Is Mentoring and Coaching the same?
What is mentoring and how important is Mentoring?
The most simple description of mentoring is — A more experienced person in a field guiding a less experienced person. Simple — right?
This raised a question in my mind, coaching sounds the same — A more experienced person helping a less experienced person. Then what is the difference between mentoring and coaching?
In both cases, a person is being guided by another person with a better experience.
This made me curious and I went into more depth to find the difference between the two.
Yes, there is an overlapping between mentoring and coaching but they are not the same.
What is Mentoring?
Let me elaborate on it with my life example.
If you ask me, “Who was your first mentor?” My reply will be, “My parents.”
Yes, my parents — both my father and my mother are my first mentors who shaped my character.
For example, honesty was instilled in me by my father. He was a senior class one officer in revenue department with endless means to earn tons of money by unethical means, but nothing, however tempting that could be, let him bulge from his principle of honesty. In fact, in monetary terms, he suffered more than being rewarded for his honesty. This had a deep impact on me because he kept us explaining what he chose and how it works in shaping us as a good human being.
Not only honesty but for many other qualities like punctuality, being fearless, straightforwardness, my father was my mentor.
On the other hand, it was my mother, who taught me how to remain grounded all the time and adapt to different conditions.
We had the privilege of having many people take care of domestic works like cooking, cleaning, washing clothes, etc., VIP treatment on many occasions, but my mother would ensure that we washed our undergarments, cleaned room once in a week and remained grounded. These were the times when in India refrigerators, washing machines even cooking gas were not there.
This is how my parents built my character to become a better human being over a period of time. They took me through this journey and were instrumental in all associated requirements like sending to a good school, creating the right environment, etc.
This is what mentoring is. Shaping a person over a period of time in an area and ensuring that he gets the opportunity to develop the right skills.
In general, a mentor helps mentees realize the opportunities for growth, gain confidence, and excel in a field. In the mentor-mentee relationship, the trust factor plays a big role.
This is applicable in any area like business, sports, personal development, politics, music, spirituality, and so on.
What is Coaching?
Coaching is focused on developing specific skills within a specified period of time.
The International Coaching Federation defines coaching as “Partnering with clients in a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential.”
Let us take the example of public speaking, which has many skills like eye contact, voice modulation, hand movements, body posture, etc. A coach will help in understanding and developing such skills.
A coach helps you to recognize your potential and develop the skill.
How mentoring and coaching are different?
In our example of public speaking, skill development is one aspect but only learning the skills does not make one a great speaker.
To become an effective speaker is a journey. One has to go through the journey to effectively implement the learned skills.
A mentor takes one through that journey. He stands by the side through the bumps and turns and helps to excel towards the goal.
Thus coaching may be a part of mentoring but mentors are not coaches.
So coaching is more about specialization in certain skills and is a short term relationship, whereas mentoring is shaping a personality and is long term relationship.
Both are important.
One has to understand the potential and learn the skills to become great in any field. But the skills not implemented in a proper manner has no value.
A coach helps you to develop the skills and a mentor takes you through the journey to greatness.
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