People often confuse coaching with counseling. While studying for my certification, I was struck by a very simple explanation: counseling looks backward, while coaching looks forward.
If you find yourself talking about the past and what was done to you, you may be in need of counseling. You have a wound to heal. If you were riding your bike and crashed, splitting your head open, you wouldn’t think about getting back on your bike and riding along. Actually, I know someone who did—but I don’t advise it. Sure, you could tough it out for a while, but over the long haul, your wound is going to fester and keep you from progressing fully. Most of us would go to the hospital to get checked out, have an x-ray, maybe get stitches and some pain pills. Time would be needed for healing before one would hop in the saddle for another ride. Those who have an emotional wound would require the same: time and treatment–time to heal and counseling for emotional pain. As with most physical wounds, an emotional wound can be healed and when that happens, it’s time to get back in the saddle of life.
While counseling looks back in time, coaching looks forward to bring about positive change. Theoretically, a person is ready for coaching when they are already in a healthy place, but want a more fulfilling life. Coaching begins from a place of emotional stability and continues to move a person forward along a positive continuum. A coach will help you make a change in your life and will guide you and push you further than you would go on your own. Coaching is a partnership between two equals. A coach does not give advice like a therapist might, and instead, will guide a coachee with powerful questions to lead them toward action and accountability.
I’ve had both counseling and coaching. Both have been extremely helpful and have provided amazing results in my life. I am grateful for the time spent in counseling to heal what needed to be healed. I’ve enjoyed significant changes in my life from coaching. You can be coached in any area you need help with. I used my life coach to:
- Help me forgive someone I was having difficulty forgiving
- Give credit where credit was due in my life (To God and to others, not to myself)
- Stop emotional eating
- Set and reach business goals
It’s from a place of healing, stability and abundance that I now coach from. I’ve been through many things in life and I use all those experiences, my strengths, and the hope I’ve been given to help others find lasting change in their lives. It is truly an honor and privilege to give back.
To determine whether you need counseling or coaching, make a point to hear yourself in conversation with others. What do you talk about? If you keep referring to the past, you might benefit from counseling. Remember, there is no shame in that. If you dream about a life you’re not yet living, you might seek coaching. Whether it’s counseling or coaching, it is an investment in you. Give yourself and the loved ones in your life a beautiful gift: the very best you.