When you’ve locked sights on a career as a Wellness Coach, choosing your certification and training can be one of the most exciting parts of the process. There are so many wellness school options available, but there’s only one school out there that will tick all your boxes and make you thrilled to be a graduate.
Wellness School Goals
To find that wellness school, you’ll need to better understand your goals as a student and future Wellness Coach. Here are a few questions to ask yourself on your school finding journey.
- What is your learning style and what type of program will work best with how you learn?
- Are you planning to get a job with a company after graduation?
- Would you rather start your own practice?
- Are you willing to put in the effort to develop strategic business skills alongside your coaching skills?
- What is your perspective on wellness and what program will support your goals?
- Will you need a lot of support or do you learn well on your own?
- Are you interested in building a local network or an international network, or both?
- Are you willing to go at a slower pace or do you want to get to certification quickly?
- How much time do you have to dedicate to studying and how flexible is your schedule?
- How would you like to help clients and what skills do you need to learn the most to do that?
While there are a number of great coaching training out there. As you can see, it’s important to pick the wellness school that will work the best for you and your unique circumstances and goals. Whatever your goals are, it’s also important to make sure that the training program you’re interested in will show you how to get started on your path.
Finding the Right Wellness School
It’s essential that you know what exactly you want to do post-graduation and to choose a program that will help you develop that knowledge and those specific skills. But once you’ve found a program with the knowledge requirement, there are other aspects of how the school is set up that are also important to evaluate.
Here are a few of our best tips for things to look for when evaluating your wellness school options.
1. Look for a school that offers the right kind of support.
Good training is awesome, but what happens when you need extra help? Learning new information, discovering ways to help others, and fast-tracking business skills can get overwhelming really quickly.
When looking at a potential wellness school, consider the levels of support they offer students. Specifically, look for support such as:
- Easy ways to connect with program teachers and staff
- Options for connecting with your classmates (especially in an online setting)
- An official student support center staffed with attentive and helpful people
- For online training, real interactions and support from staff and teachers.
For example, here at the IAWP we offer these specific support items plus Lifetime Support after students graduate.
2. Choose a school that offers options for practicing your new skills as a training component.
While your mind might be full of all the wonderful information you’ve learned in your training, without actually applying that knowledge you’re going to graduate without practical experience. This might not be a hindrance for some, but most new Wellness Coaches will feel intimidated in their new businesses if they haven’t had some practice first.
Implementing what you’ve been learning is key to your long-term success after graduation. Look for a program that includes a practicum component so you can practice and refine your coaching skills while you’re still a student.
As an example, here at the IAWP we’ve included 16 live coaching labs per month for personal practice as part of our Holistic Health and Wellness Coach training. We also offer ongoing training and support calls to help with practical skills development.
3. Look for a training program that teaches systems.
It’s important to have factual knowledge and understanding of how the body and mind work, but when it comes to working with clients you also need to know how to get results. Choose a wellness school that doesn’t just fill your head with information. Pick one that also teaches you how to develop systems that will help you get the biggest changes for your clients.
It’s important to have knowledge and tools to work with your clients. You’ll be able to truly create a transformation for them and you’ll be able to build on that success to create a thriving business.
The IAWP is committed to providing systems to support students’ success and to help you develop the tools you’ll need to work with clients effectively. You can read more by clicking here and checking out the section “Systems.”
4. Choose a wellness school that offers continuing education and support.
At some point in the near future, you’ll graduate and start your own business as a Wellness Coach. Sometimes things make sense when you’re learning them but are far more complex when you’re applying them in a real-life client situation.
That’s when it’s super helpful to have a program that offers post-graduation support and continuing education. After you’ve been out of wellness school for a while, you’ll also need to stay up to date on health and wellness research and best practices. Does the school you’re considering offer ways for you to brush up on skills and learn new things?
Choose Your Wellness School
After doing your research, pick the school that seems to be the best fit for your needs. Make sure to participate in all the support options and teacher/student interactions. Once you’re finished with the program, take the school up on their offer of support to ensure you can get started in your new career quickly. If you choose the wellness school that’s perfect for you, you’ll be rewarded with excellent training, a happy experience, and a successful business at the end.
