The primary focal point of life coaching is on future performance and outcomes. It is therefore more proactive, solution-focused, collaborative, and forward-oriented in terms of personal and/or professional growth than traditional counseling and other mental health services. Psychotherapy tends to address past issues with the goal of symptom reduction, trauma work, and problem resolution. Coaches, on the other hand, endeavor to help unlock a person’s potential in order to maximize their performance, set and attain appropriate goals, and improve overall functioning in life. The change process is often viewed as having both a motivational and behavioral mindset where clients are not seen as individuals who need to be to be “fixed,” but those who have a capacity to envision and intentionally move toward new and higher goals. This indicates coaching is more about growth and not necessarily about clinical assessment, diagnosis or healing. Rather, it is a movement toward a healthier maturity instead of an unhealthy dependence on other things or people. See more about Christian Life Coaching at https://iccicoaching.com/about/what-is-christian-life-coaching/

Since coaching is largely an unregulated profession, Life Coaches frequently pursue voluntary certification and credentialing to show the public they have received an appropriate level of training, education, practice experience, and/or mentoring. We believe ICCI represents a premier faith-based network of Life Coaches that includes many of the leading Christian voices in the field today. Having an ICCI credential demonstrates a credible national level of competence, integrity, excellence, and recognition as having met rigorous standards, especially for those individuals who identify as Christian Life Coaches.

Life coaching is an unregulated field, both within the United States and in most places around the world. As such, there are any number of coaching organizations (ICCI, ICF, etc.) that offer certification and credentialing opportunities. None of them are state or federally regulated entities, so individuals make choices about credentialing based primarily on a sense of affiliation and alignment with an organization’s values, core principles, and practices. ICCI’s foundational principles include the same core competencies as ICF and other reputable organizations. However, ICCI’s distinguishing characteristics are based on God’s Word and biblical principles to faithfully train and credential individuals who want to identify as “Christian” Life Coaches.

ICCI maintains and publishes a list of approved Life Coach Mentors, which currently includes nearly all of our trainers. Furthermore, ICCI will also shortly be developing a pathway to certify additional Life Coach  Mentors who may be interested in serving in this capacity. All mentors must be Master-level Life Coaches qualified to offer mentoring specifically in Christian Life Coaching. Life Coach mentors from other organizations with two or more years of experience can be considered.