I met Wilson in the jungle. We spent just a few short days together. But in that brief time, Wilson became so much to me. He was a hero. A mentor. A friend. A role model. A sloth.

Okay, mostly a sloth.

When I first caught sight of Wilson, he seemed to be nothing more than a ball of fur wedged into the intersection of two tree branches. This particular tree stood near a gorgeous elevated yoga deck in a place called Imiloa, a retreat center nestled like a jewel into the lush Costa Rican jungle. My partner Ro and I [...]

I didn’t start out to be a “life coach.” I’d always longed to do some good in the world, but basically, I was just trying to create a meaningful, authentic life for myself. I was startled when people began asking me to teach them the methods I’d devised to cope with my own personal and professional challenges.

I see life coaching as something that arose from a gap in the culture where things began changing so quickly that traditional institutions couldn’t keep up. People didn’t have a place to go for support when they were navigating change, so [...]

Our world is changing more rapidly than ever, and old institutions and patterns of life that we’ve been trained to believe in are being uprooted. Life coaching sprang up in response to the deep need people have for support and guidance through tumultuous times like these—and the demand for coaches has never been higher.

As a Harvard-trained sociologist, bestselling author, and veteran life coach, I’ve witnessed this growing demand through my own coaching practice and my life coach training programs.

Right now, there are more uncertified coaches out there than ever before, so earning a certification becomes [...]