Since a coaching style is often used in other vocations like mentoring, advising, supporting or training in sports, business, academics and psychotherapy, it can become confusing for the public to understand what coaching actually involves.
For what is professional coaching and how it differs from consulting: Download and listen to this MP3 recording of a recent interview of Coach John Agno for the answer to that question.
Since its inception as a new profession in the 1980s, coaches have been explaining the difference between coaching, therapy and consulting to the public....such as, "Coaching focuses on the present and the future where as psychotherapy focuses on the past." But such definitions are too simplistic.
In therapy, therapists treat a vast client population, with one common denominator: the majority of those seeking therapy are at a low point in their lives, facing distress and emotional pain. The process of therapy may differ dramatically from coaching. The process of therapy is rarely linear; during treatment, some aspects of a person's functioning improve while other aspects stay the same or change more slowly. A therapist might consider the therapy successful if, after treatment, a client has made substantial internal shifts in thinking, feeling and behaving, even if the client is still functioning in the world in a low to moderate range.
The coaching relationship is one of partnership and collaboration. Although the coach may be an expert in certain skills or areas, as a coach s/he is positioned as an equal with clients. S/he asks perceptive questions rather than gives advice. The person-being-coached defines their own goals, choices and decisions, with the coach's input. The coach uses accountability, motivational strategies and constructive support to help the person-being-coached meet and at times, exceed their desired goals. The purpose of coaching is to help people set and reach better goals, do more than they would have done on their own, and improve focus as as to produce results more quickly.
Although the purpose may be similar for therapy and coaching in some cases, the process differs. In therapy, emphasis may be placed on helping a client resolve past issues in order to be more functional in the present. In coaching, emphasis is placed solely on a person's present state of mind and future potential. Coaching is less about process and more about doing.
Coaching is notable for its flexibility in regard to setting. It's not necessary for coaches and their clients to have ever met face-to-face for the sessions to be effective. Sessions may be regular, infrequent, or packaged to fit the terms of a specific contract.
Coaches use specific coaching models learned from their coach training. Coaching tools, like self-assessments, checklists, exercises and programs, depending upon the needs of the person being coached.
The coach decides, often in the moment, what to say and when, how best to respond to a given situation, what questions to ask or when to be silent, how to challenge a client's statement or strategize a course of action, what suggestions to make that can help a client become motivated, or when to suggest a client stop and think. In every session, a coach is presented with a myriad of choices about what to do.
Wendy Allen: The Business and Practice of Coaching: Finding Your Niche, Making Money, & Attracting Ideal Clients
Frank Bresser: The global business guide for the successful use of coaching in organizations
John Agno: When Doing It All Won't Do: A Self-Coaching Guide for Career Women
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