What Coaching is Not…
Coaching is not therapy, counseling or psychology. Although the coaching process may have roots in the field of psychology (and intervention often follows some psychological models), the actual process of coaching should not be mistaken for a therapeutic intervention.
One of the most obvious differences between the two approaches is that therapy tends to focus on feelings and experiences related to past events. Whereas coaching is oriented towards goal setting and encourages the client to move forward.
Coaching is often likened to consulting and mentoring. However, there are distinct differences between these disciplines. Consultants tend to provide advice, whereas the coach helps the client discover their own solutions. Mentoring involves passing on the benefit of specific experience concerning a goal in question. Furthermore, a coach may provide powerful coaching without familiarity of a specific goal.
How Is Coaching Different From a…
Consultant
A consultant usually is a specialist in a given area. They are hired to give recommendations and provide solutions. A consultant usually works with a client to solve a particular problem. Once the problem is solved the consultant leaves. Generally, a consultant doesn’t get involved with areas outside of their specialty.
Coaching uses a more holistic approach. With the client, the coach examines the situation, creates a plan of action, and works side by side to resolve the issue. The coach does not have to be an expert in the client’s business. The client is the expert. The coach collaborates with the client to create a solution using the client’s knowledge and answers. The coach does not have the answers. They have the questions that allow the client to find their own answers and clarify their own values.
Therapist
A therapist typically works with a dysfunctional person to get them to become functional. A coach works with a functional person to get them to become exceptional.
Therapists typically work with people who need help to become emotionally healthy. They often deal with past issues and how to overcome them. A coach works with functional people to move them to magnificent levels. Coaching does not rely on past issues for achieving growth, but rather focuses on goals towards the future. Coaching is action-oriented. The focus is on where the client is right now, where they want to be next, and how to get them there.
If you are working in the past, then you are involved in therapy. The client is stuck and can’t seem to move forward. If there is a drug or alcohol problem, then you are more likely doing something other than coaching. Be alert. If you feel uncomfortable or uneasy about where the conversation is leading, tell your client. Part of being a good coach is knowing when and when not to coach. If the client needs therapy then refer them to a therapist. Clients can use the services of a therapist during the same time period that they are working with a coach.
Counselor
While a counselor provides information and expertise, the relationship is normally hierarchical, perhaps even authoritarian. It is based in the past and focuses on fixing a
problem. A coaching relationship is present and future based, action-oriented and not hierarchical in nature. The client and the coach partner to create a better future for the client.
Mentor
Mentoring is a relationship that is established with someone that is an expert in their field. The mentor is usually older and more experienced than the person being mentored. The mentor bestows their knowledge and wisdom onto the student. The student looks up to the mentor and seeks guidance and advice from the mentor.
A coaching relationship is a partnership whereby the coach walks side by side with the client. The coach supports the client in drawing on their own wisdom and following their inner guidance.
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