On the differences between coaching and other helping professions
Confused about whether you need coaching, mentoring, therapy or consulting services? Read on to discover more.
If you’re considering whether engaging with a coach to support your personal and professional wellbeing is the right way to go, this article is for you!
Coaches are trained to identify if clients should be in a coaching relationship or if they would be more suited to another of these services. An ethical coach will advise you if you would benefit more from assistance outside of their practice, as they will want you to access the most suitable support possible.
I’ll outline below a summary of coaching and how it is distinguished from other helping professions such as mentoring, consulting and therapy. I have included a range of resources and references the end of the article, for those of you who love going deeper on the research.
ON COACHING…
The International Coaching Federation (n.d.) defines coaching as “partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential.” As coaching believes in the wisdom of the client, it is not about giving advice. Belf and Marx (2015) suggest that "Giving advice detracts from the client’s autonomy. When a coach gives advice, the client owns less of the solution."
Instead, coaching makes space for clients to explore and determine their own path. As Rogers (2004) states in her coaching principles, it is the coach’s responsibility to “develop the client’s resourcefulness through skilful questioning, challenge and support.”
While coaching can seem very similar to mentoring, consulting or therapy, there are significant differences. As Thompson (2017, p. 43) says “the key distinction between coaching and other helping roles is focus.” Further exploration regarding each disciple's focus are detailed below.
ON MENTORING…
Business Mentors New Zealand (n.d.) defines mentoring as “a supported system where one person shares their skills, knowledge and experience to assist others to grow and develop.” Similar to coaching, mentoring is “characterized by mutual respect, trust, shared values, and good communication” (Chopra and Saint, 2017), however there are significant differences in the relationships.
Differences between Coaching and Mentoring
Reitman and Benatti (2021) identify a number of differences between mentoring and coaching that are summarised below.
Mentoring emphasises knowledge transfer from a mentor to upskill a client who has already identified their needs, whereas coaching emphasises client-led solutions, not instructing or giving advice
The mentor has practical knowledge in the client’s focus area and their role is to provide advice, make suggestions and establish connections to assist with career progression. In contrast, a coach is an expert at conversational processes and structures to bring about effective client self-reflection and change
Mentoring tends to be a longer iterative process and the goal is to foster career development. Coaching tends to be a shorter structured process and the goal is to empower the client and create behaviour change that results in long-lasting transformation
ON CONSULTING…
According to Consultancy.UK (2018), “A consultant is a person who provides professional or expert advice in a particular field of science or business to either an organisation or individual.” Consultants use their considerable expertise in a particular field to streamline systems, enhance performance and provide advice, in order to achieve results that align with agreed outcomes. As Liburd (2011, p. 26) outlines “Consultants need a good understanding of organisational development, change and project management, Human Resources and strategic thinking.”
Differences between Coaching and Consulting
There are many differences between coaching and consultancy. Members of the Forbes Coaching Council (2018) were interviewed about these key differences, which provides insight into how these two disciplines vary.
Rose Cartolari suggested that “A consultant is usually a subject matter expert who provides technical and professional advice to clients. A coach, however, helps clients find their own clarity and answers, and assists them to understand how to move forward in achieving their goals and grow personally.”
Chuck Gulledge proposed that “Coaches assume the client is the expert in their business. Through active inquiry and thought-provoking questions, a coach helps the client solve their own problems. With a consultant, they are the assumed expert. Understanding this is important because coaching produces meaningful and lasting changes over the short and long term, where consulting generally produces short-term answers to a specific problem.”
ON THERAPY…
The American Psychological Association (n.d.) defines psychotherapy as “any psychological service provided by a trained professional that primarily uses forms of communication and interaction to assess, diagnose, and treat dysfunctional emotional reactions, ways of thinking, and behavior patterns.” Hullinger and DiGirolamo (2018) note that the focus of therapy is most often about addressing past difficulties that get in the way of people’s ability to function in the present and dealing with current issues in an emotionally healthy way.
Differences between Coaching and Therapy
As Patrick Williams (n.d.) notes “I often say therapy is about uncovering and recovering, while coaching is about discovering. A therapist may add coaching skills to his or her practice, but a coach never engages in therapy.”
The Co-Active Training Institute (n.d.) states that;
Psychotherapy generally deals with people who have emotional/behavioral problems and disruptive situations. It seeks to bring the client to normal function by focusing on dysfunction. The primary focus is on healing.
Coaching deals with functional people who want to move toward higher function and achieve excellence, while creating an extraordinary life. The primary focus is on evolving a manifestation of potential. Healing is often a side effect.
If after reading through the differences between helping professions you feel like coaching is something you’re keen to explore, email rose@vesselwellbeing.com to discover more.
REFERENCES
American Psychological Association. (n.d.). APA Dictionary of Psychology. American Psychological Association. https://dictionary.apa.org/psychotherapy
Belf, T. and Marx, M. (2015). From the Toolbox: Do you give advice to your Clients? International Coach Federation.
https://coachingfederation.org/blog/from-the-toolbox-do-you-give-advice-to-your-clients
Business Mentors New Zealand. (n.d.). Frequently Asked Questions. What is Mentoring? Business Mentors New Zealand. https://www.businessmentors.org.nz/faqs
Chopra, V. and Saint, S. (2017). 6 Things Every Mentor Should Do. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2017/03/6-things-every-mentor-should-do
Co-Active Training Institute. (n.d.) FAQ. Co-Active Training Institute. https://coactive.com/resources/faq/#coach-training-certification
Consultancy.UK. (n.d.). What is a Consultant? Consultancy UK. https://www.consultancy.uk/career/what-is-a-consultant
Forbes Coaches Council. (2018). Key Differences Between Coaching And Consulting (And How To Decide What Your Business Needs). Forbes.
Hullinger, A. M. and DiGirolamo, J. A. (2018). Referring a client to therapy: A set of guidelines. International Coaching Federation. https://coachfederation.org/app/uploads/2018/05/Whitepaper-Client-Referral.pdf.
International Coaching Federation. (n.d.). All Things Coaching. International Coaching Federation. https://coachingfederation.org/about
International Coaching Federation. (2019). Core Competencies. International Coaching Federation. https://coachfederation.org/core-competencies
International Coaching Federation. (n.d.). Credentials and Standards. International Coaching Federation. https://coachingfederation.org/credentials-and-standards
International Coaching Federation. (n.d.). Feeling Stuck? International Coaching Federation. https://insightandcoaching.com/2015/09/feeling-stuck/
International Coaching Federation. (n.d.). Need Coaching? The benefits coaching can have on your organization. International Coaching Federation.
https://issuu.com/internationalcoachfederation/docs/needcoaching
Liburd, S. (2011). Executive Coaching. How to Make it Work. Matador.
Reitman, A and Benatti S. (2021). Mentoring vs Coaching. Association for Talent Development. https://www.td.org/insights/mentoring-versus-coaching-whats-the-difference
Rogers, J. (2004). Coaching Skills: A Handbook. Open University Press.
Thompson, G. (2017). The Master Coach. Leading with Character, Building Connections, and engaging in Extraordinary Conversations. SelectBooks, Inc.
Williams, P. (n.d.) COACHING VS PSYCHOTHERAPY The Great Debate. Choice. The Magazine of Professional Coaching, 2(1), 38-39.