Here at The Life Coaching College in Australia, we spend a lot of our time on the phone talking to prospective students, and so we know that one of the biggest questions they have is “Can I make a living from Life Coaching?” The answer is a resounding yes.
But, after graduating from a reputable Life Coaching course that arms you with the skills you need to create real transformation in the mindset, behaviour patterns, and lives of your clients, a large part of finding success as a Life Coach is choosing a profitable niche.
Because at the end of the day, specificity sells! Choosing a niche means you serve and support a specific group of people, with or in a particular thing. Your niche can entail what you do, who you do it for, or both.
So to get your creative juices flowing, we’re outlining the most profitable and popular Life Coaching niches. These are the niches that are the most searched for in Google by Aussies (so, potential Australian coaching clients).
1. EXECUTIVE/LEADERSHIP COACHING
30% of ICF-accredited coaches work in the Leadership and Executive space. Of course, this isn’t all that surprising, considering that businesses of all sizes have the budget and motivation to improve their team members’ performances.
As an Executive Coach, your role is all about helping leaders be more effective in their roles, developing better communication skills, managing boundaries, setting and reaching goals, and more. You can work with everything from entrepreneurs, to SMEs, to big corporations. Find out more about becoming an Executive and Leadership Coach here.
2. RELATIONSHIP COACHING
High-functioning relationships form the backbone of a healthy, happy life. We are all in relationships with friends, family, perhaps a romantic partner, as well as with arguably the most important person in each of our lives…ourselves.
Just think about the strain on many relationships right now with COVID – with a spike in breakups and divorces being reported. This is a niche where you can do some incredible work and make a powerful difference in your clients’ emotional wellbeing.
As a Relationship Coach, you’ll be focused on improving communication and connection in all types of relationships, not solely romantic ones. But you can, of course, choose to hone-in on one kind of relationship as your niche. Find out more about becoming a Relationship Coach here.
3. PARENT/CHILD/FAMILY COACHING
Parents want their kids to thrive and often do everything they can to be the best parents they can be and to help their kids feel happier and do better in life. Beyond that, families are under a lot of pressure post-COVID, too. This makes it a very in-demand and impactful niche to work in.
As a Parent/Child/Family Coach you can help overcome issues like bullying, stress, anxiety in school, coping with change, low self-esteem, and more. You’ll be able to work with parents individually, work on improving parent/child relationships, and/or work with children. Find out more about becoming a Parent/Kid/Family Coach here.
4. PEAK PERFORMANCE COACHING
If your clients aren’t working on themselves, their career, their families, or their relationships, chances are they’re working on their performance in their pursuits. And research shows that a commitment to excellence, positive self-talk, internal imagery, anxiety-management, and harmonious teams are all predictors of high performance on stage or on the field/pitch.
As a Peak Performance Coach, you will help people to excel in all these areas and perform to the best of their ability in sport, on stage, and in life. Find out more about becoming a Peak Performance Coach here.
NICHING DOWN EVEN FURTHER
The core niches we’ve outlined above have all proven to be profitable and popular. But there’s an unlimited number of sub-niches within each niche — so feel free to brainstorm how you would adapt each niche and make it your own. The sky truly is the limit.
For example…
- Executive/Leadership Coaching Niche: You could be a Productivity Coach, a Goal-Setting Coach, an Accountability Coach, a Coach for Small Business CEOs, a Business and Marketing Coach (like TLCC graduate Jim Cocks).
- Relationship Coaching Niche: You could be a Divorce Coach, a Marriage Coach, or a Dating Coach for thirty-somethings.
- Personal Coaching Niche (focusing on a client’s relationship with themselves): You could be a Happiness Coach, a Comparison Coach, a Confidence Coach, a Self-Love Coach, or a Resilience Coach.
- Parent/Child/Family Coaching Niche: You could be a College Admissions Coach, helping young adults decide their next steps in life, or you could be a coach for first-time parents (like TLCC Graduate Karina Lane)
- Peak Performance Coaching Niche: You could be an Audition Coach or a Stage Coach for Performing Artists (like former opera singer and TLCC graduate Sharon Kempton).
HOW DO I CHOOSE MY NICHE?
According to Glen Murdoch, founder of The Life Coaching College, choosing your niche comes down to your passion, interests, skills, and experience, first and foremost.
“One thing I have seen time and time again is that the successful people are the ones that have a genuine passion, excitement, and commitment to contribute to a particular area. It might be through an experience, journey, or struggle in that area themselves, or it’s just been an interest for a while.”
Glen’s tips for identifying what niche you may want to pursue? Ask yourself the following questions:
a) Where are you excited about?
b) What skills and experience do you have already in your life that you love to work with? Have you struggled in and overcome something in a particular area of your life? Or do you know it well because it’s been a speciality of your career for a while now?
c) What area of coaching have you been exposed to in your first 100 hours of training that you’ve enjoyed?
These will all point you in the direction of the right niche (or possible niches) for you.
WHAT IF I DON’T KNOW WHAT NICHE I WANT TO CHOOSE YET?
Don’t panic! You’re not alone. According to Glen, “90% of coaches that start a coach training don’t know what niche they want to pursue right away.”
He goes on to explain, “In that case, we always recommend they get 100 hours of training under their belt so they can get a feel for coaching, human behaviour, and the power of practices like NLP. And then, make a solid, conscious decision about what niche to pursue.”
As part of our Life Coaching courses, you’ll learn all about niching and marketing too.
THE GOOD NEWS?
You don’t have to take a specialist course to pursue a particular niche. Here at The Life Coaching College, we have several general Life Coaching courses, alongside more specialist courses, to suit every student’s needs and goals. Click here to explore our full selection of courses.
At the core of every single Life Coach training we offer, you’ll learn effective NLP techniques and coaching strategies that will help you transform your client’s behaviour and thought patterns, and empower them to make long-lasting changes in their life.
Not sure which course is right for you? That’s no problem at all! Contact one of our team to discuss.
