What Coaching Is (And What It Isn’t)
Let’s be honest: the meaning behind the concept and practice of professional “coaching” is radically unclear to most of us.
As with other terms like leadership or synergy, the term coaching is used by so many different kinds of professionals, in so many different contexts, that when people hear it they tend to have one of two reactions:
They have no clear idea what it means. When you bring up coaching, they don’t know if you are talking about sports or well-ness practices.
They have a skewed idea of what it means. Perhaps worse, others think they know exactly what a coach is, but really have a distorted or inadequate perspective. They lump it in with therapy, mentoring, consulting, and a dozen other things that sound similar, but function very differently and carry very different purposes.
Setting the Coaching Record Straight…
So let’s clear this up.
We need to talk about what coaching is and what it isn’t. First-of-all, coaching is not about a genius creating a step-by-step manual for your life and giving it to you as a plug-and-play resource to follow. Coaching is also not therapy, which tends to focus on exploring your unresolved wounds from your past and guiding you toward inner healing. Additionally, coaching is not consulting, where someone tells you exactly what to do to solve your challenges out of their personal expertise and education. And, lastly, coaching is not mentoring, where a wise sage imparts their hard-earned wisdom to you, handing it down like a monk on a mountaintop.
What IS Coaching about?
Coaching is about unlocking your potential.
It’s about asking powerful questions in a partnership-relationship that enable you to see crucial blind-spots, and creating the space for you to discover the solutions that already exist inside you.
A good coach doesn’t give you their answers; They empower you find your own.
What Coaching ISN’T
Let’s dig further into the details on what coaching isn’t:
1. Coaching is NOT Therapy
If you need to unpack deep emotional wounds, process past trauma, or work through clinical mental health struggles, a therapist or spiritual leader is what you need. Therapy is about healing. Coaching is about finding forward momentum and reaching your goals. While you might touch on past experiences, the coaching relationship is primarily focused on where you’re going, not where you’ve been.
2. Coaching is NOT Consulting
Consultants give you a detailed roadmap. They analyze, strategize, and tell you exactly what to do about a given challenge you are facing. Coaching, on the other hand, is about helping you figure out the roadmap yourself.
Why is helping you find your own solutions to your challenges so important? It matters because, if someone hands you a one-size-fits-all blueprint, chances are it won’t actually fit you. Eventually, you can get discouraged, burned out, and give up on the plan. Coaching empowers you to make your own decisions, resulting in a scalable plan that aligns with your goals, values, and personal lifestyle.
3. Coaching is NOT Mentoring
Mentors are seasoned guides who have walked the path before you and can tell you exactly what worked for them. The idea in mentoring is that you want to model your life and actions after what “worked” for your mentor. Coaching is very different. Coaching isn’t about giving advice from the coach’s experience and expertise. On the contrary, Coaching is about helping you navigate, reframe, and dig the gold out of your own experience. A mentor tells you what worked for them, but a coach helps you figure out what will work for you.
What Coaching IS
Now that we’ve looked at what Coaching isn’t, let’s get deeper on what it is:
1. Coaching is About Unlocking Potential
The objective of a good coach is always to see what you might be missing in what they hear from you. They help you challenge unhelpful assumptions, break through limiting beliefs, and push past real-life obstacles. Coaching is about helping you find clarity, action, and results. The goal of the coaching relationship and coaching conversations isn’t just to talk; it’s to enable you to move forward.
2. Coaching is Future-Focused
The Coaching relationship is not about endlessly analyzing the past. Coaching is about focusing your mindset, energy, and steps toward where you want to go and how to get there. It’s about creating actionable steps and building the momentum to reach your goals. If therapy is about understanding, coaching is about executing.
3. Coaching is a Collaborative Process
Again, Coaching isn’t about a guru handing down wisdom for your life from a pedestal. Coaching is always first-and-foremost a relational partnership. A coach provides the structure for your times together, asks empowering questions, and challenges you to think differently. However, the growth you experience through the coaching relationship? The transformation that helps you thrive and go where you need to be? That’s all yours.
Who Coaching is For…
At Atlas, we know coaching is genuinely able to help anyone and everyone:
If you feel stuck, coaching is for you.
If you have big goals but no clear strategy, coaching is for you.
If you know you’re capable of more but don’t know how to break through the ceiling that keeps you where you are, coaching is for you.
Coaching is for leaders, business owners, creatives, professionals, and anyone who refuses to settle for just getting by.
Whoever you are, Coaching is for you, and is all about maximizing your potential- Not by giving you someone else’s plan, but by helping you build the best plan for yourself.
What are YOU Waiting for?
Whether you are the leader of a multicultural team or mission-driven organization, an international educator or student, or just someone struggling to break through mental and practical barriers to reach your goals, Atlas has a specialized coaching relationship and customized solution for you!
So if you’re ready to move forward and not just think about moving forward, reach out and book a free, no-pressure, exploration conversation and let’s see if we are a fit for you.
We would love to hear from you!