems, you will change your approach accordingly. When strategies and coaching styles deliver results, you will develop them to increase their efficacy. That's how it's done.

“Skill is only developed by hours and hours of work.”—Lewis Hamilton

You don't have to train at the Certified Life Coach Institute to master the art of being a life coach. You have to put in the hours on the ground. You have to apply your learnings. You have to develop your coaching skills and, once you've done that, develop them through hours and hours of life coaching sessions.

Think about Gladwell's 10,000-hour rule. To develop a skill to such an extent you earn the right to call yourself an expert, you need to practice it for at least 10,000 hours. Of course, you might need 20,000 hours. But the principle is the same: Practice makes perfect!

The money you make will increase as your skill grows. The more life coach responsibilities you take on, the more experience you'll get—and the more money you'll make. Before you know it, you're earning £100 an hour. But the hard work of personal development doesn't end there! No, it's just beginning.

Working with me, a professional certified coach, you'll switch to Programmes. You'll learn what it takes to go from being a good coach to a F***king Legend!

Become a F***king Legend

Becoming a F***king Legend isn't easy. If it were, you and everyone would be one. To make the final step to legendary status as a life coach in the UK, you'll need to listen to brutally honest feedback about your approach and abilities. This has nothing to do with life coach qualifications—it's about your ability to change lives for the better. That's why it's vital to get feedback and advice from an existing life coaching legend.

Think of it like a culinary recipe: First, you learn the steps, then you practice them, and then you master the technique. Only then, after mastering the basics, can you truly become a F**king Legend and start putting your unique spin on it. Success, like a fine dish, follows a sequence—no shortcuts.

How Do You Become a Life Coach: Things You Need to Know

There are things you can't learn from life coaching training courses. You'll understand that when you run your own business. That's why having the ear of an experienced F***king Legend is so important. A life coach who has transformed multiple lives—of which I'm one—can provide you with insights like these:

The Life Coaching Industry Is Fiercely Competitive

Life coaching courses are everywhere these days. There's a huge demand for life and business coaching programmes because people look at life coaches like me and think: I can do that! I can coach people and make a s**tload of money! That may be true, but only a selected few will ever become a F***king Legend.

Think of the life coaching industry as a professional organisation like the Premier League. Within the world's most popular club football competition, there are hundreds of great players trying to make a name for themselves. They're all very, very good players; otherwise, they wouldn't have made it. But only a handful are F***king Legends. Mo Salahs, Kevin De Bruynes, and Bukayo Sakas don't grow on trees. You'll be lucky if there are 10 F***king Legends in the Premier League at any one time.

The same applies to the life coaching business. You'll be able to find a very good coach who has completed their coaching professional higher apprenticeship, and they will probably do a great job. But they won't do a legendary job. And it's those who perform at the very top of their game that earn the big bucks!

You Can Earn Serious Money—But Not Right Away

You don't need to be associated with a professional body to earn a fantastic living as a life and confidence coach in London. Growing your profile, developing your personal brand, and fine-tuning your skills are the best ways to gradually grow your earning power as a life coach.

If you work hard enough with a F***king Legend and develop your skills, the money will come—eventually. Until then, focus on growing your counselling skills and developing the kind of personal qualities a great life coach always exhibits.

Starting Out Isn't Easy

Prepare for disappointment; and when it comes, use it as a learning experience. Most life coaches hit multiple obstacles during their journey to legendary status. Think about coaching psychology and apply it to yourself. Become your own life coach, or enlist the help of an experienced coach who can support you.

Remember: Every successful business goes through ups and downs. Work through the setbacks you experience, and develop your own solutions you can take with you throughout your career.

Top Tips for How to Start Being a Life Coach

1. Offer Free Life Coaching Sessions

Doing/giving pro-bono coaching sessions is a must to get experience quickly. Then, over time, you can charge a bit more. But do not be greedy like a lot of "baby" coaches at the beginning, because you will not get life coaching clients. In fact, if you develop a reputation for charging too much for life and career coaching services that aren't fully developed, you may find it difficult to change people's perception of you when you finally do become a F***king Legend.

Life coaches earn very little at first. Accept it. Plan for it. But never lose sight of the fact that, eventually, you'll be able to earn the kind of money I do.

2. Learn How to Sell

You have to learn to become a business person. And you have to learn how to sell. I know that some people might not like it but, if you want coaching to be your full-time job—or at least side hustle—you need to learn how to be a businessman/businesswoman, which involves knowing how to sell to potential clients.

A life coaching career is a business. And if you want to have a thriving business, you have to invest in it. So you have to charge. Coaching is a business like any other business. I always say money is not the most important thing in life. However, in business, it's everything. I know plenty of great coaches with massive potential, but because they do not know how to sell. And by sell, I mean convince people to work with them (and first of all find those people through marketing). This deficiency in their skill set means they do not have any clients, or maybe just a few

3. Work on Your Personal Brand

Who are you? More importantly, how do others perceive you? This is important, as it will always be one of the defining factors as far as your professional development goes. What kind of people are likely to respond to your style and methods? Do your strengths lie in active listening and improving mental health or are you a time management coaching aficionado?

As a self-employed life coach, it's crucial that you identify where your strengths lie as quickly as possible. Once you know this about yourself, hone in on it. Build a brand. Make yourself a brand. Unfortunately, there's no formal training that can teach you how to do this. However, with my extensive training and experience, you can leverage my insights to create and develop your personal brand over time.

4. Choose a Niche

Once you know where your coaching strengths lie and you've developed a brand, hone in on a niche. This may take time. You may not know what your ideal niche is at first. But there's a chance that your results with clients will dictate what your chosen niche should be.

For example, if you're good at helping people with self-belief and self-esteem issues, consider becoming a confidence coach. If you have been transforming the lives of business executives and entrepreneurs consistently, make career and leadership your niche. If you're getting results while helping people with their personal and professional goals, maybe the work-life balance niche is for you.

5. Consider Training

You don't need to be an Associate-Certified Coach to succeed, but it can help. You don't need formal qualifications for a career in coaching—but there are occasions when they can speed up your progress. There are vocational and university courses available, as well as training with the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD). And they can be very helpful in teaching fundamentals such as active listening skills, motivational speaking, and positive psychology.

But there's no substitute for the mentorship of a life coaching F***king Legend!

6. Operate Like a Business

As a self-employed life coach, you're ostensibly a business. This means you need marketing strategies, sales targets, business insurance, profit projections, and regular audits. Too many inexperienced, unqualified coaches dive straight into coaching, quit their jobs, and forget about business fundamentals. And, like so many young businesses in the UK these days, they fail within the first 12 months.

Let Me Show You How to Become a Life Coach

if you're looking for a F***ing Legend, you're in luck! With more than two decades of business and life coaching experience and multiple successful ventures under my belt, I know what it takes to succeed. Book an initial consultation at my London office or over a Zoom call today. It's completely free, and it might just change your life!