Is the Personal Coaching Profession Over-Saturated? Debunking Myths and Finding Your Niche

Whatever a person chooses to believe becomes the reality. If a person thinks that the personal coaching profession is oversaturated, then the belief might indeed limit their success. Conversely, if one thinks there is space for one more coach and clients can be found, the market is far from being oversaturated.

Let me share a story. Many years ago, I attended a coach program and ventured into coaching. With a full-time job, I practiced with fellow coaches on weekends and coached a few clients. Despite my desire to do more, the lack of time to build a full-fledged coaching practice was frustrating. However, I reminded myself, I have a flourishing full-time career, and it will take time to develop the business. I am glad I am not desperate to find clients for livelihood. I have time to build this up slowly. For me, the market was not oversaturated.

On the other hand, my peer, who also attended the coach program, was in a hurry to become a top coach and find clients who would pay top dollars. He was a senior manager in a manufacturing company and had ample time for coaching during weekends and evenings. However, after a few months, he became frustrated and gave up on his coaching dream due to a lack of clients. He viewed coaching as a full-time endeavor, saying, Coaching is for those who have a network, have money to spend on marketing, can afford to hire a team, and are dedicated to running around and meeting people as clients are limited.

From this story, it is clear that his view was fatalistic and ultimately killed his dream. He gave up because he could not sustain his vision. As a result, he got irritable, angry, and eventually made peace with the situation that he could not create a coaching business while maintaining his full-time career.

I recently spoke with him after many years when he asked, How is your job going on? I replied, I left that long time ago. He then said, Oh, you are doing coaching full-time as a profession now. His response was, Hmm, looks like you got lucky. For him, it seemed like an easy statement, but I said, I worked very hard for a long time to make myself appear lucky. After a moment of silence, we chatted about other things.

Whatever Your Status Might Be

Contemplating to get into coaching, thinking about attending a coach program, or already having a few clients and wanting to grow your coaching business, there is always space for one more coach to flourish. The market is never oversaturated if you believe in that notion. By unlocking your creativity and thinking powers, you can create a special niche for yourself based on your unique abilities, strengths, experience, and values.

Create your own destiny. Walk the path that you were destined to walk on, and don't let others' beliefs limit your potential. Your success in the personal coaching profession depends not on the number of coaches in the market but on your dedication, passion, and ability to add unique value to your clients.