Coaching

It is not psychotherapy

Psychotherapy is a method of healing performed by a qualified psychologist. Therapy is working with the client who seeks relief from psychological or physical symptoms. The client wants emotional healing and relief from mental pain. Therapy deals with the client’s mental health. Coaching deals with the client’s mental growth. The client’s motive for entering therapy or counseling is usually to get away from pain or discomfort, rather than moving towards desired goals. Coaching is not remedial, but rather generative. Both therapy and counseling are more likely to involve understanding and working with past experiences than coaching.

We will not deal with your past. We will not deal with your memories, because coaching focuses on the “here and now”, and a potential changed future.

It is not consultancy

Consultancy is not a form of self-development, but may be a very useful way of solving problems. A consultant provides expertise and solves business problems, or develops a business as a whole. A consultant deals with the overall organization or specific parts of it, and not individuals within it. Consultants only indirectly affect individuals, and they use their expert knowledge for a specific situation/case, but not for a specific person.
A consultant will give you alternatives to solving problems, whereas I will neither tell you what to do nor will I opine what in my opinion is the best course of action. You are the expert of your life, not me.

It is not mentoring

A Mentor is an expert who shares his/her experience and knowledge. There is general agreement that a mentor is a guide who helps someone to learn or develop faster than they might do alone. A mentoring relationship usually focuses on the future, career development, and broadening an individual’s horizons.I do not have the same experiences as you. I have different experiences, and I do not share them with you during coaching sessions.
Choose mentoring if:
You want someone more experienced to listen to you. If you need specific advice. If you want someone to tell you how he/she sees your problem, and how they would solve it. If you want someone, whom you can trust, to share with you his/her experiences and open your eyes. You want to hear what he/she thinks about your problem solving ideas.

It is not training

Training is the process of getting knowledge skills or abilities by study, experience or teaching. The trainer by definition is the expert, and the training course is likely to be targeted on specific skills for immediate results. Training is also likely to be to a group, rather than on a one to one basis. 

During coaching sessions I am neither a trainer nor am I a teacher, so I will not give you the right answers, or recipes for success, or teach you any new skills, although  I can recommend a book, movie or a lecture.

Choose a training/workshop if:

You know what to do, but you lack the knowledge and skills how to do it, or how to behave in a specific manner, or if you need recipes for success, or if you want to practice new ways of presenting.