Spiritual life coaching is a type of life coaching in which the focus is on the spiritual aspects of an individual's life. There are similarities between life coaching and spiritual life coaching in that both are aimed at helping people meet their goals, whatever they may be. The main difference is that spiritual life coaching focuses more on the inner aspects of a person, sometimes called the inner coach, whereas life coaching may focus more on the outer aspects and use a more pragmatic approach to reach goals.
One of the misconceptions is that spiritual coaching is connected to religion. Some coaches may be religious, but many do not belong to or practice organized religion. The coach should lead a strong spiritual life, but that does not necessarily mean being religious. The basic tenet behind this type of coaching is that all people have spiritual aspects in them, whether they believe that or not, and that connecting to the inner coach can help people be more successful in their lives.
Part of this type of coaching is to provide guidance and inspiration to the client. There is an idea in spiritual life coaching that people who don't nurture their inner spiritual selves may be more prone to anxiety, stress, and fear, and so one of the goals of this type of coaching is to address those potential problems and try to reduce or eliminate them. In this type of coaching, this is done using intuition as the main coaching skill.
There are a variety of reasons to use spiritual life coaching. Some of these reasons are practical, for example, to change negative behavior patterns, accomplish goals, or improve relationships. This type of coaching may also be used as a way to discover natural gifts or develop a life purpose. The coach often acts as a mirror to reflect what is really going on inside the client. Regardless of the reasons to seek this type of coaching, the main purpose is to figure out ways to take action and control life utilizing the inner coach.
Spiritual life coaching is not therapy, although it may be effective in addition to therapy. Coaches may conduct their sessions differently, but generally, one-hour consultation sessions are a common way to start, with additional sessions as needed. Some things coaches should do to be effective is to develop intuition and set boundaries with the client. The coach and client can work together to figure out the best plan depending on the client's needs and desires.
