If you want to become a weight loss consultant, you will likely find that the educational requirements are not extensive. For the majority of positions, you will only need to have a high school diploma or GED. Some consultant positions do require applicants to have an associate's or bachelor's degree, but this is usually for management level jobs.
To become a weight loss consultant, you will probably need to have an aptitude for working with people. Most of the individuals who excel at this type of job have excellent customer service skills. Some positions will require you to have at least three or four years of experience working in a customer service-oriented environment. If you have experience in any type of sales, you may find that you have a bit of an advantage over other candidates.
In order to become a weight loss consultant, you should have basic computer knowledge to make yourself more marketable. In some instances, an employer might have an extensive program design that only requires you to input general information. Other employers could require you to have advanced navigational knowledge, or thorough knowledge about a variety of different computer programs.
Anyone who wants to become a weight loss consultant should have a genuine interest in helping others. Since the individuals you will be dealing with at work will be trying to lose weight, you could encounter a number of customers who are unhappy or depressed. If you have the ability to be a sympathetic and caring point of contact for these people, you will probably find great success in this line of work.
Some weight loss consultants are responsible for generating sales in addition to working individually with customers. If you are someone who is not very comfortable in a sales type of role, you may want to carefully review job requirements before applying. In the event that you find a job that does require you to also be a salesperson, you will more than likely be paid on a bonus system to compensate you for the new customers you obtain for the company.
As a general rule, you should be prepared for an abundance of face-to-face and telephone interaction with customers. In order to be a good consultant in this particular field, you will probably need to be at ease conversing with people in multiple formats. Some of these formats will likely include email, live internet chats, and web-based seminars.