We all want to change some aspect of ourselves, be it physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally, or financially. Health and wellness professionals help their clients overcome personal and professional obstacles, motivate, and support their clients through all kinds of challenges – but which kind of coach can help will depend on what you’re looking to achieve.
While Health Coaches typically address physical concerns, life coaches will tackle personal, professional, emotional, and financial struggles. What those challenges look like have changed over time – as trends come and go, the things we want to change about ourselves shift. In 2023, what will they look like; and how can life coaches help their clients make the changes they want to see?
Five Life Coaching Trends to Look For in 2023
The wellness coaching industry has undergone a significant transformation in the past few years, just like many other professional industries. What clients are looking for from their coaches has shifted, and many are looking for flexibility, accountability, an emphasis on holistic health, increased credentials, and where they’re being coached.
1. Remote/Digital/Online Presence
Life coaches – when they work for themselves – are at their core small business owners. They rely heavily on marketing to spread their message and to gain clients, and having a curated digital presence is essential. Utilizing technology to your advantage can help your life coaching business gain and retain clients, be better organized, and allow you to spread awareness of your services. Investing in software that can help deliver a more seamless customer experience can keep your clients happy and coming back again and again.
IIN’s Health Coach Training Program is set up to support graduates in their pursuit of a wellness career, supplying tools and resources to help build their businesses post-graduation. The premade session forms, website and coaching program templates, and IINBiz marketing platform are all important resources to guide new Health Coaches in getting their businesses up and running.
2. Credentials and Accreditation
There are no formal education requirements or certifications needed to become a life coach, but clients may feel more comfortable working with someone who has experience and has received a credible education. The National Board for Health and Wellness Coaching (NBHWC) was established with the goal of creating a gold standard for health and wellness coaching education, which includes the creation of a national certification exam to prove competency in the field of health coaching. Many schools (including IIN!) are approved by the NBHWC, which means graduates from those schools can go on to become eligible to apply to sit for board-certification.
3. Emphasis on Holistic Wellness
More and more people are turning to a focus on holistic wellness in lieu of traditional doctors and medications. Holistic wellness centers on addressing mental, emotional, physical, social, and spiritual components of health and wellness. It encourages providers to treat the cause of issues rather than the issue itself.
To honor your bio-individuality – the unique qualities that makeup you and only you – the foods you eat, as well as your lifestyle practices, will look different from everyone else’s. People are tired of being treated like their situation is identical to someone else’s and are seeking providers that will treat them as the unique individual they are.
4. Youth Coaching
Being a young person is challenging as-is, but the last few years have only made it more difficult. All-new stressors and obstacles facing young adults have only been compounded by the pressures of social media. Parents are struggling with how to find ways to connect with their children (and vice versa) as the generational gaps grow wider. Life coaches can act as mediators and coach young people on overcoming the challenges they face on a daily basis.
5. Coaching in the Workplace
Wellness is shifting from a “nice to have” to a “need to have” in the workplace. “Keeping yourself well at work involves maintaining your physical, mental, and emotional well-being,” says Dr. Lisa Whitty Bradley. Ensuring that company culture, effective teamwork and collaboration, and employee engagement all remain high priorities in the workplace. With many of us still working remotely, less facetime with supervisors and coworkers can lead to less connection and diminished morale. Providing wellness benefits like coaching opportunities for employees can help retain current employees and attract new talent.
What it All Means
These trends for 2023 can benefit coaches and clients alike. As a coach, you can help a wide variety of people in all walks of life, with many of the problems that plague them. As a client, it’s good to know that your coach is transforming with the times and following trends.
If you’re interested in becoming a life, health, or wellness coach, finding a career that feeds your soul can be the difference between going through the motions and being an active participant in your own life. If you’re interested in pursuing a career in health and wellness that allows for schedule flexibility, a generous income, and the ability to help others realize their full potential, IIN’s Health Coach Training Program may be the perfect fit. Try a free Sample Class today to explore what health coaching is all about.
