There are still a lot of misconceptions surrounding the practice of life coaching. In a world where the barrier between work and life gets murkier and murkier, a life coach has never held a more relevant role.

Indeed, life coaches are unique insofar as they straddle that line between the worlds of the personal and the professional. One of the most common misconceptions surrounding life coaching is that coaches are either therapists or business advisers.

In fact, life coaches are neither. Instead, they will help you manage the various facets of your personal and professional life in the hope of unlocking your full potential. They want to help you make sense of your belief system and help you to arrive at an objective assessment of your resources and future goals.

[RELATED: How to Choose a Career Coach]

In short, a life coach is there to help you to re-focus your thinking and establish your own momentum for change. The most useful analogy when thinking about a life coach that of a personal trainer – insofar as they are there to help you to realize your goals.

Our infographic below outlines some of the key benefits and fun facts surrounding life coaching. Some of the information below may not come as a surprise; however, there are some surprising insights about the industry.

• 9% of life coaches prefer clients who rank as solo/individual professionals.

• Only 48.3% of life coaches dedicate their professional focus to life coaching; the vast majority balance their life coaching work with other professions.

• Only 8% of life coaches run their business from the US.

• 63% of life coaches conduct sessions on the phone, with 34.3% conduct sessions in person.

• The majority of life coaching consultations will last 6-12 months.

The Benefits of Working with a Life Coach [INFOGRAPHIC]