Difference between Counseling, Consulting, Coaching and Mentoring
If you are reading this post, you already know the value of a mentor because you have / had a mentor, you are a mentor, or you are seeking a mentor. Good for you! One of my mottos is: give and receive all that you have to give and receive in this life!
One of my coaching mentors shared this analogy, which for me really nails the difference between counseling, consulting, and coaching.
If you approached a therapist, consultant, and coach and asked each one “how do I learn to ride a bike”, the therapist would have you approach the bike and ask how that feels, what prior associations do you have with bikes etc., the consultant would ride the bike, write instructions for the ‘how to’ and hand those to you, a coach would say, “Okay, get on the bike, and I’ll walk alongside you until you can do it on your own.”
What about mentoring?
To me, a mentor is someone that has experience and expertise in a specific area in which I want to learn and grow. I rely on my mentor for advice, wisdom, lessons learned, and specific pointers. Using the bike riding analogy, a mentor would say, “Let me share with you how I mastered biking, and I’ll give you tips on how to accelerate your mastery, and connect you with other bikers.”
Prefer video over print on this topic? Want to get a better sense of Jen Coffey and what a coaching session with her might be like?
Do I need a mentor or a coach?
Why not have both? A great coach will hold your focus, cheer for you, provide honest reflections, and accountability. In my experience as a coach, I notice that my clients in technology often also have at least one mentor in a technical area into which they are growing. It’s great to have multiple people supporting your goals and dreams, sharing the vision of your success in whatever way you chose to define it.
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As a recent attendee among the WEST community, I felt a sense of excitement, optimism, camaraderie, empowerment, mutual support, inspiration and love. Women, we need more of this! It made me look back at the powerful women who have mentored me, counseled me, allowed me to mentor them, counsel them, and now coach them. I am deeply inspired by, and in awe of the women leaders in tech that I witness showing up as mentors and mentees through WEST.
I am grateful to have the capacity to listen and love through the vehicle of coaching. I view coaching as an empowerment model. To me counseling, consulting, coaching, and mentoring all share the value of empowerment. For that reason, I love to collaborate with all of these models in an effort to light up the path to empowerment, fulfillment, great joy, and success in the unique ways we each define. I am honored to hold trusted sacred space for the superstar clients that show up in my life. I believe we all want to have deeply fulfilling lives — I count myself as lucky to have found a path that allows me to do what I love, while multiplying the potential for fulfillment in the lives of my clients and those that they impact.
Jen Coffey is a CTI Co-Active coach currently working on certification, and enrolling new clients. Set up a complimentary coaching session to see if it’s a fit:https://jencoffeycoaching.com/contact-1/
