Coaching vs Therapy
What is coaching?
The ICF defines coaching as a partnership with clients in a process of reflection and creativity that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential. Coaching focuses on vision, success, the present, and progress toward the future.
What is therapy?
Therapy, on the other hand, focuses on psychopathology, emotions, and the past to understand the present, and works more on developing skills to manage emotions or past issues.
Coaching draws elements from both consulting and therapy
Coaching
- Executive or leadership coaching aims to develop the skills and behaviors needed to achieve goals within a professional context.
- It supports clients in defining these goals, typically for a set duration.
- It adheres to an ethical framework specific to coaching.
- The focus is on the future, although past behavior patterns may be explored.
- It involves collaboration with clients as equal partners.
Therapy
- Supports clients facing mental health issues, with an open-ended timeframe.
- Guided by medical ethical standards.
- Based on a medical model that emphasizes diagnosis and pathology.
- Focuses on past experiences.
- Emphasizes skill development for emotional well-being.
- Relies on an expert-patient relationship.
- Encourages the exploration of personal experiences.
- Addresses complex challenges in both professional and personal life.
- Focuses on the transformation of individual behavior.
- Involves asking the right questions.
Coaching
- Executive or leadership coaching aims to develop the skills and behaviors needed to achieve goals within a professional context.
- It supports clients in defining these goals, typically for a set duration.
- It adheres to an ethical framework specific to coaching.
- The focus is on the future, although past behavior patterns may be explored.
- It involves collaboration with clients as equal partners.
- Encourages the exploration of personal experiences.
- Addresses complex challenges in both professional and personal life.
- Focuses on the transformation of individual behavior.
- Involves asking the right questions.
Therapy
- Supports clients facing mental health issues, with an open-ended timeframe.
- Guided by medical ethical standards.
- Based on a medical model that emphasizes diagnosis and pathology.
- Focuses on past experiences.
- Emphasizes skill development for emotional well-being.
- Relies on an expert-patient relationship.
A coach is like a sports trainer, while a therapist is like a doctor specializing in sports medicine. The trainer operates on the assumption that the athlete is in overall good health and focuses on improving physical fitness and performance. However, if there is a suspicion of injury or a health issue, the trainer will refer the athlete to the team doctor.
Inspired by the Harvard Business Review article “What Can Coaches Do for You?” by Diane Coutu and Carol Kauffman