After 14 Years As A Spiritual Coach, This Took My Healing Work To The Next Level

As someone who's committed to helping people understand where their power lies and how to reclaim it for themselves, it became clear to me that bringing a stronger health perspective to my workshops and overall work would serve my community.

I'd personally seen how focusing on our health impacts our mental wellness and our ability to heal. I had my own thoughts on why, and I’d done tons of research over the years to back those thoughts up, but I wanted to ensure I was bringing the most accurate and up-to-date information to my community. 

In addition to sharing my message through books and social media, I set out to enroll in a health training program that could help me add another dimension to my work. And after over 14 years of being in the wellness space—as well as teaching myself—I was really particular about the type of certification I signed up for.

Here's why I ended up choosing mindbodygreen's Health Coach Certification (HCC), and why I'm so happy I did.

What made mindbodygreen's program stand out from the rest

One of the first things that stood out to me about mindbodygreen's program was that real people taught it.

It sounds obvious, but many of the other programs I'd looked at were mostly pre-recorded lectures from celebrity doctors or other health experts. That's not to say that these people don't have something to offer, but I really wanted to learn directly from coaches who were out there doing the work and meeting with clients.

The coaches in mindbodygreen's program were also diverse; I saw coaches who looked like me, and that was really important.

While other health coaching certifications seemed to be mostly pre-recorded material, mindbodygreen's had lots of live sessions and opportunities to connect with teachers outside of class. I knew I didn't want to be learning from the computer and watching videos for the entire course. That interactive portion really brought something different to the table.

I was also looking at mindbodygreen's Functional Nutrition Training, a separate class focused specifically on nutrition, and I appreciated that it was free during the time I signed up for HCC.

What I'm getting out of the certification

I'm almost done with the HCC program and I've learned so much in these past 20 weeks.

Since I'm already a spiritual teacher and coach, I have experience using the coaching and communication tools that are taught in HCC. However, when you're out working, you hardly ever get the chance to be critiqued by other people who want to help you get better. Having the HCC instructors watch me coach and give me thoughtful feedback was invaluable. I've found it really refreshing to be a student again; to learn again.

I've also picked up lots of new ways to ask questions and leave space in sessions, which helps me continue to support my clients on finding their own answers, which is always my goal.

Our class group chat is always busy with people asking questions and sharing knowledge, too, and that has been a wonderful resource to learn from as well.

The educators were a big part of why I enrolled in this program, and they've all been so kind and passionate. Each one of them has a unique background and valuable perspective to add to the course material.

I'll admit that the courseload has been very demanding. I've been running my business, preparing for the launch of my second book, and raising my kids while taking this certification. For anyone else who's considering enrolling in HCC while maintaining a busy schedule, you can do it—you just need to be really sure you're going to manage your time wisely. 

Where I'm going from here

I'm still thinking about how to best incorporate the learnings from this program into my current work. This class has had a wonderful impact on my work, and I'm looking forward to sharing it with my audience in a really impactful way. Learning how to grow and make time for the things and people that matter most to me has always been my goal. And I'm just so honored to get to do it with other people.