Coaching Certification Programs

“I’m a life coach and I want to help people.” Have you ever seen that line on someone’s social media bio? What does it tell you? Very little, right? It’s tempting to want to generalize, to help everyone. However, the key to a successful life coaching career to is to find the coaching certification program that will help you specialize and stand out in a crowded field.

How Do I find My Coaching Niche?

Are you unsure exactly what life coaching niche to specialize in? Take 15 minutes right now and download this free workbook, no email needed. It’s a brief assessment of your background, experiences, skills and passions designed like a coaching session to help you identify your ideal life coaching career path.

which coaching certification program is right for you? Self Assessment workbook will help you discover your path

There are a LOT of life coaching programs out there and they aren’t all created equally. Spend any time on social media, especially if you’ve mentioned life coaching or searched for coaching programs in the past, you’ll be inundated with ads. Everyone has their own idea of which one is best for you. How about letting you make your own decision?

Please note this list is for your reference only. It is not a endorsement of any program. I could not have possibly attended all of them to evaluate them in depth. Programs I have evaluated can be found in the reviews section. However, these are highly recommended by professionals whom I trust. None of these links are affiliate links, I have no incentive to steer you in the direction of any of them. Please conduct your own due diligence before choosing to invest in any life coach training.

If you’ve done the self assessment workbook above, you might already have a sense of the direction that is right for you. Below is a list of the most reputable programs, organized by niche so you can jump right to whatever fits you. You’ll notice a couple of programs show up more than once. They offer a wide range of coaching specialties.

Business Coach

This is probably the most profitable and most in demand life coaching niche. Business coaches need some sort of corporate credibility to break into this niche. Have you authored a book related to business? That’s a great stamp of authority. You can coach high-potential employees around your area expertise. Did you spend many years working in human resources? Perfect! You know how important employee turnover and morale are. As a business coach, you can make a difference. Maybe you led a team to superior sales results, or you were ON a team that excelled. You’re experience is needed. MY specialty is helping people think outside the box. Let me know if you need to brainstorm!

Types of Business Coaches

Productivity/Performance coach

Small business coach

Entrepreneur coach

CPD (continuing personal development) coach

NLP Coach

Leadership coach

Emotional Intelligence coach

Employee Engagement and Development Coach

Executive Career Coach

Strengths Coach

Women’s Career Transition Coach

Coaching Certification Programs for Business Coaching

iPEC – Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching

The John Maxwell Team

Gallup Strengths Training Program

CTI – Co-Active Coach Training Institute

6 Seconds EQ Coach Training

Academy of Creative Coaching

Professional Christian Coaching Institute

Worldwide Institute of NLP Coaching

Wellness Coaching

An exciting and fascinating opportunity within the wellness coaching field is working as a corporate wellness specialist. Health and wellness coaching programs within businesses is a rapidly growing career as more and more companies recognized the ROI for investing in employee wellness. Addiction recovery is another promising direction for helping those who have overcome addiction to re-integrate into a healthier lifestyle.

Types of Wellness Coaching

Corporate Wellness Coach

Addiction Recovery Coaching

Mental health coach

Holistic health coach

Personal Training Coaching

Coaching Certification Programs for Wellness Coaching

Corporate Health and Wellness Association

Life Purpose Institute (advanced level)

Mentor Coach Training (includs ADHD coach training)

The Flourishing Center

Spiritual Life Coaching

Spiritual coaching is at the heart of the deepest kinds of transformation. In the book Becoming a Professional Life Coach, there is a section by Dr. Robert Kagen on the stages of adult development. In Dr. Kagen’s research he has discovered the only people who can move beyond an intermediate level of development and grow into the mature and transcendent levels are those with a spiritual practice.