Spiritual Coach: What They Are And How They Help

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Anyone who has set foot on a spiritual growth journey will tell you that it’s immensely rewarding but very turbulent. It involves losing yourself and your identity, exploring new things, and stepping into the exciting but unfamiliar territory of your consciousness.

Needless to say, the spiritual journey can be an alienating one.

You might be at a point where you feel completely lost. Despite your best attempts to push forward, life continues to pile on the challenges, and you just become more and more disillusioned in the process.

You know you need to go deeper into your self-discovery but finding someone who can help poses a challenge. Even though their intentions are good, friends and family can’t connect with you, and talking to a therapist might not hit to spot either.

Your issue is existential, which is an area most people aren’t well-versed in. At certain points, we all need help along our spiritual journeys because no person is an island.

This is where a spiritual coach plays a role: to guide you down a path that brings you deeper fulfillment.

In this article, we’re going to inspect the role of a spiritual coach and talk a little bit about how they help people, so you know whether you need one or not.

What does a spiritual coach do?

Look at a spiritual coach as a spiritual-based counselor who can help you navigate your spiritual journey with more ease and clarity. People tend to seek out spiritual coaches when the nature of their problem is existential, meaning there is no clear cause or solution.

Although there are some similarities to counseling, therapy, and life coaching, spiritual coaching tends to take a more abstract role which orbits around things like:

Finding a deeper sense of meaning in life
Discovering a deeper sense of purpose or fulfillment
Navigating existential issues
Understanding certain religious, spiritual, or mystical experiences
Embodying principals, philosophies, and ways of being to live happier
Stepping further into personal growth, spiritual growth, and healing
Working through periods of self-transformation and change
Instils deeper faith, authenticity, and connection with spirit
Encourages new ways of seeing the world

Get the picture?

Spiritual coaching deals with the existential – the part of ourselves that extends beyond the mind and can’t be quantified. This often translates as helping individuals develop a deeper connection to spirit via exploring new practices, modalities, and ways of being.

A spiritual coach creates a nurturing space to help people explore themselves and discover a deeper meaning in their lives. In this sense, they tend to focus on holistic aspects of well-being rather than the tangible, goal-oriented side of it that you may see in a life coach or counselor.

Working with a spiritual coach can guide you toward personal insights and realizations while helping you tackle deep-rooted imbalances, and obstacles within your spiritual path, and blocks.

But they come in many different flavors. Let’s be real, there’s no real standard for spiritual coaches. Some are great, with many years of training under mentors and teachers, others are well-meaning hippies who might be good listeners and have some wisdom to share.

It’s a mixed bag because spiritual coaches can be:

Therapists, counselors, and life coaches
Religious coaches teaching individuals how to live by certain doctrines
Healers (energy healers, crystal healers, medicine people, etc.)
Mystics, psychics, clairvoyants, and mediums

so…

What qualifies someone to be a spiritual coach?

The thing about spirituality is that there aren’t any formal certifications, and to be honest, I would be a little concerned if there were.

A nutritionist will generally have a formal education in nutrition because they need to know a lot of things about it. They wouldn’t know how to consult people without a good understanding of what the body needs, and when it’s out of balance.

Likewise, a therapist must learn a lot of techniques and skills to navigate the complex human psyche, but someone fresh out of school can learn the tricks of the trade and still be a great therapist.

Although spiritual coaches need to have a breadth of knowledge and life experience, spirituality can’t be acquired like the skills in many other professions can be. Sure, you can study different teachings and philosophies that may aid your spiritual pursuits, but it won’t make a dent if you don’t walk the talk.

Therefore, someone who guides others spiritually relies on lived experience. In this sense, wisdom is a much more powerful tool than book smarts, because it allows them to understand the people they work with on a very personal level.

Therefore, spiritual coaches rely on:

Their life experience: This in-depth understanding of spiritual dynamics, philosophies, and ways to engage more deeply with spirit allows them to be very skilled when guiding others towards a higher path
Their faith: A spiritual coach’s faith is a key player in their ability to guide, help, and aid the process of healing. They often help instill faith, understanding, and a deeper knowledge of self and the universe to help their clients navigate their circumstances.
Their ability to support: Spiritual coaches are great at guiding others through complex, existential issues to help them develop a bigger-picture view of life and discover deeper layers of self.
Personal spiritual practice: A deep understanding and personal practice that comes from their unique spiritual journey – such as immersing themselves in spiritual traditions, working with various teachers, and engaging in modalities.
Personal development and emotional maturity: Good spiritual coaches are constantly pushing themselves to grow which is necessary because they are often helping clients navigate significant life challenges that can be a delicate matter.
Intuition and higher guidance: Spiritual coaches take a more intuitive approach than traditional life coaches or therapists, which tend to be more structured. This allows the coach to provide support and guidance based on past experiences, personal knowledge, and wisdom.

So when you’re seeking a spiritual coach, perhaps looking for formal qualifications will lead you astray. A highly decorated spiritual coach may be great, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that they have the wisdom and lived experience necessary to guide others through these deep, often existential issues.

With that said, trainings and qualifications in the area of coaching, counseling, and therapy often go hand in hand with spiritual coaching, and can only complement their abilities to guide individuals through difficult periods of their lives.

Therefore, I suggest working with a spiritual coach that you resonate with, and feel a connection with.

Working with a clairvoyant probably won’t do you wonders if you’re just stepping into your spiritual journey, and looking for some beginner tools to help you get started.

Likewise, working with a shamanic healer might not be the best if you’re interested in deepening you’re more drawn toward Eastern traditions like meditation and yoga. In this case, it’s best to seek out someone who has spent time in these cultures, worked with teachers, and practices these modalities religiously.

What to look for in a spiritual coach

Maybe you don’t even need a spiritual coach. Maybe you need a life coach or a mindset coach. There are a lot of different mentors out there, and each specializes in different areas. This is why you should assess your needs before seeking a spiritual coach.

What issues are you needing help with? Are you looking for a deeper holistic view of your situation, or something more immediate? Are you looking for actionable steps, or wisdom to improve your life? Think about what you are looking for, and if a spiritual coach is something you would feel a good connection with.

Most importantly, you need to resonate with the spiritual coach you’re seeking out. If you don’t click for whatever reason, then it’s best to continue looking and find someone who you do resonate with.

The reason why you need to resonate with your spiritual coach is because they’re like a mentor. You will develop a deep connection with this person, and they’re going to guide you with their individual life experience and wisdom.

You should know instantly whether you mesh with the person or not. You should feel seen, and like what they have to say. There shouldn’t be any awkwardness or strange energy between the two of you. You should feel inspired by their life story, and they should be able to teach you what they learned through it.

Here are some things you should look for in a spiritual coach:

They have heart: A good spiritual coach will always lead from the heart. They should always come from a place of compassion and understanding and genuinely want to help you expand and improve the quality of your life which should reflect in their attitudes and behaviors. If they’re only in it for the money, they’re in the wrong profession.
They are transparent: Spiritual coaches should be transparent about who they are, and what they’re about without pretending to be above it all, or some ascended master. Even though they will provide feedback gently and encouragingly, they aren’t afraid to tell you the truth.
They are present with you: A spiritual coach should be great at holding space for you. They can take the heat if you’re venting, in tears, or expressing yourself in whatever way you need to. This is an important skill for a spiritual coach as they will recognize the need for their clients to purge energies, to heal, and to create room for growth.
They practice what they preach: Spirituality is not a competition, but someone who is teaching others to connect with themselves should have a pretty good grip on it. Ideally, spiritual coaches have a lot of life experience and wisdom to share.
They are no strangers to patience: Because they genuinely understand your struggles, they should be patient with you. A good spiritual coach will push you no doubt, but they will also show compassion in the face of setbacks, and always be there to help you get back on your feet, regardless of where you are, or how many times you fall.
They don’t do it for you: Any spiritual coach claiming that they’re healing you, or doing the transformation for you is a red flag. An authentic spiritual coach will never take credit for your healing or transformation. They will recognize their role as a guide that may help you, but never claim to do it for you.
They explore what you need with you: A spiritual coach who tells you what you need is a red flag because only you are living your experience. A good spiritual coach will actively work with you to peel back layers of the onion to understand what you truly need, but they will not tell you what you need, especially when it feels out of alignment.
They uplift you: If a spiritual coach ever makes you feel unworthy, then they are not the person for you. A spiritual coach is there to empower you. They want to see you grow to your full potential and will bring you up, never push you down or make you feel small.
They are detached from ego: A good spiritual coach should have a deep awareness of their ego self, and have a good handle on it. They should reside in their heart space, not their ego space that needs to feel superior. This means that they don’t talk down to you. They may share insights and understandings but never claim to know everything or reject their humanness.

Keep it real

Ultimately, you want to work with someone who keeps it real. After all, they are a mentor sharing their counsel, advice, and wisdom with you from what they learned along their journey. Anyone who assumes a position where they are your guru or some ascended master who is talking down to you as their disciple isn’t the person you’re looking for.

You want someone who you can relate with, and who is walking a similar path to you, or perhaps is a little further along a path you want to walk yourself.

Any spiritual coach trying to cox you into some exorbitant coaching package by telling you how much you need it or how much it will improve your life… big red flag.