How To Start A Health Coaching Practice

As I write this, health coaches have been having a tough time in the market lately. There have been mass layoffs at multiple companies. It pains me to see this because I believe in health coaching. I have a passion for it because I believe it's the answer to a lot of the problems in health care by empowering individuals to take control of their own health decisions. It's important work, and I want health coaches to succeed!

Health coaching is very legitimate, and it helps many people, but some companies are trying to use a cookie-cutter model for coaching. That won't work because coaching is a very personalized thing. That's part of the reason you don't see large corporations for something like therapy, where you have to sit there and talk to an individual.

Building your foundation is crucial because you can't get laid off from your own practice. Many health coaches work another job while building their practice, but it takes work! You can't fall back on your practice if you haven't made that infrastructure. The time to start is now!

Focus on your strengths

You've helped clients focus on their strengths; why not give yourself the same opportunity? If you're starting your health coaching practice, you need to have a niche. That will make your job so much easier! I also discuss how to niche in my article: How to get health-coaching clients. Be sure to check that out.

One way to think of your niche is your primary message.

You want people to clearly understand your specialty so they can decide to work with you or not.

If you had diabetes, which health coach would you hire?

A) I'm a health coach who can help anyone improve their health!
B) I'm a health coach who helps individuals with diabetes lower their blood sugar for good.

Maybe your niche is obvious. Perhaps you've overcome some kind of health challenge and you have experience with that sort of thing. Bingo! That is your niche. You can help people with that, and it will likely bring you success.

Working on your niche might take time to figure out for some people. I find that most people go wrong with not being specific enough. The more specific you can get with whom you help and how you help them, the easier of a time you're going to have.

What if I don't have a niche?

If you don't have an obvious niche you're trying to create a business around, consider starting with your local area. Unfortunately, I think some of us health coaches forget that's an option. Maybe because health coaching exploded during the pandemic, we still have anxiety from being isolated in our homes with most gyms on lockdown.

The most success that I had in growing my business all started locally.

First, I reached out to my network of friends and neighbors, which spread by word of mouth when they liked my services.

Then I created a website and posted my amazing client testimonials, which helped further. You can build a business without a social media presence with word-of-mouth marketing. Although, having the website did help.

Let your niche develop over time, but do so with conscious observation.

Position yourself 

If you are reading this, you are likely a National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC). Use your credentials, education, and other experience accordingly. Display them on your website and anywhere else you can position yourself as an authority. There's a big health coaching presence on LinkedIn, as well as recruiters and job opportunities.

Next, you want to set up a website. I use GoDaddy Website Builder, which is so easy that my boomer parents could use it (for real). You can check out my site if you’d like.

The niche we discussed earlier helps with developing your website and branding. For example, if you help your clients manage stress, you don't want flashing images and loud music on your sign-up page! Your website should have calming color schemes and a simple design.

If you've already helped people, ask them for testimonials. Think about your approach and how it would fit onto your website or other places.

Keep improving

You want to have some routine self-education around building your practice. The book, Wellpreneur*, and the associated planner*, helped me develop the online aspect of my business in the beginning. Entrepreneurial skills take effort, so set goals around that and have a way to stay on top of it regularly. (*Affiliate links)

Don’t be afraid to reach out for advice!

Avoid shiny object syndrome. Stay focused on what's important and avoid going too far down information rabbit holes (unless it's my content, obviously).

Be organized.

Establish a system and routines.

Keep expanding your network.

Legalities

Now legally, you'll have to look at your state. I cannot advise you there, but you'll want to get an LLC or a DBA. This part isn't sexy, but that's one of the first things you want to do. Make sure you have all of the required licenses, permits, insurance, etc. so you can avoid headaches in the future. I suggest contacting an attorney or check out Legal Zoom. Sometimes they have more affordable options

Now all that's left is to get clients.

Let me know your comments below!