The Difference Between Counseling and Coaching
And How to Know Which You’re Really Looking For!
One of the most common questions we get here at Arise is “what’s the difference between counseling and coaching?” And it’s a GREAT question! One we’re uniquely able to help answer – because we specialize in both. To simplify it, we like to think of it like this:
Counseling is like unraveling a ball of yarn, while coaching is knitting a sweater!
The difference lies in gaining an understanding of self vs. evolution of self.
Counseling
Counseling or therapy is focused on healing emotional wounds, trauma, and grief, in addition to relieving symptoms of anxiety, depression, and other mental health challenges.
Counseling also offers guidance on spiritual healing and growth and is effective in healing relational pain and struggle to restore wholeness to individuals, couples, and families. It is focused on providing insight and emotional support.
A gifted therapist will help equip and empower you to accomplish your mental health and wellness goals by walking alongside you in the process of self-discovery and self-healing.
He or she also offers you tools and strategies to help you resolve personal and relational challenges so you can live in more freedom, fulfillment, and enjoyment in every area of your life.
Coaching
Coaching is focused on breaking free from any survival based pattern, belief, program, or conditioning that is hindering you from becoming your optimal self so you can develop your emotional, mental, relational, and leadership skills and abilities, optimize your potential, and maximize your performance – helping you become the best version of you.
It equips you to resolve personal, professional, business and leadership challenges, with transformational wisdom and insight, practical tools and strategies, and a solutions-focused approach.
You will discover the unique essence of your true identity, purpose, and calling, access your inner wisdom, trust your instincts, eliminate your blind spots, clear your unconscious blocks, and hone your strengths to unlock and unleash your unique brilliance and live and lead with the freedom, impact, abundance, and enjoyment you were designed for!
How the Experiences are Different
Most often therapy is approached on a session by session basis. Because you will be ready to “graduate” at some point! Therapy shouldn’t be a forever process. It’s designed to be supportive but also transformational in nature if it’s done effectively.
And coaching is where you graduate into next – to focus on evolution and achieving your life, career, and business goals.
If you aren’t sure, or you’re looking for some combination of both, don’t worry – we can help. Reach out to setup a call with one of us and we’ll help you get clear on what kind of support is best for you based on where you’re at right now.
We can always move from one to the other as we work together, and several of us offer the best of both worlds so you continue to grow and evolve along your own life’s journey. The important thing isn’t which type of support you need, it’s taking the first step of allowing us to support you in the powerful transformation you want! That’s why we are here!
Connie Jones
Learn more about Breakthrough Coaching and Business Coaching with Connie here.
Andra Prowant
Read more about Andra’s Coaching here.
Did You Know…
- 73% of coaching clients say that coaching helps them improve their relationships, communication skills (72%), interpersonal skills (71%), work performance (70%), work/life balance (67%), and wellness (63%). (2009 ICF Global Coaching Study)
- A case study of women leaders who participated in coaching shows that leadership coaching can help coaching clients improve their self-awareness, self-confidence, self-leadership, leadership style, and their relationship to power, conflict, and personal life. (International Journal of Evidence Based Coaching and Mentoring)
- 70% of coaching clients improve work performance, communication, and relationships thanks to coaching. (Institute of Coaching)
- Individual and group coaching can help to reduce procrastination and facilitate goal attainment. (Frontiers in Psychology)
- Coaching has positive side effects on performance and skills, wellbeing, coping, goal-directed self-regulation, and work attitudes. (The Journal of Positive Psychology)
- 75% of coaching clients say that the value they get from executive and leadership coaching is “considerably greater” or “far greater” than the money and time they invest. (International Journal of Evidence Based Coaching and Mentoring)
- Coaching can have a relatively big effect on coaching clients’ coping capacities and resilience, attitudes, subjective wellbeing, goal attainment, and performance. (The Journal of Positive Psychology)
- Executive coaching can help women improve their work satisfaction, wellbeing, and performance. (International Journal of Evidence Based Coaching and Mentoring)
Sounds great, right? Let’s make it happen for you!
