Is "Life-Coaching" Legit or a Scam?

According to Tony Robbins, a Life-Coach is "someone who helps you identify your goals and develop an actionable plan to achieve them. A life coach is someone professionally trained to help you maximize your full potential and reach your desired results" (via TonyRobbins.com). There are thousands of coaching programs that people can choose from. As a result, one must be careful which option they choose.

In the U.S., one popular coaching program is offered through IPEC. The IPEC Coaching program indicates that they offer 10 specialty coaching programs. They are as followed: Life Coaching, Relationship Coaching, Transitions Coaching, Health and Wellness Coaching, Group Coaching, Small Business & Professionals Coaching, Leadership: Executive & Management Coaching, Parents & Teens Coaching, Couples Coaching, and Sports Performance Coaching.

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Life-Coach Services

According to Tony Robbin's definition of a Life-Coach, the profession (or service) can be considered a legitimate field of work. That being said, a coach's role must solely focus on staying within their coaching model. Unfortunately, that is often not the case. The alarming problem that I see here is how IPEC's specialty coaching programs operate in the same space that mental-health practitioners (i.e. therapists, counselors, psychologists, social workers, behavioral therapists, and psychiatrist ) work in. For example: Relationship Coaching, Transitions Coaching, Health and Wellness Coaching, Group Coaching, Parents & Teens Coaching, and Couples Coaching are all overlapping areas of one's life that are addressed in counseling services.

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Warning: Life-Coaches Are Illegally Acting As Counselors/Therapists

After analyzing the similarities in services both professions offer, one can rationally assume then that these "Life-Coaches" are operating in a role similar to that of a mental-health specialist, but are unqualified to appropriately treat their clients.

Example #1: Parents & Teens Coaching, Relationship Coaching, and Couples Coaching, are all services that Licensed Marriage & Family Counselors offer to clients.

Example #2: Health and Wellness Coaching is a service/topic covered by clinicians during individual therapy sessions. The clinician will work collaboratively with a Registered Dietitian to develop an appropriate diet for their client. In addition, counselors can provide thorough information on Health and Wellness topics through Psycho-education efforts.

Example #3: Transitions Coaching is offered by clinician when a client is experiencing an adjustment disorder. Treatment plans are constructed on a case-by-case basis that is tailored around the client's presenting issue(s).

Example #4: Group Coaching is offered by clinician in the form a Group Therapy. Among the thousands of Group Therapy services led by clinicians, practically any one of life's stressors can be the focal point during group therapy.

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Ethical/Legal Issue

Life-coaching can be extremely helpful when operating within its In duties. Unfortunately, far to often, Life-Coaches overstep boundaries when trying to alter a client's cognitive, emotional, or physical state; or offer to help their clients work out their interpersonal relationship problems. When these type of boundaries are crossed, I believe an ethical and legal issue quickly arise due to Life-Coaches engaging in professional roles that mirror that of mental-health professions.

Life-Coaches who claim to help clients' change their cognitive, emotional, and/or physical functionalities can cause additional psychological harm to their patients. "How so" you ask...

(1) Unlike mental-health clinicians, Life-Coaches are not trained in areas such as psychopathology, evidence-based practices, research & statistics, anatomy & physiology, or assessment strategies. As a result, the Life-Coaching model is not supported by research to prove its effectiveness,

(2) Life-Coaches are not trained to work with clients with a mental-health disorder. Oftentimes, a Life-Coach can be working with a client who presents multiple symptoms of a disorder but has yet to be officially diagnosed. This is a sticky situation for both the coach and the client. If triggered, the safety of the client or others can become immediately compromised, which could place them or others at high risk for suicide, self-harm, or harm onto others.

(3) Life-Coaches rely on meta-physical tactics, strategies, and tools that are highly ineffective. Hypnotherapy, Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), Reiki, Homeopathy, and Card-Readings are just some of the many quacks that Life-Coaches will use in their sessions.

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When Life-Coaches offer (1) Small Business & Professionals Coaching and (2) Leadership: Executive & Management Coaching services, I believe their services can be useful and effective. On the other hand, I do NOT recommend hiring a Life-coach if you are experiencing problems related to their psychological, cognitive, emotional, and/or physical well-being. I advise those to see their primary-care-physician (PCP) immediately.

If you are currently seeing a Life-Coach, I recommend that you record your sessions. If they boldly claim that they can help you change your cognitive, emotional, psychological/mental, and/or physical issues, be sure to record those claims (it can be used as evidence if you decide to pursue a lawsuit against a Life-Coach who caused you further harm or trauma).

It may come across that I am guilty of being extremely biased (which is partly true) or it may look like I am bashing the Life-Coaching profession because I feel threatened that they are taking valuable business away from mental-health providers. I assure you that my viewpoint is not acting as a product of greed or a fear response. I have such strong negative perspectives on Life-Coaching because I worry that it will cause their clients to experience further harm or trauma, cause greater reluctance in people to seek help from a health-care professional, further instill one's fear/anxiety of going to counseling/therapy, and further stigmatize the mental-health community.

** My statements are not intended for medical purposes and is not to be used as advice. Seek treatment from a Board-Certified Physician or Licensed Health-Care Professional.